Unit- 2 Selection and Training Of The

Counselor

I. Introduction
II. Problems related to counseling process
-III. Factors influencing training of counselors
IY. Code of conduct/ Ethics .
V. Difference between counseling and psychotherapy
VI. Theory of Self (Carl Rogers)
Assumptions of Client Centered Approach
- VII.

I. Introduction
Counseling is regarded as a professional field. It helps individual to solve their problem.
There are many individuals who have problems and need someone they can trust, is older, is an
I expert and has some experience. Counsellors fit in this category. Coupsellors have developed to
have a professional body, and they look into selection and training of counsellor.

In India counselling services have not been developed, as there are many major problems that
have to be dealt with first. For eg poverty, illiteracy and unemployment.

In 1954, the secondary school commission, recommended vocationalised education to

QVercome the problem·. of unemployment. However the students faced a problem of choice
between different vocational courses offered and there were no vocational counsellors to help
them. So a need for counsellors was felt. Counselling services were also introduced in the areas
of health, population, nutrition etc.
I

The standard quality and efficiency of counselling has to be maintained, as it is a professional

field. So it is important for them .to make then professionally competent. This is done by
- conducting training programs. Th~ ethical code of conduct was also introduced. This is
-
maintained through licenses or certification process.
I
 1

II. Problems related to counselin~ process

Not everyone can become a counsellor as a counsellor asked to solve problems . t of others.
. IS
These problems are of sensitive nature and so, it . ortant to select an appropna e person. In
. imp
. appom
educational institutions, when a counsellor 1s • ted it can either
. be a person
. working as a
private counsellor or someone from among the teach ers can be appomted. But m such a case the
. d .c1or b emg
teachers might not have the training reqmre · a counsellor. They could also be other
problems like biases and prejudices that couId spot at the up appointment of a single teacher as
.c 11owmg
a counsellor. Before appointing a counsellor the 10 · things have to be kept in mind -

• Educational qualifications
• Professional training
• Interests

1. ACADEMIC PREPARATION -The functions of the counsellor have not been clearly defined.
An understanding of the aims and goals can help to define the areas of counsellors education
and training. Counsellor education basically refers to the academic training as well as a broad
based knowledge and understanding of motivation, learning, personality, nature of human
development that is developmental psychology. It is important to study motivation to
understand motive behind individual's behavior. It is important to study the human
development to see the extent and significance of early influences. He also needs a broad-based
knowledge about social psychology to develop interpersonal skills. Knowledge about historical •
. '
and philosophical aspects of psychology is also required. Research methods are important m
counselling psychology and so knowledge about them is also required. Besides a thorough
knowledge of abov.e topics a thorough knowledge of philosophies and principles of counselling
are also required.

2. PROFESSIONAL SKILLS -Knowledge about counsel}' . . d It · ·mportant to

mg process 1s reqmre . 1s 1 .
undergo training about techniques of counselling C rt . kill . rtant for the
• e am s s are very 1mpo
counsellor as it would help in development and m . t . . ll .. lationsbiP•
am amance of chent - counse or re
These skills include an ability to listen to the client t b b . . . d able to
hear hus story. A Counsellor should be able to ev , o e
. a le to empathise with mn. ai1
1 h utcorne~• }~·

a1uate mterest as well as a result t e 0

 And training for interpersonal skills has to be imparted, for example skill of writing a case
record choosing and administrating psychological tests, interpreting test results etc. I mere
intellectual learning and training will not help an individual to master the skills. He learns by
1
undergoing training for such skills.

3. PERSONALI1Y TRAITS - In any professional Field, significance of personality traits has

become very important. The personality traits that would make a counsellor more effective
includes interest in helping people, sensitive to the situation around, sensitive to the needs of
otter people, sincerity, genuineness etc. Why selecting the counsellor tests can be given to see
whether these personality traits are present in the individual or not. Some personality traits,
t however a difficult to evaluate. Nevertheless, there are certain personality traits that can be
evaluated.

4. WORK EXPERIENCE - This is an important aspect, as it helps the counsellor to develop an

insight about the type of problems of the consellee. Most counsellors go to schools and colleges
to work. It helps them to know about The surroundings as well as the needs of student&,
expectations of parents etc. Tollbert and his colleagues questioned why only working in
educational institutions should not be the criteria for selection. According to them, education
and counselling are different aspects. Only working in the educational institution would limit its
experience. This is because clients that come to him later on could be of any class, age or sex and
t so their problems will be just as varied. Thus the counsellor has to be equipped with facing any
situation. The solution to this is to provide training. Different levels of training should . be
provided

a) Basic general training

b) Training of specialisations

5 GUIDELINES FOR THE SELECTION OF A COUNSELLOR-_A person undergoing training for

a counsellor, it does not do well or is not interested, shouldn't be advised to take another field.
The professional standard committee of American College in personal association has given
certain guidelines for the selection of a counsellor. They carried out a survey of 2 1 institutes that
 . b · f that provided guidelines for the sel .
provtded training in counselling and on the asIS O ectionof
I
a counsellor. They are-
- Selection of counsellor should be done by training InStitute
· d" ·dual should have required ed .
- To become a counsellor, the m IVI ucationa1
qualifications, professional skills, attitude as well as an attitude of understanding
- Knowledge of more than one field is essential
- Interest in the field of counselling is essential
- Emotional integrity in personal adjustment essential characteristics
- More than one year of work experience in an educational inSt itution or one year of
work in any other field of counselling is essential
- The following personality traits should have been measured with the help of
psychological tests while selecting the counsellor - Social sensitivity, warmth and friendliness
in interpersonal relationships, ability to interact with people from all walks of life, sense of
humour,. leadership qualities, attractive/pleasant appearance and cleanliness, self-respect,
interest, enthusiasm, and sincerity for counselling services etc.

6 ETHICAL STANDARDS- Counselling services should be legally approved and accepted Just
as other services are. This implies that person who is offering counselling services should have a
license and should follow ethical rules set up by a professional body in the field of counselling.
The· ethical rules preventing the misuse of services and is expected to abide by the rules.

111 Factors influencing training of counselors

A balanced and sound training programme should be evolved so that the counsellors can deal
effectively with the problems of the client. Such training wou Id also h e1p provt"de t he counsellor
with additional professional skills essential for counse11·mg services.
.

(A) Development Of Insight About One's Needs.

Needs here refer to the bias, attitude and feeling Of th b
. . . s e counsellor. The counsellor should e
aware of hIS bias attitudes as they may affect h" 1 . .
is re ationsh1p to th 1· s h tt"t de maY
motivate the counsellor to behave in a . e c ient. uc · a 1 u
particular manner hind · h · · cess,
Proper training will help him to dev l ' enng t e counsellmg pro
e op an understa d.
n mg about his needs and how they are

i
 ~ikely to affect the process of counselling.
Eg:- If the counsellor has a need of avoiding emotional contact with the client, he may adopt a
distant and impersonal attitude towards the client because of this need. The client may resent
such an attitude and will feel disappointed.
So the counselling relationship is impaired due to the influence of the counsellors needs.
Understanding of such a need would help the counsellor as he may learn to be warm and
accepting while keeping a check on getting too . This it is essential for a counsellor to become
aware of his needs so that they don't exert a negative influence on counselling relationship.
PATTERSON has given a list of certain common biased needs that counsellors may have:-

t (i) Need For Social Companionship.

Under the influence of such a need, the counsellor would build a friendly relationship with the
client which would affect the counselling process, specially if the client is of the opposite sex.
The counselling session could turn into a dating session and the purpose of counselling would be
lost.

(ii) Need For Being Helpful.

Under the influence of this need, the counsellor would go out of his way to help the client solve
the problem. This need would lead the counsellor to do certain things for the ~ounsellee such as
protect the client or manipulate the environment for him. This might make the client dependent .
on the counsellor.

t (iii) Need For Teaching.

Under the influence of this need the counsellor would teach the client as to what is good and
what is bad. Thus he would lay emphasis on issues that are not important or not related to the
problem. As a result, the client may experience confusion.

(iv) Need To Solve Personal Problems.

If the counsellor has his own problems that he need to solve, he may fail to understand the
clients problems. So he may not get the feeling of being understood.

(v) Need For Security. .

If the counsellor has this need, then he may get the client to praise him and to say that after a
long time, he found a real client who understands him.

(vi) Need For Recognition And Prestige.

It is a most natural desire for one to feel important. If the Counsellor yields to this need, then he
will indulge in a displaying his/her knowledge and in adding a self centered attitude so he will
not listen to the client which will impair his/her counseling process. A way of doing this is role
play, or counselling practicalfsupervisal practical experience.

(B) Development of the attitude of Understanding (Various Counselling Attitude)

An attitude of understanding is very important to establish a rapport with the client. It is found
that the counsellors may vary in their approach with the client's problems. S. M. Fuster has
analysed these various ways in which the counsellor responds to the client. He has outlined the
following attitudes. '
1) Evaluate attitude
2) Interpretive attitude
3) Supportive attitude
4) Probing attitude
5) Understanding attitude

The above mentioned attitude of a counselor would be discussed in the content of the followi~g
case.
The client is a 20 year old college girl who comes to the counselor and bursts out crying. She
tells the counselor that 'I could not sleep last night as I was so puzzled what should I do? I got to
leran my sister in law that my parents have fixed my arrangement with a boy who I do not like,
as he is of short structure, fat and a flabby face. He too showed no interest in me'

i. EVALUATIVE ATTITUDE- With this attitude the counsellor passes judgement on

what the client says. He tells the client on what is correct and what is wrong for him. For
instance, in the above case the counsellor's reply would be, "Marriage is a contract for life and
therefore something very serious. You are young and inexperienced. You place value on
things which are not so important. Your parents know better than you and so you should
value their choice."
ii. INTERPRETIVE ATTITUDE- Here the counsellor assigns causes to the client's
problems. With regards to the above case, the counsellor would respond in the following
 way, " You feel so disturbed b
ecause you have seen other boys who look smarter than he does
and.. .you keep th.m ki ng of others. You should forget others and try to like this one."
111· SUPPORTIVE ATTITUDE- Here the counsellor pacifies and reassures the client. He
reduces the client's intensity by telling him he need not feel the way he does. In the context of
the above case the counsellor could say , "Don't worry you are not the only girl to go through
this difficulty. This thing is very common in India. So many girls have accepted this situation
and they have been happy. You need not feel so upset. You all see that after some time,
everything will be alright."
1v. PROBING A'ITITUDE- Here the counsellor further asks for information and indulges
in curiosity to know more about the client and certain things. With regards to the above case
the counsellor would respond as follows , "How educated is this boy? Does he belong to your
caste? Does he have any bad habit? How many times have you met him? What are his
hobbies? You should know all these things going ahead.
v. UNDERSTANDING ATTITUDE- Here the counsellor tries to understand correctly
how the client feels, how he looks upon his problem and what he has to say about it. In the
context of the above case the counsellor's response would be, "You feel that your parents
should have asked you before -going ahead and now your struggling with yourself, whether
you should accept what your parents say or you should reject it."

The attitude of understanding is very important as it reflects back to the client his real
feelings. As a result the client is encouraged to reveal more about himself ~d his problem to
the counsellor. Therefore, it is important for the counsellor to develop this attitude during the

training program.

A study was conducted by J.M. FUSTER, to see which attitude prevailed in the trainee
counsellors. 30 Indian trainees were selected for this study. A test comprising of 25 extracts was
given to them. With each extract were attached s counsellor attitudes. The trainees were to read
each extract and select the response, i.e. one out of five attitudes for each extract that they
thought was the most appropriate. The highest possible score for an understanding response

was25
 SCOREIN F(numberof
UNDERSTSNDING
trainees)
RESPONSE
11
0
11
1-3
22
0-3

The study indicated that the trainees lacked the attitude of understanding. Therefore, special
efforts are needed to explain the significance of this attitude to the trainees such that they can

develop this attitude towards the clients.

(C) UNDERSTANDING OF THE COUNSELLOR'S LIMITATIONS-

It is one of the important aspects of the training session to teach the counsellor which are
the causes they can handle and which are the ones they cannot handle. In other words, this
helps to define the counsellor's area of competence. It tells the counsellor that they should not
go beyond their area of competence, i.e., they should refer the cases they cannot handle to
other professionals. FUSTER has explained 2 kinds of limitations-

1. Limitations arising from lack of rapport

u. Limitations arising from inability to help

1 Limitations arising from back of Rapport.

Sometimes the counsellor may be unable p help the clients because he
might be unable to establish a rapport with some of them . This could be because of personal
prejudices. If there is a personal relationship then too, it would be difficult to establish a
rapport. The counsellor might be unable to get along with certain temperaments. If such a
case is continued rapport will not be established and this will land to frustrating situation
for both the client and the counsellor . Hence to prevent the frust rati" ng expenence
·
counsellor can refer the client to a different professional.

2. Limitations arising from inability to help.

• from m1'ld mental
Some people who come to the counsellor mi"ght b e suf£ermg · ·
illness. Some cases might be chronic and some might have psych ot1c
· 1'll ness. Handl'111g such
·
 cases is beyond a counsellor's capacity. For the counsellor to know that his client is
suffering from a major mental illness, it is important for him to be acquainted with the
various forms of abnormality

PSYCHONEUROSIS

The patient has psychological as well as physical symptom such as

headaches,migraine,muscle tension,anxiety,phobia,obsessions and compulsion. Other
characteristics also include the daily routine. He is in touch with reality and is aware of 1.

what is happening to him. He has insight about himself and can distinguish between right
and wrong . He is not a danger to himself or to others. Therefore it is easy for the counsellor
to establish a rapport with sue clients .

PSYCHOSIS

The client is incapable of self-management and adjustment to the society. He has

lost touch with reality. His speech is incoherent. He might be a threat to himself or the
society. He may suffer from delusions and hallucinations and may require hospitalization.
Therefore, it is difficult to establish rapport with such people.

MENTAL RETARDATION
Intellectual development of such patients is below average. The individual may be
incapable of self-management and may require supervision.

ANTISOCIAL PERSONALITY
The moral development of such individuals is nil. He could be selfish, emotionally unstable
and unconcerned about the consequences of his actions.
If the counsellor has paper knowledge about the types of mental illness, he can have an idea
about the symptoms and characteristics in the very first session. If the symptoms fall into
any of the given categories then the client should be referred to another professional.

D. REFERRALS AND COMMUNITY RESOURCES.

The counsellor should be acquainted with the resources of professionals that are
available in the community so that he can guide the people that come to him. They might
 ask for the address,consulting hours,fees etc and the counsellor should have all the
information.
When he is referring the client he should write a letter of introduction to the
, concerned professional, requesting him for help . He can also make a personal telephone
call to the concerned professional .

IV Code of conduct/ Ethics

Each profession' has a code of ethics. They refer to a list of principles or an outline of rules
that help prevent the misuse of client Counselor relationship. The code of conduct is of two typ
verbal and non verbal. This is because this profession deals with personal problems and there i
a high risk of abuse. So to prevent this, it is important that ethical standards are given and hel
up. This could create public trust in that profession. And ethical practice any profession or ta~
place for personal benefits/self-interest. Schwebel explain what were the reasons of unethi
practices. They include, inadequate training etc. APA in 1968 published the ethical standard
and a medical American personal guidance Association found a code of ethics in 1968. These ar
of,,recommendatory nature, not mandatory. They can be made mandatory provided a law i ,
passed by the legislature.

Fuster explains the meaning of ethics

Definitions

"It is a systematized a body of moral principles/that guide or determine /the counsellors

behavior in relation to the client/clients relatives is referring agency and to the society in
general"

FUSTER say that is one wants to understand the meaning of ethics one would have to
understand the meaning of values. According to him, values are standards of general principle '
which determine behaviour and judge its approval or. disapproval. According to him there ar
three different kinds of values- social values, moral values and religious values.

Social values and standards of behaviour set by the society and according to each sociei:)'., 1

there will be different standards of belief. Moral values, it is believed are determined I buy one is 1

own conscience, in knowledge of what is right and wrong. They don't differ according to place
and time. Religious values are determined by each fairh and they will defer. According to
FUSTER ethical code of conduct involves a fourfold relationship which is as follows:-

1. Counselor's relationship to the client.

a) Counselor must respect the values of the client.

The counsellor should not promote his own personal values to the client. If found that a
personal problem would be easily solved by modifying a social value, only then can the
counsellor suggest that it to be modified for the good of the client. For. moral values, the
counsellor may not ask the client to change values. Similarly the counsellor has no authority to
change the clients religious values either. He should try and understand the clients point of
view.

b) The counsellor must keep the clients information confidential

This is one of the most important areas in the ethical code for counselling. The counsellor
cannot reveal any information given by the client and without securing permission from him. If
the information is noted down, and then it should be kept locked and when not needed you
should be destroyed.

The counsellor mate discuss his clients in the following situations

• While referring him to another counsellor

• For guidance from other counsellors
• Case conferences

Patterson says that it is generally agreed that the confidential information of the client may be
discussed with the other counsellor. Specially when the counsellor wants to deal effectively with
the client. It is customary to discuss the clients case in case conferences, without necessarily
seeking permission from him. But at times, is he is not willing then it is desirable to seek
permission to discuss his case. It could also be done under a different name. It is ethical for the
counsellor to share the clients case with his relatives, Friends, family members etc. It is not
ethical, to share the client secret information with the relatives, without seeking permission. In
some serious cases like wish to commit suicide someone who is close to the client can be

I
 • t· Th cotinc1·1are you also share the information with the government or emp}
.,1
Ill Of1""u, e oyerjfa,
lms pennission.

1.:') Test ·results must be interpreted in a manner likely to-- --be- constructive
- --...!!!:~~--!.!.!.=~==-==-=-~------- in his effort t S(>Jve
- - -- ~---=....,=~!!.Q
his _probl~ms. O

BYRNE I suggested some desirable approaches for test interpretation

• Don't close location and educational avenues to the client

• Relate the presence of the future for the client
• Involve the client in test interpretation do not just read out the results
• Use the test results to plan for the client

d) Integrated view of clients problems

The counsellor should try to take a look at the problem from a holistic perspective. His
personality, social background etc should all be in~egrated.

e) Freedom to select the counsellor

The counsellor cannot force the client to see him. He should be free to select any counsellor
that he feels is fit.

2. The Counselors relationship with the profession

a. The counselor must maintain hi h standards of work and not ·ust aim at tern ora success.

The counselor should be working for progress of his profession at all times and all
situations. It would be unethical for him to offer services beyond the area of competence or
experience. In such cases he should refer the client to other professional or a competent
person. He should not work just so that he/she can earn more money; but should be inspired
by the ideal of his profession to help others.

b. When he becomes aware of malpractices of other counselors. he should exert wha~

influence he ca·n modify the situation.
 If another counselor engage in ethical misconduct then that should be reported to the
concerned body. The other counselor behavior with other Professional should noticed too. If
something unethical is seen , then that should be reported.

c. Mousellor should not accept the client who is already receiving psychological assistance from
@other professional.

A counselor may accept a client who is seeing another professional only with agreement, or
ifhe has terminated his relationship with the other professional.

3 The counselor relationship to referring bodies

Referring bodies are those person or institutions that have referred the client to the
counselor. It is common courtesy or part of the counselor to inform to the referring people
whether the client has kept his appointment whether he is continuing to come or if he has been
referred to another professional. It would be unethical on part of the counselor to revert any
· information about client ton the referring bodies

4 The counselor relationship with himself

The counselor has a right to his private life. He should therefore be very clear about the
boundaries with regard to his personal availability and about his behavior t?wards himself. He
should not encourage dependency on the client. He should not relive that he is not expected to
help each and every client. He should not be idealistic nut satisfied with helping the client he

can.

V. Difference between counseling and psychotherapy

Counseling also works as psychotherapy and vice versa. The whole concept was made by

Sigmund Freud.
In older time there was a medical approach and psychological approach. But it was felt that
these two approaches cannot be separated thus psychotherapy came into force.
 1

. t required for psychotherapy,

Carl Rogers was the 1st to say medicine study is no

DIFFERENCE . g while cancelling it is shorter because

1. Time duration in psychotheraPy 1s very 1on
people also you and psychodrama.
2. Individuals receiving hel12 - bl
d
counselling - more related to ay-to-day life pro ems.
. . .
Psychotherapy - more related to mental illnesses, sch1zophrema,
. Mama, Paranoia'
psychotic Patients etc. The problem is of maladaptation.
3. Types of problems- .
.
Counselling-guilt, anxiety, frustration, ·
msecu rity but all at conscious
level.
Psyc hotherapy- deals WI·th the problems of the unconscious mind for example a
· · at a h.1g her level - OCD. Insecurity and the
person has a problem of msecunty
unconscious level.
4. Professional settings -
Counsellors - Educational Institutions , social institutions, vocational institutions, ·
rehabilitation centres.
Psychotherapy- mental hospitals, strong background is required , general hospitals
private hospitals
5. Methods or techniques that are used - Basic goals of counselling is self direction and
self integration.
Counselling - interviews, listening skills, interpersonal skills and psychology tests.
Psychotherapy - therapies like Behaviouristic therapy, psychodrama, Role Plays,
psychoanalysis, cognitive therapy, CBT, Teansactional analysis.
USE OF ECLECTIVE METHOD- Combination of different methods eg Freud, or
Behaviorism.

MEDICAL MODEL- as this therapist work for psychiatrist we do not get the medicines but
coordinate, with the psychiatrist who gives the medicine.

6. Aims or Goals-

Counseling- identifies the positive points in the person and makes the person more
strong that the person guides himself. Makes the person more independent.
 Psychotherapy-
. complete
. cure may nit be possible. m
. many cases, as they are mental
diseases. Weather plays a very Bad road on the behaVIour.
. . always follow
Some traits
after. the treatment.
. We properly channelized the energy. Such People have forgotten
the hfe skills. Thus psychotherapists make them agam . the1r
· rea11ze . roles.

Educational qualifications -
7.
Counselor- MA and PHO in counseling ' Diploma or 1 2 years of practice
• under a
psychiatrist.
Psychotherapy- MA and PHO in clinical psychology. 5 6 months of training and 5 6
months of counseling.

I
I
VI Iheozy of Self <Carl Ro~ersl
t
Roger's self theory includes

Principles of phenomenological field

I

Nature off organism

Nature of self
,,
"- Interaction between organism and self

1.
PRINCIPLES OF PHENOMENOLOGICAL FIELD

Phenomenological field means subjective reality of an individual which includes all his past
experiences that infringes present behaviour. Rodgers says behaviour does not depend only
on objective reality, therefore the task of counsellor is to take into account subjective reality
of the client for example a man runs away seeing a piece of rope thinking it is to be a snake.
Here, the behaviour of running away is not deter mind by objective r~ality (rope) but by
individual's subjective reality(snake). Thus, behaviour is not determined by reality but

SUbjective interpretation of reality.

Each individual has his own subjective reality. Therefore the council should try to
understand the clients perception and for this empathy may be required. The council
should be able to put himself in the clients place and try to see how the client feel about A
particular situation. Thus Phenomenological feel not only takes into consideration the past
experiences but also the present situations to plan out future problems. The counsellor
 . , )ationship with bis environment, whether he
uld l try to understand the chent s re
sho · a so h fu1 and obstructive or unhappy, Destructive and
1
considers the environment happy, e P
threatening.

2.
NATURE OF ORGANISM

The psychological therm organism means all the sensory and visceral experiences of one's
body. The role of organism is to take care of one's body and its functioning. An organism
wants to grow live express and also want to enjoy his life. He al~o react to his physical world.
He is guided by his basic motives. This basic motive includes a desire to remain where it is~
and to \mprove his conditions/position. All organisms have a basic motive develop and takej
care of their physical body. These motors are believed innate. There are other motives too
that arise from the basic motives. On the basis of satisfaction or dissatisfaction of these
needs, The organism tries to evaluate his environment. Satisfaction of needs is a positive
experience for the organism which is incorporated into the self. Dissatisfaction of motive is
looked upon as a negative experience which is a threat to the self and that is rejected by the
!· organism. This is known as a organismic valuing process which is a natural process.

3. NATURE OF SELF

Nature of self is the central concept as far as Rogers theory is concerned. Self starts
developing from infancy and continues life long, i.e adulthood. Child is able to discriminate
only
d' between
. . self and others · But 1at er on t h e same child when becomes adult he is able to
IScnmmate
(
between 'I' 'YOU' and 'HIM' .

Rogers described five components and seIf concept-

** Individuals
Individual
perception of the
. mselves and values attached to them
s perception of himself in rel . .
to them. ation to other person and the values attached
* Theind'lVI'duals percepti fv .
t
them. on o anous aspects of environment and the values attached
0

* The organism which .

* The totality . . lS the total individual.
expenence ·
i.e phenomenal field.
 .s a differentiated part of the phenomenological field wh· · h
'fhe self 1 IC consists of the
tion of 'I' and 'ME'. And the values attached to them.
percep

As development of self takes place it takes on various forms like-

As child grows, he starts having experiences. These experiences for the child could be
satisfying or dissatisfying. Satisfying experiences I considered to be positive experiences;
and dissatisfying one's, negative to self. An important need of child would be a need of
positive regard, which includes acceptance, love and approval from others. It is found in
each and every child from infancy and he tries to satisfy these needs. The child learns that he
will be able to get positive regards from others is he will fulfil certain expectations.
According to Rogers if parents show unconditional positive regard, child is given a lot of
freedom to develop as an individual . When he becomes adult, he is able to actualise himself
in such situations if conditions are put, The child is tendency to enhan~e himself is being
restricted. If he is not able to fulfil others expectation, he doesn't get pasitive regards and in
a way this becomes negative experience for him.

· · fl. · · l ti' one's own self and the situation.

Negative expenences lead to con ict or anxiety m re a on
· r · t d ncy This
Each individual is rational responsible and has potential self actua ismg en e ·
' . 'th •d and proper environment.
tendency can be developed, if he is proVIded WI gm ance . .
. be irrational but this behaVIour IS
Individuals who experiences emotional disturbances, may h.
. . r b hel ing the client to accepts is
not permanent, the counsellor can modify this behaviou Y P
negative experiences and make him a part of his own self.
. ne's behaviour. For example the need for foo~
t Cells is an important regulator determmer of O f the individual, and he IS
activity on the part o d
when experienced hunger , Leads to some . d•vidual will not to steal foo
. . 'ty However The m 1 . ·n
satisfied on securing food by physical acti.Vl · The individual's behaviour WI
. f honest person. .t
to satisfy hunger is he considers himsel as an . f ny need will also be consiS ent
h ratification o a . d.
thus be consistent with self concept. T e g 'bl When the urge to satisfy a nee IS
th. is not a1wayS Poss1 e. d · us measures to
with his self concept. However is . d. ·dual may adopt eVIO
then the 1Il tVl · ·fy th f t
in conflict with individual self concept, the individual attempts to JUSti . e ac
. h l of these measures
seek gratification . With th e e p . If concept.
I
.
1st t with his se
I that his behaviour is cons en

\
 4. INTERACTION BE1WEEN SELF AND ORGANISM

A person has to value systems for testing his experiences; first is personal evaluation and the
second is the social evaluation which has become part of the individual's self. The individual
progresses from personal social process of socialisation.

According to Rogers, the prices of the organism as well as the self-concept. He believes that
the organism and the self interact with each other. These two are are recognised by Rogers
as behaviour regulating system. These two systems can either what together hannoniously
or they can oppose one another. If they oppose one another i.e the organism denies
awareness to significant sensory experiences which are not excepted by the self, it results in
tension and maladjustment. If they work together, i.e is the sensory and the visceral
experiences of the organism and accepted by the self, then it results in adjustment.

Example -a young mother has this concept of herself "I am a good and loving Mother"

This is concept is based partly upon her own experiences and partly upon introjected values.
With this concept of self she can accept those or organic sensations of affection which she ,
feels towards the child. But the organic experience of dislike to words her child is denied to
herself. The organic need for aggression may pull the individual in a direction contrary to
self concept of a loving mother, this results in tension. If the tension is strong enough to pull ,
the organism to say "I hate you" to the child, The mother will say "I was not myself'. This
tension will make the mother perceive the child's behaviour as deserving punishment and
she as a loving mother pollution is the child and this is a distorted experience.

According to Rogers, experiences that are not consistent with the self-concept would be '.
threatening to the individual and The individual tries to regress such experiences. The more
the areas of experiences that an individual deny, The wilder than that because between selfj
concept and reality. And this results in greater maladjustment or in convincing. On th~ 1
other hand, according to Rogers, the closer the ideal self to the real self, the more fulfilled
and satisfied the individual becomes. The greater the discrepancy between the ideal self and ·
the real self, Tl_ie more the unhappiness and dissatisfaction experiences by the individual. In
such situations individual either replace the threatening experiences subconscious or he
distorts them. In this way, he tries to make the experience is consistent with the self-
concept. For this, he uses defence mechanics such as denial, rationalisation etc .
 The task of the counsellor is to help the client in exploring the experiences which are
inconsistent with the self. Keeping this in mind the counsellor creates a ;ituation during the
counselling sessions which are free from criticism or threats. In such an atmosphere, the
client readily accepts the inconsistent experiences by bringing about change in his self.
Thus he learns to integrate the experiences which are inconsistent with his self. In this
manner the conflict or the problem that the client faces reduces gradually, sometimes the
client may be conscious of clear about internal conflicts. In such cases the counsellors task is
to bring the conflict to the conscious level of the client and then help him to reducd the
conflict by showing him ways in which the self and organisms can function together
harmoniously. The counsellor Interprets the situation objectively and logically and thus is
able to bring about a change in the clients perception about his self.. This indicates that the
clients perception is significant even in the interaction that takes place between self and

orgamsm.

In short, the relation between self and experiences are as follows:

Experiences which are consistent with self and perceived and accepted by the

individual .
Experiences which are not consistent with the self and which are not accepted
These inconsistent experiences are presented in a distorted form.

VI. Assumptions of Client Centered Approach

db Carl Rogers He emphasised upon self
The client centred approach has been develope y . It of
. . roach Self is something the develops as a resu
which is an important element m this app . I . t ·ects values of other people
. . . 'th h' nvironment. Self constant y m roJ
interaction of an md1V1dual WI is e S If ys tries for consistency.
. I r in distorted manner. e a1wa
by perceiving then either correct y o . . If The experiences which are
1 . cordance with his own se .
Therefore an individual acts large y m ac . tl an individual learns
. i id but it is changmg constan y as
not in accordance with the self is not r g
. . part of maturation.
and at the same time it IS a1so a

. i F CLIENT CENTRED APPROACH. ·ve

PHILOSOPH ICAL ASSUM PTIONS O . . ssive is trustworthy, creat1
- n has a purpose of hfe, is progre , . rove
1 Carl Rogers believes every ma . rthwhile goals and also to unp
· d y to achieve wo
. t· He has a natural ten enc
an d rea IIS IC.
 himself as well as situations COt'lShUltly. The lndlvldunl ls obit· to tnke Into consideration what )
re.ality is and makes use of construc-tivc nhllltlcs to plnn his fu h n·u, I l<• is able to control }
himself and direct his behaviour to tnke decision in hi1-1 )lfo wit hout depending on others .
.:a. Rogers believes that man is essentially good by nnlw·c•. A. 1t1u n I~ mor'<! acti ve and has a desire
to be helpful to others. He also wants me signifi cant c·ontl'ihullon ~ociety by using optimum
capabilities.
3. Mnn, sometimes is cruel, wicked, mean, selfish, sinful , evil , irrutional in certain situations and
shows aggressive, destructive or immoral behaviour. Rodgers snys an individual behave in
this wny because of the need of situation. But after this situation is over, he returns to his
original nature that is to be good to others.
4- Every individual is unique and experiences the world according to his internal frame of
reference. Each person perceives and interprets the world differently. Is the counsellor wants
to understand the client, his first task is to know is internal frame of reference and also
(:
phenomenological field that is the subjective reality.
5. Every individual has freedom to make important decisions in his life. He can choose the
alternatives which he has in front of him. Rogers says human behaviour is not completely
controlled by the external factors, but it is the individual himself who has power and ability to
make decisions. Individual has to accept the reality and not to complain about the situation. >

He has to integrate it to his own life. )