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This study analyzed Carl Rogers’s session with Gloria in Three Approaches to Psychotherapy (E. L. Shostrom, 1965a) to
determine how Rogers’s conversational style functioned to enact his core conditions of empathy, genuineness, and uncondi-
tional positive regard. Rogers’s conversational style was found to be congruent with his espoused theory as well as a catalyst for
client-centered counseling. The authors suggest that despite the film’s popularity, the “client-centeredness” of the therapeutic
interaction between Carl Rogers and Gloria has been previously underrecognized.
C
arl Rogers’s session with Gloria in the training In his theory of client-centered counseling, Rogers (1951,
film titled Three Approaches to Psychotherapy 1957) proposed three conditions as “necessary and sufficient”
(Shostrom, 1965a) is among the most written for therapeutic change: empathy, genuineness, and unconditional
about in the history of counseling and contin- positive regard. This theoretical framework provides the in-
ues to be used as an instructional model for structional foundation for many counselor education programs.
the helping professions (Glauser & Bozarth, 2001). In this However, Rogers (1967) expressed considerable frustration at
session, Gloria, a 30-year-old recently divorced woman, pre- how his theory was taught, stating that “such training has very
sented an initial problem about “having men to the house,” little to do with an effective therapeutic relationship” and that
wondering “how it affects the children.” Specifically, Gloria he had “become more and more allergic” to terms like “reflec-
wanted to know if she should be truthful with her daughter tion of feeling” (p. 375). Moreover, Rogers and Wood (1974)
about having sex since the divorce or if such honesty would criticized the way in which client-centered counseling was be-
cause her daughter emotional harm. Through the course of ing taught through reductionist means such as microskills. When
their 30-minute conversation, this issue evolved into Gloria a student asked why Rogers did not always adhere to the rules
accepting herself and feeling “whole.” of “Rogerian” counseling, he replied, “I’m in the fortunate posi-
There were several indicators that this session was mean- tion of not having to be a Rogerian” (Farber, Brink, & Raskin,
ingful and life changing for Gloria despite its short duration. 1996, p. 11). Clearly, there was a discrepancy between how
She later wrote that Rogers conceptualized what he did and how his theory was
being taught. For that reason, a greater understanding of Rogers’s
Something happened in those few short minutes which has stayed enacted therapeutic style is needed to increase counselor edu-
with me ever since. He simply helped me to recognize my own cators’ teaching effectiveness in the classroom.
potential—my value as a human being. All the words couldn’t
possibly express the importance of that for me. (Dolliver, Williams,
& Gold, 1980, p. 141) LITERATURE REVIEW
Moreover, Gloria attended a weekend conference in 1965 There have been numerous publications (Bohart, 1991;
featuring the film’s debut and maintained a written corre- Dolliver et al., 1980; Ellis, 1986; Essig & Russell, 1990; Hill,
spondence with Rogers and his wife Helen until Gloria’s Thames, & Rardin, 1979; Kiesler & Goldston, 1988; Meara,
death in 1979 (Rogers, 1984; Weinrach, 1990). Rogers (1984) Shannon, & Pepinsky, 1979; Mercier & Johnson, 1984; Rogers
described himself as “awed” by the session’s significance, writ- & Wood, 1974; Rosenzweig, 1996; Shostrom & Riley, 1968;
ing “We truly met as persons. It is good to know that even Stoten & Goos, 1974; Weinrach, 1986, 1990, 1991; Zimmer
one half hour can make a difference in a life” (p. 425). & Cowles, 1972) examining one or more of the counseling
Scott A. Wickman, Department of Counseling, Adult and Health Education; Cynthia Campbell, Department of Educational Technology, Research and Assessment;
Northern Illinois University. Both authors contributed equally to the research and writing of this article. Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed
to Scott A. Wickman, Department of Counseling, Adult and Health Education, Northern Illinois University, DeKalb, IL 60115 (e-mail: swickman@niu.edu).
© 2003 by the American Counseling Association. All rights reserved. pp. 178–184
sessions depicted in Three Approaches to Psychotherapy to explore the extent to which each device supported one
(Shostrom, 1965a). These authors generally agree that Rogers or more core condition(s) of client-centered counseling.
practiced the theory of counseling for which he is famous That is, we wanted to find out what Rogers was doing
(for a disagreement with that notion, see Weinrach, 1990, conversationally when he was being “Rogerian.” This in-
1991) and most authors used transcripts provided by volved three steps. First, we grouped together previously
Shostrom (1965b) or Rogers and Wood (1974) as raw data. identified examples of Rogers’s conversational devices. Sec-
However, a casual reading of either transcript concurrent ond, we looked for a common function within each conversa-
with a viewing of the film reveals that the actual dialogue tional device by comparing examples of a single device to
spoken has been somewhat normalized when transcribed, each other (e.g., all transcribed examples of first-person quotes
putting the language more in line with written English and were reviewed). Patterns and themes of what Rogers seemed
easing readability. Although it has been the most widely to accomplish conversationally were noted. Third, the
studied and scrutinized session in the history of counseling, function(s) of each device was interpreted within Rogers’s
all studies that have been done to date have been based on theory of client-centered counseling to ascertain which, if
imperfect transcripts and most did not offer practical util- any, core conditions were being facilitated. In this way, the
ity to the field of counseling (see Essig & Russell, 1990, and relationship between theory and practice was examined.
Rogers & Wood, 1974, for exceptions).
To correct the transcript flaws of prior analyses, the first RESULTS
author (Wickman, 1999) improved on existing transcripts
by more accurately reflecting the session, including exact Each conversational device was interpreted and discussed
words used, lengths of pauses, and changes in volume, tone, as applicable to Rogers’s theoretical framework for client-
or pitch. A conversation analysis of the new transcript found centered counseling. Figure 1 illustrates these relationships.
the following devices to be among the key elements of
Rogers’s conversational style. Nonexpert language referred Nonexpert Language: Communicating Genuineness and
to Rogers intentionally using “not knowing” language that Unconditional Positive Regard
displayed his inability to decide for Gloria what was best
for her. Meta-statements referred to both Rogers’s and Gloria’s Rogers’s nonexpert language throughout the session paral-
explicit here-and-now talk about their ongoing interaction. leled that of constructivist theories popularized decades later
Affiliative negative assessments were Rogers’s acknowledg- (e.g., Anderson & Goolishian, 1988; Cecchin, 1987; Daniels
ments of the difficulty of Gloria’s situation. First-person
quotes externalized Gloria’s hypothetical internal dialogue, “First-Person Quotes” Externalizing Client’s Internal Dialogue
stating out loud Rogers’s understanding of what Gloria was Affiliative Negative Assessments of the Difficulty of the Process
saying to herself. Invitations for repair involved explicit and
implicit requests by Rogers for Gloria to correct him if he
misunderstood what she was saying or implying. Withholding
direct responses to requests for advice referred to Rogers’s not
providing an immediate solution or answer when Gloria spe- Empathy
cifically asked what she should do. Problem reformulation re-
ferred to Rogers’s highlighting what Gloria said that was both
within her control and manageable in a counseling session.
this is the conflict, and it’s just, insoluble and therefore it’s “message sent.” Second, they again called attention to his
hopeless.” By verbalizing what Gloria may have been think- not being the expert on Gloria. Third, invitations for re-
ing using her language as if he were her—and thereby again pair also facilitate transparency on his part, making his
modeling “I” messages—Rogers’s quotes displayed advanced outer presentation of self consistent with what he was
empathy by explicitly stating a view of the situation through thinking internally. Moreover, such invitations for Gloria
Gloria’s eyes. to correct what Rogers has said increased his ability to
Examples of quoting internal dialogue. display empathy. Rogers’s invitations for repair generally
resulted in Gloria agreeing with the proposed empathic
Example 1 statement in question. In other words, the act of inviting
repair seemed to make agreement more likely. Prototypi-
Rogers: But something in you says, “But I don’t like it that way, not cal examples of Rogers inviting repair and Gloria respond-
unless it is really right.” ing affirmatively are presented below.
Gloria: Right.
Examples of invitation for repair.
Example 2
Example 1
Rogers: You sort of feel, “I want them to have just as nice a picture of
me as they have of their dad.” Rogers: Is that right?
Gloria: Thank you. Right. Gloria: Right.
Rogers: “And if his is a little phony, then maybe mine’ll have to be too.”
Example 2
The accuracy and effectiveness of empathic internal dia-
logue quotes may have been evidenced by how the process Rogers: Is that what you’re saying?
Gloria: Yeah, that’s what I mean, yeah.
became a collaborative activity toward the end of the ses-
sion. Specifically, Rogers initiated two quotes from Gloria’s
Example 3
perspective, which she then completed.
Examples of collaborative quoting. Rogers: I think that’s putting it a little too strongly.
Gloria: But that’s close. That is what I mean.
Example 1
Withholding Direct Responses to Requests for Advice:
Rogers: You can really listen to yourself sometimes and realize, “This
isn’t the right feeling. This isn’t—
Unconditional Positive Regard
Gloria: Mm hm Gloria frequently requested direct advice from Rogers, often
Rogers: This isn’t the way I would feel, if I was doing what I really
wanted to do.”
prefacing her requests with meta-statements such as “I know
Gloria: But yet many times I’ll go on and do it anyway you can’t give me a direct answer, but . . .” In everyday con-
Rogers: Mm hm versation, the natural response to a request for advice is to
Gloria: An’ say, “Oh well, I’m in the situation now, I’ll just remember give advice. In contrast, Rogers demonstrated unconditional
next time.” positive regard for Gloria by respecting her ability to come
Example 2 to her own decision. Rather than responding directly to her
request for advice, he used nonexpert language, negatively
Rogers: So you slap at him and say, “This is what I am now, see?” assessed the difficulty of the process, invited repair, and made
Gloria: Yeah. “You raised me. How do you like it?” empathic meta-statements that displayed his understanding
of what she was experiencing. In short, he honored her
Invitations for Repair: Communicating Empathy and expertise in arriving at her own meaningful outcome. In
Genuineness responding to Rogers’s withholding of advice, Gloria seemed
to revisit the topic about which she was seeking advice at a
Another way in which Rogers’s client-centered conversa-
tion deviated somewhat from that of ordinary talk was in more complex level.
the area of “repair.” In conversation-analytic terms, this phe- Examples of withholding advice.
nomenon refers to a “correction” of a prior interactional
Example 1
turn. In everyday conversation, speakers generally correct
themselves in order to avoid being corrected by another Gloria: And I—I—I have a feeling like, you’re just going to sit there and let me
(Sacks, Schegloff, & Jefferson, 1974). Rogers’s style deviated stew in it and I—I want more. I want you to help me get rid of my guilt
from this pattern, however, in that he explicitly invited re- feeling. If I can get rid of my guilt feeling about lying, or going to bed
pair to clarify and refine his understanding of Gloria’s situ- with a single man, any of that, just so I can feel more comfortable.
Rogers: Mm hm. And I guess I’d like to say, “No, I don’t want to let you just
ation. Rogers’s invitations for repair functioned to highlight
‘stew’ in your feelings,” but on the other hand, I—I also feel that this is
genuineness in at least three ways. First, they demonstrated the kind of very private thing that I couldn’t possibly answer for you. But
his interest and investment in the relationship by checking I sure as anything will try to help you work toward your own answer. I
to make sure that “message received” was consistent with don’t know whether that makes any sense to you, but I mean it.
Example 2
Example 2
Gloria: But when things—do seem so wrong for me and I have an
impulse to do them how can I accept that? Rogers: But I guess I heard you saying too that it isn’t only the
Rogers: What you’d like to do is to feel more accepting toward yourself children, that you don’t like it as well when it—
when you do things that you feel are wrong. Is that right?
Gloria: Right
Example 3
Example 3 Rogers: You sound as though your actions are kind of outside of you.
You want to approve of you but what you do somehow won’t let
Gloria: I, ah, I do feel like you’ve been saying to me, you’re not put—, you approve of yourself.
giving me advice, but I feel like you’re saying, “You really wanna you
know what pattern you wanna follow, Gloria, and go ‘head and
follow it.” I’m sort of feel a backing up from you.
Example 4
Rogers: (extended pause) I guess the way I sense it is, ah, you’ve been
telling me that you know what you want t’do and yes I do believe in Gloria: See it sounds like your—I’m picking up a contradiction. I’m
backing up people in what they want t’do. (extended pause) It’s just not und—, I’m not following—
a little different slant than the way it seems to you. Rogers: Sounds like you’re feeling a contradiction in yourself too?
Gloria: Are you telling me—
Rogers: But you see, one thing that concerns me is it’s no damn good
your doing something that you haven’t really chosen to do. That’s
DISCUSSION
why I’m trying to help you find out what your own inner choices are.
This study finds support for Rogers being “Rogerian” through
elements of his conversational style that enacted the core
Problem Reformulation: Empathy and Unconditional
conditions of therapeutic change. These findings provide
Positive Regard specific examples from Rogers’s interaction with Gloria that
Davis (1984) described problem reformulation as a conversa- more clearly define what empathy, genuineness, and uncon-
tional device used by counselors and other psychotherapists to ditional positive regard might look like in action. Gloria’s
formulate initial client problem descriptions into something consistent response to Rogers’s conversational devices was
manageable within the parameters of talk therapy. In this ses- to talk in more detail and at a more complex level about
sion, Rogers carefully selected which parts of Gloria’s state- her problem situation until it became no longer problem-
ments to attend to, phrasing his responses so that Gloria main- atic. That is, “having men to the house” while wondering
tained agency for the problem and so that it was workable for “how it affects the children” became a nonissue for Gloria as
her within their “half an hour together.” Problem reformulation she shifted her focus toward self-acceptance. As previously
seemed to accomplish two core conditions concurrently—em- mentioned, Gloria’s later statement that Rogers “helped me
pathy and unconditional positive regard. Gloria’s topic intro- to recognize my potential—my value as a human being”
ductions often began with fuzzy, ill-defined problem descrip- (Dolliver et al., 1980, p. 141) supports this notion.
tions not within her control to change. Rogers responded in a In contrast to well-structured problems for which both the
way that captured the essence of what she said (empathy) while problem and the algorithm for solution are clearly known, ill-
converting the description into a better-defined and more work- structured problems are more abstract, making problem recog-
able problem. In this way, problem reformulation gave the power nition and cues for solution opaque. Research in educational
of change and ownership of control for problem resolution psychology generally suggests that ill-structured problems are
back to the client (unconditional positive regard). Through made more workable through problem recognition and prob-
problem reformulation, Gloria was the initiator both of the lem representation (Snowman, Biehler, & Bonk, 2000). Rogers’s
problem and of its manageable resolution. Consequently, Gloria empathic statements, genuineness, and unconditional positive
not only felt heard, but also empowered, reinforcing her abil- regard helped Gloria to better identify and represent her ill-
ity to change. After all, what Rogers had just said was her idea defined problem. These core conditions were enacted through
in the first place. Rogers’s effectiveness at problem reformula- Rogers’s conversational devices and structured the interaction
tion illustrated his skill at approximating the client’s world: so that Gloria could be her own agent of change. It is important
There is a delicate balance between reformulating the problem to note that no core condition stood in isolation from the oth-
into a manageable therapeutic topic and reinterpreting it in a ers. For example, Rogers demonstrated unconditional positive
way that seems to convey misunderstanding (i.e., demonstrates regard by withholding direct responses to requests for advice
lack of empathy). Rogers reformulated the problem in a way and honoring Gloria’s ability to come to her own decisions. The
that maintained Gloria as the originator of her idea. Examples potency of this intervention, however, was brought about through
of problem reformulation are listed below. concurrent displays of genuineness and empathy.
Examples of problem reformulation.
the most famous in the history of counseling and seen by guage. For these reasons, although the Rogers and Gloria
“three generations of graduate students” in a spectrum of session is perhaps the most widely known in the history of
helping professions (Glauser & Bozarth, 2001, p. 143). We counseling, we believe that the quality of the interaction
contend that the film’s therapeutic interaction has been therein has been underrecognized in previous writings and
largely underrecognized by students and counselor educa- underutilized in counselor education.
tors, perhaps because viewers are treated as passive recep-
tors of information who are expected to “learn” simply by
viewing experts on film. In contrast, we support a construc-
REFERENCES
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