Talk therapy

The Talk therapy, Conversational psychotherapy or client-centered psychotherapy describes a therapy method from the field of humanistic psychology.

What is talk therapy?

Basically, talk therapy sees itself as a kind of instrument that helps the client to process what they have experienced through self-exploration and to change wrong behavior through insight.

At a Talk therapy As the name suggests, the focus is on the conversation. It is also called client-centered psychotherapy because it puts the client and his statements in the foreground, both verbally and non-verbally.

The founder is mainly the psychologist Carl R. Rogers, who gained access to research opportunities through his teaching activities at American universities in the 1940s and 1950s. In the course of this research he tried to find out how a person can process things better and talk about it on his own in order to gain new insight in the course of the conversation and in this way to bring about a change in behavior.

He researched the conditions that are necessary for this. Like many other therapy models, talk therapy has evolved over the years.

Basically, talk therapy sees itself as a kind of instrument that helps the client to process what they have experienced through self-exploration and to change wrong behavior through insight. This method of conducting discussions is not only found in therapies, but has also become part of supervision, student-centered teaching and counseling.

Function, effect & goals

The Talk therapy is used for many mental illnesses. Whether as a single method or in combination with other therapy methods and / or drug treatment.

In talk therapy it is assumed that everyone has an urge for self-realization and that they already have the necessary resources within themselves. Normally, a healthy person is productive, his thoughts and actions are purposeful and conscious. Disturbed processes and impairments are based on wrong learning processes and block the possibility of self-realization. With the help of talk therapy, these blockages should be recognized and resolved by the patient.

At first glance, talk therapy seems to concentrate on what has been experienced. The course of the conversation, however, is primarily about how the client experienced the traumatic event, which emotions played a role and which conclusions he drew from it. The work-up should give the client new insights on their own and thus be able to reevaluate what they have experienced.

Consequently, he will also change his behavior through this gained insight. Talk therapy is not about setting specific goals. The conversation automatically develops a course. The therapist leaves this process largely to the patient and creates the framework conditions that enable the client to speak about experiences and problems, gain insights and question his actions.

The talk therapist appears empathetic and authentic and takes the person concerned seriously with their emotional life without judging them. The core of talk therapy is based on mutual acceptance and appreciation of the client. A person who does not feel judged and does not have to worry about a possible evaluation is more willing to talk about himself and his possible mistakes. This creates the basis for change.

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Criticism & dangers

There is insufficient research in the field of risk Talk therapy. Due to her client-centered way of working and the greatest possible acceptance of the client, she largely meets the ethical requirements.

Dangers and risks therefore exist primarily from the patient and his personality structure as well as the therapist. A client who is not open to further development and change will hardly be able to record any success.

A therapist who does not react empathically and authentically and who dominates the course of the conversation in a negative way can not only bring the therapy to failure, but also cause further serious psychological damage, especially in highly insecure clients.

It is therefore advisable to carefully choose the right therapist. Since there are now many different directions of talk therapy, an appropriate pre-selection should be made. In the case of serious trauma, for example, talk therapy specializing in trauma therapy is recommended. So right from the start, important factors for the success of the talk therapy are laid down.