Person-centred coaching psychology: A meta-theoretical perspective

Stephen Josephto say that person-centred practitionersdon’t work with distressed and dysfunctionalpeople. They do, but their focus, no matterwhere the client lies on the spectrum ofpsychological functioning is to facilitate theself-determination of the client so that theycan move toward more optimal functioning.The person-centred approach is a metatheoreticalapproach to working withpeople, be they in one to one settings, insmall groups, in community settings, or asapplied to social policy. It is not a set of therapeutictechniques but an attitude based onthe theoretical stance that people are theirown best experts (Joseph, 2003).In brief, Carl Rogers proposed the metatheoreticalperspective that human beingshave an inherent tendency toward growth,development, and optimal functioning,which he termed the actualising tendency (see,Rogers, 1959, 1963). But these do nothappen automatically. For people to selfactualisetheir inherent optimal nature theyrequire the right social environment. Rogersproposed that the right social environmentwas one in which the person feels understood,valued, and accepted for who they are.In such an environment, Rogers reasoned,people are inclined to self-actualise in a waythat is congruent with their intrinsic actualisingtendency, resulting in well-being andoptimal functioning. But when people don’tfeel understood, valued, or accepted for whothey are, but only feel valued for being theperson they perceive someone else wantsthem to be, then they self-actualise in a waythat is incongruent with their intrinsic actualisingtendency, resulting in distress anddysfunction.The person-centred meta-theoreticalperspective is an established psychologicaltradition supported by over 50 years ofresearch and theory (see, Barrett-Lennard,1998), as well as recent developments inpositive psychology (see, e.g. Joseph &Linley, 2004, 2005, in press). This assumptionthat human beings have an inherenttendency toward growth, development, andoptimal functioning provides the theoreticalfoundation that it is the client and not thetherapist who knows best. This serves as theguiding principle for client-centred practice,which in essence, is simply the principledstance of respecting the self-determinationof others (B. Grant, 2004).Applications of the person-centredapproach have been not only to therapy, butto education, parenting, group learning,conflict resolution, and peace processes (see,Barrett-Lennard, 1998), all based on the samephilosophical stance that people are theirown best experts, and have within themselvesthe potential to develop, and to grow. Whenthis inner potential is released the personmoves toward becoming more autonomousand socially constructive. These ideas havetaken root in many contexts, but often thework of Carl Rogers goes unrecognised andunacknowledged. But they are ideas whichwill be easily recognisable to coachingpsychologists (e.g. Whitmore, 1996).What might be less familiar is that theperson-centred way of working does notmake a distinction between people in termsof their level of psychological functioning,because the process of alleviating distressand dysfunction is the same as that for facilitatingwell-being and optimal functioning.Both ends of the spectrum of functioningare defined in relation to the extent to whichself-actualisation is congruent with the actualisingtendency (Ford, 1991). When there isgreater congruence, greater well-being andmore optimal functioning results. But whenthere is less congruence, greater distress anddysfunction results (see Wilkins, 2005).Thus, the person-centred approachoffers a genuinely positive psychologicalperspective on mental health because of itsunified and holistic focus on both the negativeand the positive aspects of human functioning(Joseph & Worsley, 2005). Coachingpsychology would be the same activityrequiring the same theoretical base, and thesame practical skills, as required for workingwith people who are distressed and dysfunctional.A person-centred coachingpsychology, in contrast to one underpinned48 International Coaching Psychology Review ● Vol. 1 No. 1 April 2006