Carl Rogers
Marsha gave a talk tonight on Carl Rogers at David Ramsey Steele's monthly Libertarian Seminar.
(David is an editor at Open Court Publishing and the author of this book. He is often extremely critical of Objectivism, but he is also a brilliant guy who tends to have a unique and insightful take on the world.)
Anyway, Marsha was talking about Carl Rogers, a very influential 20th century psychologist, who formulated "nondirective" or "client-centered" therapy. The talk went fine, but on the drive home she was wondering if there was a better way to convey how this style of therapy actually effects change, since its method is counter-intuitive.
After all, if you've got a problem, shouldn't you be seeking advice on how to solve it? Rogers believed that for your own life problems it was best if the person solved them himself, but that the therapist could best assist by listening in an accepting manner and showing that he "got" what the client was saying.
You can see how this might sound "libertarian" in its way. But Rogers has never been a hot item in the Objectivist/Libertarian subculture, which has tended to see more promise in therapies that communicate lots of direct information to the client.
Rhyme of the day:
He showed respect,
But refused to direct.