Key Features of the Person Centred Approach

Carl Rogers was an American psychologist who became unhappy with the results of psychoanalyst and behavioural schools and later went on to develop the person centred approach in the 1940’s to 1950’s. Carl believed in Abraham Maslow's theory although he said that all Individuals are unique and given the right environment we all have an innate ability to reach our full potential. (Actualizing tendency).

Carl Rogers believed that the organismic self is what we are born with, how we really are as a person and what we want to do in life, In Rogers theory he split it up into three areas, Self-image (The way we and others see ourselves), Self-esteem (How much we value ourselves) and the ideal self (How we wish we was like), as we get older our organismic self-starts to diminish as we develop what Carl called the self-concept, this is influence by socialisation, family, teachers, etc. It is formed through past experience, other people’s views, beliefs and positive regard, this is where we begin to behave, think and feel in ways that we think will be valued by others or how others see us. (Example – A man will not cry because they “think” that others will see this as a weakness and they will not be a “real man”.)

Carl believed that the organismic self is in conflict with the concept of self and this is where we start to feel lost as a person.

Carl believed that people feel that they need to be thought of in a positive way, loved and treated with warmth by others.

He thought of Positive regard as the cause, this is how people treat us for our thoughts, feelings and actions. Carl split this into 2 areas.

Unconditional positive regard – This is where we are accepted and loved for who we are as people no matter what we do, think, say or feel and it is never taken away from us.

Example - Brian has always wanted to become an electrician but his parents want him to become a doctor, Brian chooses to study as an electrician as his parents want him to do what will make him happy and they will be proud of him no matter what he chooses to do.

Conditional positive regard – This is where we are only accepted If we behave, act and feel in the way that others want us too, It is taken away if we disobey towards these.