COUN1003 Lecture Notes - Lecture 4: Eye Contact, Determinism, Existentialism
25 May 2018
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Theories and Approaches to Counselling – Weekly Notes
WEEK 1:
- Listening = listening and empathise (e.g. Past experiences)
- Stop yourself from caring too much but not enough – self care
- Theory summarizes the information base on philosophy and draws
conclusion. Theories provide guidelines that have been tested by experienced
counselors. They explain behaviors. They may predict desirable or undesirable
outcomes in given circumstances (Gibson & Mitchell, 2003).
- How can you relate to someone who comes from a different world to you? –
understanding societies, cultures, ethnicity, values etc. Finding a common
ground
- The more you know yourself, the better counsellor you will be
- Genuinely compassionate and understanding
- Being non-judgmental and acceptance of people before getting to know them
and their story
- Good body language and eye contact – making a comfortable environment and
being open
- Listen to listen and not listen to respond
Counselling is the way of empowering someone in a different way rather than
advice giving and rescuing them from a situation.
Psychology – clinical, diagnoses, labelling, temporary fix
Counselling – personal, focus on someone’s personal life and their experiences,
more humanistic approach
Carl Rogers:
- Seeing the person as they are and holding back any judgement or remarks you
may have
Terms:
➢ Materialism believed that humans were entirely physical.
➢ Determinist asserted that all human choices were determined by the laws of
nature.
➢ Rationalism emphasized that reasons, innate ideas, and deductions guide
knowledge.
➢ Empiricism underscored that experience was the source of knowledge.
➢ Positivism concentrated on natural phenomena or facts that were objectively
observable.
➢ Existentialism focused on the uniqueness of human beings and highlighted
this as the only reality. Eg) “What does it mean to exist?” or “What does my
existence tell me about where I am in my life”
- To be free you must challenge your own existence
- Everyone’s life experiences are so different
- Take the person on a quest to change their perspective of the pain – the
pain will lessen the more you are aware of the pain
Boy and Pine (1983)
*Theory can’t hold up evidence…evidence must provide the support and the
foundation for all theory*
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Theories and Approaches to Counselling – Weekly Notes
**Lecture 1&2 are not part of the exam!! Only from lecture 3 onwards**
Assessment 1: Group assessment
- Doesn’t start until week 6/7
- Allocated in groups of 2 or 4 (presentation marked together)
- Written summary on your presentation - 1 page (marked individually)
Assessment 2: Essay
- Due week 8
- 2000 words
- Choose only one question/topic
- For every 100 words = 1 references, therefore, 20 references needed!!
- +/- 10% of word count
- Upload on Turnitin
- Referencing (APA): N-note website or ref notes
WEEK 5: Existential Therapy
- Definition: is a style of therapy that places emphasis on the human condition as
a whole. Existential psychotherapy uses a positive approach that applauds
human capacities and aspirations while simultaneously acknowledging human
limitations.
- It is an attitude toward human suffering [that] has no manual. It asks deep
questions about the nature of the human being and the nature of anxiety, despair,
grief, loneliness, isolation, and anomie. It also deals centrally with the question of
meaning, creativity and love.
- To exist is to suffer
- We grow through our experiences of suffering and mistakes
- To be human we are flawed – we express our emotions
- Taking a person on a journey in the past (not changing it) by creating new
meaning – seeing things in a different way, shifting your mind to view things
differently
- To be free of judgement
- Allowing others to find freedom in their own voice
- Acknowledges that we have moved from the past to live in the present and be
free from any burden – giving us new perspective for the future
Human nature:
- The existential movement stands for respect for the person, for exploring new
aspects of human behaviour, and for divergent methods of understanding people
- The significance of our existence is never fixed and once and for all, rather we
recreate ourselves through our projects
Key theorists:
- Kierkegaard (1813–55): believed that truth could ultimately only be discovered
subjectively by the individual in action – you can only find an answer to
something if you go through the actual experience (subjective)
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Theories and Approaches to Counselling – Weekly Notes
- Nietzsche (1844–1900): encouraged people to choose their own standards and
live by their own free will
- Heidegger (1889–1976): interpretation seeks to understand how the person
himself subjectively experiences something
Friedrich Nietzsche (1844-1900):
- Jew in a concentration camp
- Wrote a native of his through processing and how he was able to reach free will
in a concentration camp – no matter how much suffering and pain you go through
everyone is able to find free will in the end
- “thoughts are the shadows of our feelings – always darker, emptier and simpler”
- “whoever fights monsters should see to it that in the process he does not become
a monster. And if you gaze long enough into an abyss, the abyss will gaze back
into you.” – whoever spending time fighting/hiding from monsters does not make
you a monster
- If you spend your life/stay angry over little things then you’ll become resentful,
whereas, if you spend your life forgiving then you’ll be free
Min figures in existential psychotherapy:
- Victor Frankl – logotherapy, or therapy through meaning.
Nietzsche: “He who has a way to live can bear with most nay how.”
- Rollo May – the struggle is between security f dependence and the delights and
pains of growth
- James Bugental – therapy as a journey into the client’s subjective world, very
demanding of therapist
- Irwin Yalom – death, freedom, isolation and meaninglessness, most
comprehensive
**Carl Rogers and Gloria** (youtube)
Key Points:
- there is no such thing as psychological dysfunction or being ill, every way of
being is merely an expression of how one chooses to live one's life
- accepting feelings rather than trying to change them
- generally, not concerned with the client's past; instead, the emphasis is on the
choices to be made in the present and future
- 4 “givens” of human existence: death, freedom, isolation, and meaningless
- depending on how we confront these themes, we determine the design and
quality of our lives
Goals of therapy:
1. to enable people to become truthful with themselves
2. to widen people perspectives on themselves and the world around them
3. to clarify on how to proceed into the future
4. to learn from the lessons of the past – creating value and meaning, past =
experience
5. to create something valuable from living in the present
Basic principle of existentialism:
- We are free because we can choose: I am what I choose
- We are responsible for our choices
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Document Summary
Listening = listening and empathise (e. g. past experiences) Stop yourself from caring too much but not enough self care. Theory summarizes the information base on philosophy and draws conclusion. Theories provide guidelines that have been tested by experienced counselors. They may predict desirable or undesirable outcomes in given circumstances (gibson & mitchell, 2003). How can you relate to someone who comes from a different world to you? understanding societies, cultures, ethnicity, values etc. The more you know yourself, the better counsellor you will be. Being non-judgmental and acceptance of people before getting to know them and their story. Good body language and eye contact making a comfortable environment and being open. Listen to listen and not listen to respond. Counselling is the way of empowering someone in a different way rather than advice giving and rescuing them from a situation. Counselling personal, focus on someone"s personal life and their experiences, more humanistic approach.
