Socratic Method

James C. Overholser

The Socratic Method can be a useful tool for many forms of psychological treatment and can be incorporated into many schools of counseling and psychotherapy. Named after the famous philosopher Socrates, who lived in ancient Greece (469–399 B.C.) and who sought the answers to major philosophical questions through dialogue, the Socratic Method often refers to a reliance on questions to guide the flow of a dialogue in a somewhat predetermined manner. However, it is best to view the Socratic Method as consisting of the following key components: systematic questioning, inductive reasoning, universal definitions, disavowal of knowledge, self-improvement, and promoting virtue. Systematic questioning refers to the use of a series of questions to explore a topic in detail. Questions can follow a variety of grammatical formats, but all seek to push the client to Inductive ...

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