Customer Reviews

The Carl Rogers Reader

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I have been working as a therapist for over 10 years and, to my shame, have only now started to read any of Rogers' work. This selection of his writings strikes me as amazingly modern and relevant to the work of anyone in the 'helping' professions. I have been struck by the almost spiritual quality of his thoughts, and the way in which he cuts through any psychological or psychotherapeutic dogma. I have been truly inspired by this book and I would highly recommend it to anyone interested in human relationships; I believe that anyone would come away with new and profound insights that would challenge, stimulate and reassure. An excellent book!

always a pleasure to read rogers. this book is a compilation of many wonderful pieces. rogers had a great ability to see beyond the surface and connect with people in a very real, personal, and therapeutic way. in an at times parental sort of way, rogers was able to see through to the heart of a patient and his issues and bring insight and hope. great read for those new to psychological theory/practice AND those who have been doing it for awhile.

This book is an excellent synopsis of Carl Rogers life's work. Instead of researching several other volumes, this text provides an accurate and complete re-telling of the development of Rogerian Client-Centred Therapy. The authors have captured the essence of Carl Rogers and his voice is evident throughout the text. A worthwhile read for those new to Rogerian Therapy.

The Carl Rogers Reader is an excellent, thought-provoking collection of articles by Carl Rogers from different stages in his career and covering many subjects linked to the person-centred approach to psychotherapy. I found this book fascinating, enlightening and occasionally surprising; for example, when I realised just how much he was against accreditation for therapists. At all times, the life-affirming nature of the man shines through. If you are preparing to be a therapist and are drawn to the person-centred way, or are simply interested in the life and work of Carl Rogers, you will find this book a treasure trove.

All psychotherapists know Carl Rogers, right? Didn't Rogers, founder of non-directive therapy, teach people to do just reflective listening? Isn't he replaced, now, by "evidence-based" psychotherapies which, unlike Rogers, are based on research?

Wrong. US psychotherapists may think they know Rogers. (Rogers is much better known in Europe.) But there are many aspects of Rogers that they likely don't know. And these aspects are here, in this Reader -- an excellent selection of Rogers' writings.

For example, Rogers was the founder of psychotherapy research, and client-centered research dominated the field for over 20 years, through the 1960's. (It continues to this day, mostly in Europe.) Rogers' classic article, "The Necessary and Sufficient Conditions of Therapeutic Personality Change" (1957), in this Reader, has still spawned more psychotherapy research, is still the most empirically validated study in the history of psychotherapy. In the opening years of the 21st century, the English publisher, PCCS Books, published no less than four thick volumes of theory & research on just these conditions. (All are available on amazon. See, for example, Unconditional Positive Regard (Rogers Therapeutic Conditions Evolution Theory & Practice).)

By the way, the end of the opening essay in this volume, "This is Me" (1961), is a more readable version of these conditions. His 1958 article, "The Characteristics of a Helping Relationship," also in this volume, describes how his "conditions" were already validated by research. Indeed, Rogers' client-therapist relationship remains one of the most research-based of all psychotherapies. And two recent & comprehensive meta-analyses of psychotherapy research, from the 1950's into the 21st century, present strong evidence that "contextual factors", including Rogers' "conditions", are more effective than the many diagnosis-based interventions. (Both these books -- The Great Psychotherapy Debate: Models, Methods, and Findings (LEA's Counseling and Psychotherapy Series) and The Heart and Soul of Change: Delivering What Works in Therapy -- are due out in December 2009 in their 2nd editions, updated with even more current research.)

Self-Disclosure: Of my first five teachers in psychotherapy, four were students of Carl Rogers, including Eugene Gendlin. Yet I'm nowhere near a "true believer". I do Cognitive Behavioral Therapies as well as Family Therapies, and I'm definitely a DSM-jock, often working closely with psychiatrists. But my core, my heart belongs to Rogers, which is "how" I do CBT, family therapy & DSM-diagnosing.

In this Reader, you'll find almost all Rogers' most important articles. "Toward a Modern Approach to Values: The Valuing Process of the Mature Person" (1964) has continuing implications for helping ethics avoid the twin problems of relativism & dogmatism. "Do We Need 'A' Reality?" (1978) develops one aspect of his "process of valuing", this from a later perspective. "A Theory of Therapy, Personality, and Interpersonal Relationships, As Developed in the Client-Centered Framework" (1959) is Rogers' most rigorous statement of the theory behind his client-centered approach. "A Client-Centered/Person-Centered Approach to Therapy" (1986) gives an extended transcript of a demonstration therapy session as well as a late summary of his expanded thinking about the "necessary & sufficient conditions". With this article, especially when combined with his "Reflection of Feelings and Transference" (1986/1987), the reader can grasp the differences between the simple "technique" of reflective listening and the deep interaction of Rogerian therapy. The Reader also has articles about his forays into education -- Rogers was, after all, not only a teacher, but a teacher of teachers.

With 33 articles & over 500 pages, the Reader is a true Rogerian feast. Though of course, there are articles I wish were included, in particular, "Empathic: An Unappreciated Way of Being" (found in Rogers 1980 A Way of Being) and his "Introduction" of the 1951 Client-Centered Therapy: Its Current Practice, Implications, and Theory. But these are found in books readily available, and no selection of Rogers 16 books & 200+ scholarly articles could please everyone.

If you're a psychotherapist, I highly recommend buying & reading this book. Rogers' work bears not only reading, but also re-reading. If you do, I believe your clients will be glad. I'd read many of these articles several decades ago, and my more-recent re-reading helped "tone me up", all to my clients' benefit.

Excellent book to read for people who are concerned with the approach and values in psychotherapy.

Carl Rogers reviewed many of his heart-felt issues in the subject matter.

The "client-centered" approach in psychotherapy cannot be ignored if we do believe that human being is more than just one class of object in the study of science.

Get one and find it out yourself! Easy reading and extremely insightful!

In my humble opinion, it is a convienent collection of some of his most important works, in a single text put together by individuals who knew him. It is "essential" Rogers, written by him.
SS

I needed this book for a paper I was writing. This book came in a timely manner and was filled with everything I needed to write a report on Carl Rogers and his theory.

Though the book is lengthy, I enjoyed his tone more than other physchologists of his time