Humanistic Approach in Counselling

Humanistic is a term in psychology relating to an approach which studies the person as a whole and the uniqueness of each individual. The main goals of this counselling approach are to find out how individuals perceive themselves here and now and to recognise their strengths, growth, self-direction and responsibilities. This approach is optimistic and attempts to help individuals by offering a non-judgemental, understanding experience.
Unlike other therapies the client is responsible for improving his or her life, not the therapist. This is a deliberate change from both psychoanalysis and behavioral therapies where the client is diagnosed and treated by a doctor. Instead, the client consciously and rationally decides for themselves what is wrong and what should be done about it. The therapist is more of a friend who listens and encourages on an equal level.
Client-centered therapy focuses on unconditional positive regard, empathetic understanding and genuineness. I very much believe that these three principles allow Tanya to feel empowered and capable of finding solutions to her own problems.
How Client-Centered Therapy Works
Rather than analyzing what is wrong with the patient and subjecting the patient’s feelings and behaviors to analytical interpretation, the therapist is a companion on a patient’s journey to cope with and find solutions to life’s problems. “You’re focused on being empathically in tune with patients’ objective experience and helping them in a fairly nondirect way to get more in touch with their emotional subjective experience,” explains Jeffrey L. Binder, Ph.D., a professor of psychology at Argosy University in Atlanta.
The therapist honors and respects the patient’s autonomy, choices and values rather than trying to change the person. Because the therapist is focused on creating an atmosphere of acceptance and safety, the patient is better able to play an active role in the therapeutic process.
In client-centered therapy,