Facilitative Conditions

Jeanmarie Keim & Matthew Dahlsten

Facilitative conditions are those conditions or counselor attitudes that enhance the therapeutic relationship and are conducive to successful outcomes in counseling and psychotherapy. The three primary facilitative conditions were first suggested by Carl R. Rogers in his 1951 publication on the person-centered counseling approach. These conditions are unconditional positive regard, genuineness , and empathy . According to Rogers, if counselors express these core conditions, those being helped will become less defensive and more open to themselves and their world, and will tend to behave in more prosocial and constructive ways. Rogers believed that these three conditions were both necessary and sufficient for positive outcomes in the counseling process. Other theorists have argued that although these conditions may be necessary, they are not sufficient for positive therapeutic outcomes. Current discussions of common factors related to positive therapeutic outcome identify the therapeutic relationship as essential to client progress. The facilitative conditions Unconditional ...

Users without subscription are not able to see the full content on this title. Please, subscribe or login to access all content on this website.