It is often claimed, in outcome studies and various ‘guidelines’, that cognitive-behavioral therapy (the components brought together as: exposure) is the therapy of choice for a range of psychological problems, especially when concrete symptoms (like compulsion, agoraphobia, and social anxiety) are strongly present on the foreground.
If that is really true, has client-centered psychotherapy (here summarized as: exploration) so much less to offer to so many patients?
Should client-centered psychotherapy take in elements from different approaches, especially the cognitive-behavioral therapy, in order to be more effective? And is it possible to integrate those without destroying the client-centered ‘streamline’?
This article shows that a responsible integration works better when backed up by a theoretical framework. The author illustrates this by fine-tuning behavioral therapeutic interventions (‘exposure’) to client-centered therapy (‘exploration’), which proves that these two do not necessarily form a frustrating contrast, but can also line up in a fine continuum.
behavioral therapeutic exposure, client-centered exploration, integrating cognitive-behavioral techniques in client-centered psychotherapy
The tPeP (Journal Person-centered experiential Psychotherapy) is the scientific journal for Dutch and Flemish psychotherapists, psychologists, and psychiatrists, that work from, or are interested in a client-centered perspective.