Person Centered And Behavior Therapy

Person Centered And Behavior Therapy

Person-Centered and Behavior Therapy
February 1, 2011
Abstract
While behavior therapy and person-centered therapy are established by proponents who were very different, there are still some similarities in their view of personality.   This literature review attempts to understand both views of personality development, therapy, and methods used, more importantly, this paper presents which methods have shown to be effective with clients in the counseling relationship.
Person-Centered and Behavior Therapy
Each theory of personality and psychotherapy has identifying characteristics that have been shown to be effective in therapy over time.   It is up to the therapist to decide which approach best fits their style so that the client being assisted feels and knows the therapist is being true and genuine to their own personality.   Person-centered and behavior therapy are two very popular approaches that will be analyzed in their theory of personality, theory of therapy, and methods.
Theory of Personality
Person-Centered
The formation of personality for humanity, according to Sharf (2008), depends on unique social, cultural, and physical aspects of an environment and its impact on the individual psychologically and biologically.   Based on these experiences, individuals tend to create “self-regard” which can be congruent or incongruent with what they are actually experiencing.   Carl Rogers’s theory of personality distinguishes a course in which individuals go through in their formation of personality and the variables the can have an impact on it.
Fernald (2000) and Sharf (2008) mention these distinct experiences from a person-centered perspective.   An idea that must be known in order to gain a better understanding of Rogerian therapy is the term that Rogers calls the actualizing tendency.   This tendency is his belief that all humans want to be successful and meet their potential.   This belief does not only emphasize an individual’s need for survival, but...