10 Person-Centered Therapy Techniques & Interventions [+PDF]

Client-Centered Therapy + Carl Rogers' #1 Person-Centered TechniqueThe idea of client-centered therapy might seem redundant – after all, when is therapy not centered on the client?

This term seems redundant now, but when it was first developed, it was a novel idea.

Before the humanistic therapies were introduced in the 1950s, the only real forms of therapy available were behavioral or psychodynamic (McLeod, 2015). These approaches focused on the subconscious or unconscious experience of clients rather than what is “on the surface.”

Many of today’s popular forms of therapy are more client-centered than the psychotherapy of the early 20th century, but there is still a specific form of therapy that is set apart from others due to its focus on the client and aversion to giving the client any type of direction.

“He who knows others is wise; he who knows himself is enlightened.”

Lao Tzu

So, how does this Lao Tzu quote apply to client-centered therapy? Read on to learn about how knowing one’s self and others is key to the person-centered approach.

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What is Client-Centered Therapy? A Definition

Client-Centered Therapy, also known as Client-Centered Counseling or Person-Centered Therapy, was developed in the 1940s and 50s as a response to the less personal, more “clinical” therapy that dominated the field.

It is a non-directive form of talk therapy, meaning that it allows the client to lead the conversation and does not attempt to steer the client in any way. This approach rests on one vital quality: unconditional positive regard. This means that the therapist refrains from judging the client for any reason, providing a source of complete acceptance and support (Cherry, 2017).

There are three key qualities that make for a good client-centered therapist:

  1. Unconditional Positive Regard:
    As mentioned above, unconditional positive regard is an important practice for the client-centered therapist. The therapist needs to accept the client for who they are and provide support and care no matter what they are going through.
  2. Genuineness:
    A client-centered therapist needs to feel comfortable sharing his or her feelings with the client. Not only will this contribute to a healthy and open relationship between the therapist and client, but it also provides the client with a model of good communication and shows the client that it’s okay to be vulnerable.
  3. Empathetic Understanding:
    The client-centered therapist must extend empathy to the client, both to form a positive therapeutic relationship and to act as a sort of mirror, reflecting the client’s thoughts and feelings back to them; this will allow the client to better understand themselves.

Another notable characteristic of person- or client-centered therapy is the use of the term “client” rather than “patient.” Therapists who practice this type of approach see the client and therapist as a team of equal partners rather than an expert and a patient (McLeod, 2015).

Carl Rogers: The Founder of Client-Centered Therapy

carl rogers client-centered therapy

Carl Rogers is considered the founder of client-centered therapy, and the godfather of what are now known as “humanistic” therapies, While many psychologists contributed to the movement, Carl Rogers spearheaded the evolution of therapy with his unique approach.

If his approach were to be summed up in a quote, this quote would be a good choice:

“Experience is, for me, the highest authority. The touchstone of validity is my own experience. No other person’s ideas, and none of my own ideas, are as authoritative as my experience. It is to experience that I must return again and again, to discover a closer approximation to truth as it is in the process of becoming in me.”

Carl Rogers

The individual experience of the client is paramount in client-centered therapy.

The Rogerian Approach to Psychotherapy

Rogers’ approach to therapy was a simpler one than the earlier approaches in some ways. Instead of requiring a therapist to dig deep into their patients’ unconscious mind, an inherently subjective process littered with room for error, he based his approach on the idea that perhaps the client’s conscious mind was a better focus.

In Rogers’ own words:

“It is the client who knows what hurts, what directions to go, what problems are crucial, what experiences have been deeply buried. It began to occur to me that unless I had a need to demonstrate my own cleverness and learning, I would do better to rely upon the client for the direction of movement in the process.”

Carl Rogers

This approach marked a significant shift from the distant, hierarchical relationship between psychiatrist and patient of psychoanalysis and other early forms of therapy. No longer was the standard model of therapy one expert and one layman – now, the model included one expert in the theories and techniques of therapy, and one expert in the experience of the client (the client themselves!).

Rogers believed that every individual was unique and that a one-size-fits-all process would not, in fact, fit all (Kensit, 2000). Instead of considering the client’s own thoughts, wishes, and beliefs as secondary to the therapeutic process, Rogers saw the client’s own experience as the most vital factor in the process.

Most of our current forms of therapy are based on this idea that we take for granted today: the client is a partner in the therapeutic relationship rather than a helpless patient, and their experiences hold the key to personal growth and development as a unique individual.

In addition to this client-focused approach, Rogerian psychotherapy is also distinct from some other therapies in its assumption that every person can benefit from client-centered therapy and transform from a “potentially competent individual” to a fully competent one (McLeod, 2015).

Rogers’ approach views people as fully autonomous individuals who are capable of putting in the effort required to realize their full potential and bring about positive changes in their lives.

Goals of Client-Centered Therapy

client centered therapy carl rogers personal growth

“In my early professional years I was asking the question: How can I treat, or cure, or change this person? Now I would phrase the question in this way: How can I provide a relationship which this person may use for his own personal growth?”

Carl Rogers

Like many current forms of therapy (like narrative therapy or cognitive behavioral therapy, for example), the goals of client-centered therapy depend on the client. Depending on who you ask, who the therapist is, and who the client is, you will likely get a range of different answers – and none of them are wrong!

However, there are a few overarching goals that the humanistic therapies focus on, in general.

These general goals are to (Buhler, 1971):

  • Facilitate personal growth and development
  • Eliminate or mitigate feelings of distress
  • Increase self-esteem and openness to experience
  • Enhance the client’s understanding of him- or herself

As it is, these goals span an extremely broad range of sub-goals or objectives, but it is also common for the client to come up with his or her own goals for therapy. Client-centered therapy posits that the therapist cannot set effective goals for the client, due to his or her lack of knowledge of the client. Only the client has enough knowledge of themselves to set effective and desirable goals for therapy.

Other commonly gained benefits include:

  • Greater agreement between the client’s idea and actual selves
  • Better understanding and awareness
  • Decreased defensiveness, insecurity, and guilt
  • Greater trust in oneself
  • Healthier relationships
  • Improvement in self-expression
  • Improved mental health overall (Noel, 2018)
Carl Rogers on person-centered therapy video - PsychotherapyNet

How Does It Work? The Person-Centered Perspective

“When functioning best, the therapist is so much inside the private world of the other that he or she can clarify not only the meanings of which the client is aware but even those just below the level of awareness.”

Carl Rogers

The quote from Carl Rogers above highlights an important point: the success of this form of therapy rests on the extremely important connection between the client and therapist. If this relationship is not marked by trust, authenticity, and mutual positive feelings, it is unlikely to produce any benefits for either party.

Rogers identified six conditions that are required for success in client-centered therapy:

  1. The client and counselor are in psychological contact (a relationship).
  2. The client is emotionally upset, in a state of incongruence.
  3. The counselor is genuine and aware of their own feelings.
  4. The counselor has unconditional positive regard for the client.
  5. The counselor has an empathic understanding of the client and their internal frame of reference and looks to communicate this experience with the client.
  6. The client recognizes that the counselor has unconditional positive regard for them and an understanding of the difficulties they are facing (Noel, 2018).

When these six conditions are met, there is great potential for positive change.

The way client-centered therapy works is a natural extension of these conditions: the therapist and client discuss the client’s current problems and issues, the therapist practices active listening and empathizes with the client, and the client decides for themselves what is wrong and what can be done to correct it (McLeod, 2015).

It is clear from Rogers’ works that he placed a great deal of value on the firsthand experience of the client, and much less in the “cleverness and learning” or technical expertise of therapists – including himself!

Client-Centered Therapy Method and Techniques

client centered therapy method active listening

“We think we listen, but very rarely do we listen with real understanding, true empathy. Yet [active] listening, of this very special kind, is one of the most potent forces for change that I know.”

Carl Rogers

The only technique recognized as effective and applied in client-centered therapy is to listen nonjudgmentally. That’s it!

In fact, many client-centered therapists and psychologists view a therapist’s reliance on “techniques” as a barrier to effective therapy rather than a boon. The Rogerian standpoint is that the use of techniques can have a depersonalizing effect on the therapeutic relationship (McLeod, 2015).

In the words of Carl Rogers:

“When you are in psychological distress and someone really hears you without passing judgement on you, without trying to take responsibility for you, without trying to mold you, it feels damn good!”

While active listening is one of the only and most vital practices in client-centered therapy, there are many tips and suggestions for client-centered therapists to facilitate successful therapy sessions. In context, these tips and suggestions can be considered client-centered therapy’s “techniques.”

Saul McLeod (2015) outlines 10 of these “techniques” for Simply Psychology:

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1. Set clear boundaries

Boundaries are vital for any relationship, but they are especially important for therapeutic relationships. Both the therapist and the client need healthy boundaries to avoid the relationship becoming inappropriate or ineffective, such as ruling out certain topics of discussion.

There are also more practical boundaries that must be set, for example, how long the session will last.

2. Remember – the client knows best

As mentioned earlier, this therapy is founded on the idea that clients know themselves, and are the best sources of knowledge and insight about their problems and potential solutions. Do not lead the client or tell them what is wrong, instead let them tell you what is wrong.

3. Act as a sounding board

Active listening is key, but it’s also useful to reflect what the client is saying back to them. Try to put what they are telling you into your own words. This can help the client clarify their own thoughts and understand their feelings better.

4. Don’t be judgmental

Another vital component of client-centered therapy is to refrain from judgment. Clients are often already struggling with feelings of guilt, low self-worth, and the belief that they are simply not good enough. Let them know you accept them for who they are and that you will not reject them.

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5. Don’t make decisions for your clients

Giving advice can be useful, but it can also be risky. In client-centered therapy, it is not seen as helpful or appropriate to give advice to clients. Only the client should be able to make decisions for themselves, and they have full responsibility in that respect.

The therapist’s job is to help clients explore the outcomes of their decisions rather than guide them to any particular decisions.

6. Concentrate on what they are really saying

This is where active listening can be put to use. Sometimes a client will feel uncomfortable opening up at first, or they will have trouble seeing something just below the surface. In these situations, be sure to listen carefully and keep an open mind – the problem they come in with may not be the real problem.

7. Be genuine

As mentioned earlier, the client-centered therapy must be genuine. If the client does not feel their therapist is authentic and genuine, the client will not trust you. In order for the client to share personal details about their own thoughts and feelings, they must feel safe and comfortable with you.

Present yourself as you really are, and share both facts and feelings with the client. Of course, you don’t have to share anything you don’t feel comfortable sharing, but appropriate sharing can help build a healthy therapeutic relationship.

8. Accept negative emotions

This is an important technique for any therapist. To help the client work through their issues and heal, it is vital to let them express their emotions – whether positive or negative. The client may even express anger, disappointment, or irritation with you at one point or another.

Learn to accept their negative emotions and practice not taking it personally. They may need to wrestle with some difficult emotions, and as long as they are not abusing you, it is beneficial to just help them through it.

9. How you speak can be more important than what you say

Your tone of voice can have a huge impact on what the client hears, understands, and applies. Make sure your tone is measured, and make sure it matches your non-judgmental and empathetic approach.

You can also use your voice to highlight opportunities for clients to think, reflect, and improve their understanding; for example, you can use your tone to slow down the conversation at key points, allowing the client to think about where the discussion has led and where s/he would like it to go next.

10. I may not be the best person to help

It is vital that you know yourself as a therapist and are able to recognize your own limits. No therapist is perfect, and no mental health professional can give every single client exactly what they need.

Remember, there is no shame in recognizing that the scope of a specific problem or the type of personality you are working with is out of your wheelhouse. In those cases, don’t beat yourself up about it – just be honest and provide any resources you can to help further the client’s healing and development.

This PDF from the Australian Institute of Professional Counselors also lists some useful techniques for client-centered therapy. Some of them overlap with previously mentioned techniques, but all are helpful!

These techniques include:

  • Congruence:
    This technique involves therapists being genuine and authentic, and ensuring that their facial expressions and body language match their words.
  • Unconditional Positive Regard:
    As described earlier in this piece, unconditional positive regard (UPR) is practice by accepting, respecting, and caring about one’s clients; the therapist should operate from the perspective that clients are doing the best they can in their circumstances and with the skills and knowledge available to them.
  • Empathy:
    It is vital for the therapist to show clients that s/he understands their emotions rather than just feeling sympathy for them.
  • Nondirectiveness:
    A cornerstone of client-centered therapy, non-directiveness refers to the method of allowing the client to drive the therapy session; therapists should refrain from giving advice or planning activities for their sessions.
  • Reflection of Feelings:
    Repeating what the client has shared about his or her feelings; this lets the client know the therapist is listening actively and understanding what the client is saying, as well as giving them an opportunity to further explore their feelings.
  • Open Questions:
    This technique refers to the quintessential “therapist” question – “How does that make you feel?” Of course, that is not the only open question that can be used in client-centered therapy, but it is a good open question that can encourage clients to share and be vulnerable.
  • Paraphrasing:
    Therapists can let clients know that they understand what the clients have told them by repeating what they have said back to them in the therapist’s own words; this can also help the client to clarify their feelings or the nature of their problems.
  • Encouragers:
    These words or phrases, like “uh-huh,” “go on,” and “what else?” are excellent at encouraging the client to continue; these can be especially useful for a client who is shy, introverted, or afraid of opening up and being vulnerable (Garrett & Garrett, 2013).

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A Take-Home Message

We hope this information provides you with a better understanding of client-centered therapy, and that it will encourage you to think of yourself as the master and expert of your own experience. You are the only one who understands your problems, issues, needs, desires, and goals, and it is to you that you must turn to solve these problems and reach these goals.

It is an added responsibility when you understand that you are responsible for how your life unfolds, but it can also be extremely liberating.

We encourage all of you to work on building the trust in yourself and in your knowledge and skills that can take your life from “going through the motions” to living a life that is authentic.

As always please let us know your thoughts in the comments! Have you ever tried client-centered therapy, as either a client or a therapist? What did you think of it? We want to hear from you!

We hope you enjoyed reading this article. Don’t forget to download our three Positive Psychology Exercises for free.

Frequently Asked Questions

The main goal of Client-Centered Therapy is to facilitate personal growth and self-discovery by providing a non-directive and supportive therapeutic environment. It aims to enhance self-esteem, self-awareness, and the ability to self-actualize.

Unconditional positive regard, genuineness, and empathetic understanding. These elements help create a supportive environment where the client feels accepted, understood, and encouraged to explore their own thoughts and feelings without judgment.

Active listening, reflection of feelings, open-ended questioning, and non-directiveness. These techniques help the therapist understand the client’s perspective, validate their experiences, and encourage self-exploration and expression.

Comments

What our readers think

  1. Achau Joel

    I have loved your article on person centred therapy. I am also a student doing a Bachelors degree in reproductive health and I found this so much useful. It is worth a resource. So madam, my question is, is it right to appropriately ask a client what I think they could do to address their problem after listening to them ?
    This is because I am not allowed to show any direction to the client although I can carefully give the counselling

    Reply
  2. Lidia

    I am aware that one of the most important skills of a counsellor is active listening. The client needs to feel that the counsellor is directing their whole attention to what the client is saying. My question is: Is it acceptable that the counsellor takes notes while the client is talking?
    Thank you in advance for your answer.

    Reply
    • Caroline Rou

      Hi Lidia,

      Thank you for your question. Note-taking can actually be a sign of active listening. Although the counsellor should not spend the entire session looking down and writing every word, taking short notes is definitely acceptable and will help the counsellor remember important details.

      I hope this helps.

      -Caroline | Community Manager

      Reply
  3. Peta

    Hi there,
    I’m interested to know if there are ever any instances when intervention is used in the form of a tool with person centered. I From what I’ve read this is not part of person centered, but from watching demonstrations, it feels like the client is sometimes left with an opened can of emotional worms and nowhere to go with those emotions. I’m getting interventions would be used if someone is in serious crisis, suicidal or perhaps reruiring a more structured approach, but I’d hate to keep referring clients if there’s some accepted tools or is it literally just trusting the process? Also, is there any particular publication that has case studies?

    Reply
    • Nicole Celestine, Ph.D.

      Hi Peta,

      You’ll find a great case study example here: https://doi.org/10.1080/14779757.2014.927390

      You’re right that a weakness of person-centered therapy is its non-directed nature. In this approach, therapists tend to refrain from recommending particular strategies or techniques, and presumably that includes techniques to manage overwhelming emotions. An underlying axiom of the approach is that clients, by nature, want to grow. Therefore, the therapist need not push and prod them. Instead, the therapist focuses on creating a safe enough space that the client can freely talk about things that have been brewing beneath the surface. This may result in emotional tension that they either need to move through (e.g., processing unprocessed emotions), or perhaps making a difficult change in their life. When you get to this point, it can be helpful to bring in tools from other modalities, such as mindfulness, or different types of support to help the client work through the change they need to make (e.g., assertiveness training, goal-setting).

      I hope this helps a little.

      – Nicole | Community Manager

      Reply
      • Travis Musich

        I would like to assure readers that Person-Centered therapists do intervene when required by the professional, ethical, and legal standards of their practice. For example, non-directive therapists will intervene when a client threatens to kill their self or another person. Although all therapists are required to intervene in specific circumstances, therapists trained in classical client-centered and the person-centered approach do not consider those interventions to be therapeutic. In practice, a client-centered therapist would only intervene against their client’s wishes after communicating with the client that the intervention is distinctly separate from therapy. It is a common misconception that person-centered and non-directive therapists “refrain from recommending particular strategies or techniques, and presumably that includes techniques to manage overwhelming emotions.” Non-directive therapists have access to all the same clinical and counseling tools (e.g. diagnosis, techniques, exercises, handouts, workbooks, homework assignments, and psycho-education) available to other therapeutic approaches; however, non-directive therapists only offer these tools upon request from the client who will ultimately choose whether or not to use these strategies.

        Reply
        • Travis Musich

          For anyone who is interested in studying classical, non-directive client-centered therapy, I highly recommend reading this book about the theory and practice. The author Barbara T. Brodley was a client-centered therapist, clinical professor of psychology, and researcher that emphasized the value of principled non-directiveness in the person-centered approach. This book is a collection of her most studied papers that continue to guide the development of psychotherapists training in the person-centered approach today.

          Brodley, B. T. (2013). Practicing client-centered therapy: Selected writings of Barbara Temaner Brodley. (K. Moon, M. Witty, B. Grant, & B. Rice, Eds.). PCCS Books.
          https://a.co/d/drnIQ0O

          Reply
  4. Plamen Panayotov

    After decades of practice in the field, I totally agree with almost most of the above.
    Yet, a practical question arises from this practice:
    How do you keep the client at the center of the conversation with her?
    Our answer: Before and above everything else – By asking her to ask the questions to be discussed with her.
    https://www.amazon.com/Signs-Road-Therapy-Conversations-Clients/dp/6200300925/

    Reply
    • Sam

      Thank you for this book recommendation, I’ve been searching high and low for a book that solely accounts for the person-centered approach and nothing more. I’m in my practicum and I’m finding that the person-centered approach feels the most like me, and the best for fostering the therapeutic relationship. I’ve used a lot of CBT techniques with my undergraduate clients but have been met with a great lack of enthusiasm.

      Reply
  5. Marysue Mastey, LCPC, CADC

    I first studied Carl Rogers over 40 years ago when I was working on my MA degree in counseling. I enjoyed your summary article and am glad to see that Rogerian Therapy is still alive and well. I believe that the most important aspect of therapy is not the techniques one uses but the therapeutic relationship.

    Reply
  6. JOYCE CHEBET

    I’m an on-going masters student in counseling psychology. I found this article a very important piece of information, that client-centered therapy involves allowing the client determines the course and direction of the treatment while the role of the therapist is to support through active listening. I have learn alot, that would help me during practicum

    Reply
  7. Scott

    Loving the exchanges! Common sense personalized and shared and heard!

    Reply
  8. Betty Mindo

    This is a well put article on a Person Centered Theory.

    Reply
  9. Oluwatosin Folarin

    Dr. Nicole,

    Thank you very much for putting this together. I have a better understanding of the person-centered theory reading your post.

    Reply
  10. KIPKORIR KIPMWETICH

    Can you help explaining Abraham Maslow theory with consent of Guiding and counselling………. The above is mavelous

    Reply
    • Nicole Celestine, Ph.D.

      Hi Kipkorir,

      Glad you enjoyed the post. Could you please rephrase your question and I’ll see if I can help. I.e., are you interested in how the principles of Maslow’s theory factor into modern counseling practices, or something different. Let us know!

      – Nicole | Community Manager

      Reply

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