Towards an understanding of the experience of psychosis: the legacies of Rogers and Gendlin

摘要

In this article, I discuss the continuing relevance of the theoretical perspectives of Rogers and Gendlin for persons with psychosis experience (PE) and practitioners of person-centered therapy (PCT). Persons with PE have indicated in recent surveys and qualitative studies that they experienced a ‘turning point’ in their lives when they encountered persons who took a genuine interest in them, communicated acceptance of PE, discussed ‘voice hearing’ in normal language as part of normal experience and conveyed a genuine message of hope. The values and principles of PCT will be compared with those found in cognitive-behavior therapy for psychosis (CBTp) that, like PCT, claims to uphold the recovery-oriented values of persons with PE. Recent claims from proponents of CBTp that it is not primarily a technical therapy that undervalues the importance of human relationships will be discussed. I will argue in favor of a process-oriented therapeutic relationship as opposed to the primacy of cognition advocated in a ‘manualized’ CBTp. In doing so, I will discuss the distinctive contributions of Rogers, Gendlin and the subsequent work of Prouty, that continue to challenge the dominant biomedical models of service delivery that favor CBTp over other therapies.