The new pluralism - a paradigm of pluralisms

摘要

Pluralism is a vital part of philosophical and cultural life in Western Europe, as seen in the ideas of Berlin and Levinas. These ideas form the essential foundation for Cooper and McLeod's work. Pluralism however both creates tensions and provides opportunities that Cooper and McLeod explore in relation to counselling and psychotherapy. They argue that adopting different therapeutic approaches by a therapist is most helpful for clients and that this is best done collaboratively.Cooper sees pluralistic counselling and psychotherapy as a way of resolving some of the traditional dichotomies that have historically hindered the development of therapy. McLeod's research argues that client preference leads to better outcomes in therapy and therefore this forms a central part of a pluralistic approach. Further research evidence is garnered from various authors on: the use of several tools developed by Cooper and McLeod, the therapy personalisation form for clients; the need for shared understanding reflected in work done with HIV-positive clients; how therapist engage with, and sometimes struggle with, a pluralistic approach in practice; and the value of the post-session form for both clients and therapists.Pluralism as a philosophical foundation needs more critical reflection and engagement if it is to be applied to the relational. Counselling and psychotherapy could learn by drawing insights from other traditions that have engaged with this, such as theology and psychoanalysis.View full textDownload full textKeywordspluralism, philosophy, Cooper, McLeod, psychotherapy, collaborationRelated var addthis_config = { ui_cobrand: "Taylor & Francis Online", services_compact: "citeulike,netvibes,twitter,technorati,delicious,linkedin,facebook,stumbleupon,digg,google,more", pubid: "ra-4dff56cd6bb1830b" }; Add to shortlist Link Permalink http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/13642537.2012.652400