Person-centered therapy also known as Rogerian therapy was developed in the 1930s by psychologist Carl Rogers. It is a client-centered form of treatment where the client leads the conversation, and the therapist provides complete empathy, acceptance, and support. In episode two of HBO series In Treatment, the therapist applies some concepts of Rogerian therapy in his session with Alex. Alex is an intense navy pilot who went through a traumatic event in Iraq, and the therapist uses Rogerian approach to help the client process the trauma and his guilt without being judgmental.
“Alex: week One” episode starring Gabriel Byrne as Dr. Paul Weston (therapist) and Blair Underwood as Alex Prince. Alex is a confident navy pilot who puts Paul’s credentials to test as he narrates his experiences in Iraq that made him go to therapy. Alex walks into Paul’s office with his sunglasses and starts checking out the office before asking Paul if there are any rules and Paul respond’s that, “it is up to you” to show that the client will steer the conversation.
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The four core concepts of Rogerian approach including self-actualization, positive-regard, congruence and empathetic understanding are seen in the film. Paul provided an attitudinal environment characterized by empathetic understanding, positive regard, and congruence, and Alex perceived it, which is why he was in charge of the conversation. Alex talked about the madrassa murder incident, his mother’s death, when he died while running with a friend in Afghan and even his grandfather’s death and Paul listened with empathic understanding.
Paul seems to be relying on Rogerian approach a bit much or instead Alex wants Paul to know he is in control. In the first session, Paul asks Alex what he wants to achieve from the therapy, and he tells Paul to be patient because they will get to that. Alex tells Paul to be patient on many occasions, and this makes it clear that Paul is relying on Rogerian approach.
During the therapy session, Paul listens to Alex with the intention of helping him achieve congruence. Wilczynski (2004) defines congruence as the agreement between a person’s self-concept, ideal self, and their real self. Alex talked on and on about his self-concept; he perceived himself as a military elite. He described how he has excelled in everything in life, which is why he was adamant that he was not guilty about his role in the Madrassa bombing that killed young children in Iraq. When Alex insists on going back to the scene of the bombing; Paul helps him reconcile his self-concept, ideal self, and real self to achieve more congruence. Rogers (1966) emphasizes the importance of empathetic understanding and reflection. Paul listens empathetically, even when he does not agree with Alex to understand him and help him achieve a balance between real and ideal self.
The session abruptly ended when Paul pointed out that Alex could be feeling guilty for his role. Alex wanted to explore it more, but Dr. Paul insisted that the session was over. Rogers (1995) emphasized on setting boundaries such as the time limit for each session so that the clients are not entirely in control. Alex will come back to the next session with questions for Paul on how the session ended. Alex will narrate more stories about his childhood, his experiences from the navy and his life in general; and Paul will help Alex make sense of his life/ reality by repeating his stories to reach a logical conclusion.
References
Rogers, C. R. (1995). On becoming a person: A therapist's view of psychotherapy . Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.
Rogers, C. R. (1966). Client-centered therapy (p. xi). Washington, DC: American Psychological Association.
Wilczynski, J. (2004). Teaching client-centered therapy: A pilot analysis of the empathic responses of clinical psychology graduate students. The Person-Centered Journal , 11 (1- 2), 2-21.
