Counselors play a crucial role of help individuals deal with and navigate through issues that affect their mental health and overall wellbeing. These professionals succeed in this role because they rely on several theoretical frameworks that revolve around human nature, the role of counselor and counseling goals. Adlerian, person-centred, psychoanalytic theories are some of the most common approaches to counseling, considering that they are holistic. A comparison of these theories highlights their varying perspectives, strategies and techniques and how they impact clients outcomes.
Theoretical Views of Human Nature
Human nature is a recurring concept in counseling that is used to denote fundamental characteristics and dispositions that are inherent in people. Particularly the concept highlights the need to focus on clients' ways of feeling, thinking and acting to increase success. The Adlerian theory establishes that the environment and heredity do not solely determine human behavior. Instead, human beings are in a position to influence, create and interpret events, to mean that they can choose what to do with their abilities and limitations (Eremie & Kennedy, 2016). Thus, therapists who adopt the Adlerian approach focus on re-educating their clients and reshaping their mindset to have more control over their psychological wellbeing. On the other hand, Freud's psychoanalytic theory views human nature as a dynamic force that causes transformation through energy exchange. Freud referred to this release of energy as catharsis, which allows for relief from repressed or strong emotions (Schweitzer et al., 2018). Lastly, person-centred theory advances the notion that human beings are inherently good since they are forward-moving, positive, realistic, trustworthy and constructive. These characteristics mean that human beings have an inner drive to work towards a purpose to be useful and achieve self-actualization.
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Role of Counselor
The role of counselor is an important and recurring concept in Adlerian, psychoanalytic and person-centred theories. The main role for counselors who adopt Adlerian theory is to evaluate the causes of a client's past experiences and memories that make one behave in a particular way (Lindheim et al., 2016). Typically, a counselor would collect adequate information about the client's family history to understand its relation to present actions. This exploration which involves the body, mind and soul, becomes a platform through which the counselor educates the client on strategies for lifestyle readjustment. This theory requires the counselor to give honest feedback and assign tasks that would help the client be more aware and pave for behavior modification.
Psychoanalytic theory aligns with the Adlerian approach since the role of the counselor is to search for recurring events or events to the client's past to enhance an understanding of the current problems. Similarly, the counselor, is required to listen to the client's dreams and fantasies and, from here, encourage him or her to self-identify and relate with their emotional states and subconscious factors driving their behaviors (Lindheim et al., 2016). These strategies are crucial considering that client's actions while in counselling sessions mirror how they relate with others, including parents, spouses and other people from their childhood.
A counselor who adopts person-centered theory is required to promote conditions that would facilitate change instead of forcing specific changes. Essentially, counselors maintain genuine relationships with their clients so that they can provide them with positive regard. According to Farber et al. (2018), positive regard, a technique that counselors use, shows complete acceptance and support to increase the client's psychological wellbeing. Similarly, the counselor follows the client's lead instead of directing the course of counseling to improve outcomes. Overall, a person-centred counselor focuses on developing an empathetic environment and let the client know that it will impact one's actions and choices.
Goals of Counseling
The main objective of counseling is to improve the overall mental health and wellbeing of patients. Adlerian counselling aims to help clients identify and recognize misconceptions and assumptions about themselves, others, and life in general. Lindheim et al. (2016) note that this goal aligns with the four goals outlined in the theory's four stages: engagement, assessment, insight, and reorientation. Thus, this identification is a way of helping clients to be active participants in their social world. On the other hand, the goal is to help clients better understand the unconscious forces that impact their current emotions, thoughts, and behaviors (Schweitzer et al., 2018). Similarly, the goal is invoking emotional responses to overcome defence mechanisms that patients use to deal with negative emotions. Lastly, person-centred counseling aims to help clients become fully functioning to understand themselves concerning their environment to resolve their issues. Similarly, this theory aims at encouraging clients to have increased awareness of their feelings, attitudes, and behaviors to identify problems that hinder their growth process.
Techniques and Strategies
Counselors have various techniques and strategies to choose from, depending on whether they are using Adlerian. Psychoanalytic or person-centred theoretical frameworks. Adlerian counseling employs various techniques, which are early recollections, strength-based interviews, and acting as if. Strength-based interviews explore individuals' internal and external resources and strengths to meet the challenges they face. Gumz et al. (2017) note that this technique encourages clients to rely on their strengths to improve and change their approach to life. Early recollections allow clients to explore their early memories and feelings to derive insights while acting as it is about trying new behaviors for a short while.
The psychoanalytic theory uses various techniques, most notably free association, transference, and interpretation. Free association is a technique where the counselor allows the client to speak freely about whatever comes to their mind. On the other hand, transference is where the client transfers their feelings or thoughts about others onto the counselor while interpretation allows for analysis of their thoughts (Gumz et al., 2017). Counselors who adopt person-centred theory are free to use various techniques, including unconditional positive regard, congruence and empathy. Unconditional positive regard requires counselors to accept, care and respect clients, while congruence is ensuring that counselor's words and actions match. On the other hand, empathy focuses on the need for counselors to understand their client's emotions instead of feeling sorry for themselves. Overall, these techniques and strategies help clients explore their emotions and thoughts to pave the way for positive change.
References
Eremie, M. D., & Kennedy, M. G. (2016). Review of selected counseling theories and assumptions of human nature. International Journal of Innovative Psychology & Social Development, 4 (4), 12-26.
Farber, B. A., Suzuki, J. Y., & Lynch, D. A. (2018). Positive regard and psychotherapy outcome: A meta-analytic review. Psychotherapy, 55 (4), 411–423. https://doi.org/10.1037/pst0000171
Gumz, A., Treese, B., Marx, C., Strauss, B., & Wendt, H. (2017). Measuring verbal psychotherapeutic techniques: A systematic review of intervention characteristics and measures. Frontiers in Psychology, 6 (3) 1705-1730. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2015.01705
Lindhiem, O., Bennett, C. B., Orimoto, T. E., & Kolko, D. J. (2016). A meta-analysis of personalized treatment goals in psychotherapy: A preliminary report and call for more studies. Clinical Psychology, 23 (2), 165–176. https://doi.org/10.1111/cpsp.12153
Schweitzer, R. D., Glab, H., Brymer, E. (2018). The human–nature experience: A phenomenological-psychoanalytic perspective. Frontiers in Psychology, 9 (5), 969-985. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2018.00969
