Mick Cooper

This book shows why we need, and can create, a progressive politics that is profoundly informed by insights from the psychotherapeutic and psychological domain, moving us from a politics of blame to a politics of understanding.

Developing a Progressive Vision for Society

Psychology at the Heart of Social Change

Peter Baker

This practical, down-to-earth guide to the minefield of being a man in the 1990s includes advice on sex, relationships, emotions, work, violence, health and fatherhood.

The Complete Man's Guide to Life

The MANual

Are some therapies more effective than others? How important is the relationship? Which clients do best in therapy? Essential Research Findings in Counselling and Psychotherapy answers these questions and many more, providing trainees, practitioners and researchers with a comprehensive introduction to the latest findings in the field. The book sets out in a jargon-free way the evidence for the effectiveness of therapy and the factors associated with positive therapeutic outcomes. It gives suggestions for further reading, definitions of key terms and questions for discussion, making this an ideal text for use in training. The book is also designed for practitioners who increasingly need to justify their therapeutic work on empirical grounds. Essential Research Findings in Counselling and Psychotherapy gives them the knowledge and confidence to do just that. More than that, it makes research findings accessible and provides information on how to practice counselling and psychotherapy in an effective way.

The Facts are Friendly

Essential Research Findings in Counselling and Psychotherapy

Rosanne Knox

Unravelling the issues surrounding the therapeutic relationship, this book highlights the importance of the relationship itself, of the client as a proactive agent in the process, and of the need for partnership and collaboration for effective therapy to take place. It will provide trainees and newly qualified therapists with the knowledge and skills they need to practice on a level of deep understanding and confidence.

The Therapeutic Relationship in Counselling and Psychotherapy

Duncan Law

Recent evidence has shown that the successful setting of goals brings about positive outcomes in psychological therapy. This book brings together theory, practice and research to give a definitive, practical, and critical guide to working with goals in the psychological therapies.

Working with Goals in Psychotherapy and Counselling

Windy Dryden

A practical resource that your students can return to again and again to guide and coordinate their pluralistic practice, it provides: Hands-on guidance to developing pluralistic practice: providing the tools, skills and practice frameworks A step-by-step understanding of how the ideas and methods of different orientations can contribute towards a pluralistic way of working The tools and understandings needed to work with clients to achieve the most common goals The tools and understandings needed to work with clients wishing to address particular issues such as depression, anxiety, addiction, health issues, suicidal thoughts An understanding of a range of professional and practice issues relevant to pluralistic practitioners. Each chapter offers definitions of key terms, several case studies, exercises and points for reflection, further reading, chapter introductions and summaries of key learning points, and overviews of relevant research.

The Handbook of Pluralistic Counselling and Psychotherapy

David Murphy

Susan Wiggins

As a therapist, have you ever experienced moments of absolute trust, understanding and empathy with a client? Such moments of relational depth can feel like a therapeutic breakthrough for the therapist. But what is the client's experience? And what does the research tell us about the potential therapeutic benefits? This wide-ranging book offers a fascinating survey of the latest thinking and research on in-depth therapeutic encounters. Combining vivid case studies with the latest research evidence, this book: • Examines a breadth of perspectives: from working with young clients to working in groups • Explores relational depth in a wider theoretical context: for example, in relation to dialogue, presence, mutuality and the transpersonal. • Considers important professional issues, such as how relational depth can be assessed and its value in personal development and supervision contexts. By exploring the meaning, challenges and experiences of relational depth, it provides insight into an important dimension of therapeutic practice and, for many, will act as a guide to new ways of thinking about their therapeutic relationships. This book is an essential read for all trainees and practitioners in Counselling and Psychotherapy who want to deepen their levels of therapeutic relating.

New Perspectives and Developments

Relational Depth

Dave Mearns

Eagerly awaited by many counsellors and psychotherapists, this new edition includes an updated preface, new content on recent research and new developments and debates around relational depth, and new case studies. This groundbreaking text goes to the very heart of the therapeutic meeting between therapist and client. Focusing on the concept of 'relational depth', the authors describe a form of encounter in which therapist and client experience profound feelings of contact and engagement with each other, and in which the client has an opportunity to explore whatever is experienced as most fundamental to her or his existence. The book has helped thousands of trainees and practitioners understand how to facilitate a relationally-deep encounter, identify the personal ‘blocks’ that may be encountered along the way, and consider new therapeutic concepts – such as 'holistic listening' – that help them to meet their clients at this level. This classic text remains a source of fresh thinking and stimulating ideas about the therapeutic encounter which is relevant to trainees and practitioners of all orientations.

Working at Relational Depth in Counselling and Psychotherapy

This book is for trainees and practitioners across the orientations who wish to incorporate an existential approach into their practice. Using a pluralistic perspective that recognises the diversity of clients and their individual needs, it shows trainees how and when existential concepts and practices can be used alongside other approaches. A wealth of resources and the author’s writing style make this is one of the most accessible and inspiring introductions to existential therapy. Videos of existential counselling in practice and written case studies ensure existential theory is illustrated in practice, while reflective questions and exercises help trainees relate notoriously complex existential themes to their own knowledge and experience. A companion website offers relevant journal articles, video tutorials on existential counselling skills, the results of the author’s survey of the ‘Top 10’ existential films, novels and songs, and much more. This passionate and insightful book is the ideal guide to help your trainees understand existential therapy and learn how to integrate its ideas and practices into their therapeutic work. Mick Cooper is Professor of Counselling Psychology at University of Roehampton.

Contributions to a Pluralistic Practice

Existential Psychotherapy and Counselling

`One can only applaud the bravery of an author who gently send up Kierkegaard's wilful obscurantism and cleans out the acrid smoke of Gauloises from the room. With welcome clarity and sanity, Mick Cooper efficiently lays out the concepts, techniques and directions adopted by several key figures in the broad field of existentially informed psychotherapy. In an excellent first chapter, Mick Cooper pointed out my `ontic' from my `ontological'; and I could see, behind the long-words-with-dashes, the true resonance of these ideas with real human and therapeutic issues, dilemmas and goals' - Clinical Psychology `This book proves to be a real treasure chest: what you always wanted to know about existential psychotherapy but failed to find anywhere else in such a comprehensive, clear and concise manner. In that sense, this publication provides a missing link. One merit of the book is its systematic structure. As extensive, and in part as heterogeneous as existential philosophy and therapy also maybe, Mick Cooper had nevertheless been able to build convincing clusters with, on the one hand, an enormous understanding of details and, on the other, a far-sightedness that, like a map, provides orientation in the diversity of existential therapy. I really appreciate this publication and can recommend it very strongly' - Person-Centred and Experiential Psychotherapies `Existential Therapies will I suspect, suddenly make "existentialism" come alive. The author, Mick Cooper loves his subject, it fascinates and enthrals him, and we get to experience some of that, even though the book is "academic". The connections and overlaps with person-centred psychology are there for us to be, but so are the differences' - Person-Centred Practice `As an overview of a number of different existential therapies the book is extremely welcome and manages in a relatively short space to cover a wide arena. Overall I rate the book highly. To pull together a large and somewhat disparate literature, then make sense of it and finally retains the reader's interest, is difficult' - Existential Analysis `Mick Cooper has done an impressive job in writing a much needed, current and user friendly survey of the field of existential therapies. If I were to teach this course, I would use this book. I applaud Mick Cooper for having admirably achieved the aim he set out to achieve. All this makes Mick Cooper's book a must-read for anyone wishing to explore the topic of existential therapy' - Society for Laingian Studies Website `What makes this book unique is that all the different strands of Existential philosophy are always clearly linked to practice' - Counselling and Psychotherapy Journal `This is a very fresh book, not treading well-worn paths and genuinely informing us about a small but important field. This is really an indispensable book for anyone who wants to understand existentialist approaches to therapy' - Self and Society `This publication marks a milestone providing an excellent, clear and critical overview of the contrasting forms of the approach as it is currently practised' - Emmy van Deurzen, New School of Psychotherapy and Counselling, Schiller University, London `This is a book of superb thoroughness and scholarship - an unprecedented guide to existential therapy's chief positions and controversies' - Kirk J Schneider, President of the Existential-Humanistic Institute, USA `Combines scholarship with a writing style that makes difficult concepts accessible. This book should be required reading on any course where the existential tradition plays a part, and that includes person-centred courses and all sympathetic to the idea that psychotherapy is, in essence, a human encounter where warmth, understanding and a deep respect for the individual are key values' - Tony Merry, University of East London What does it mean to practice in an existential way? What are the different existential approaches? What are their strengths and limitations? Existential Therapies addresses these key questions, and more, by providing students and practitioners with an invaluable introduction to the diverse and multifaceted world of existential therapeutic practices. Focusing on practical, face-to-face work with clients, the book: · introduces readers to six key existential therapies · discusses key figures and their contributions, including Irvin Yalom, Emmy van Deurzen, Ernesto Spinelli, Viktor Frankl and R D Laing · compares and contrasts the various approaches, highlighting areas of commonality and difference · outlines key debates within the existential therapy field · provides detailed suggestions for further reading Existential Therapies offers students and practitioners of all orientations much that they can incorporate into their own therapeutic work, and each approach is vividly brought to life through therapist-client dialogues and case studies. Written in an accessible, warm, and engaging manner, Existential Therapies is an essential introduction to this rich, vibrant and stimulating field.

Existential Therapies

John McLeod

Mick Cooper and John McLeod pioneer a major new framework for counselling theory, practice and research - the 'pluralistic' approach. This model breaks away from the orientation-specific way in which counselling has traditionally been taught, reflecting and responding to shifts in counselling and psychotherapy training. As accessible and engaging as ever, Cooper and McLeod argue that there is no one right way of doing therapy and that different clients need different things at different times. By identifying and demonstrating the application of a range of therapeutic methods, the book outlines a flexible framework for practice within which appropriate methods can be selected depending on the client's individual needs and the therapist's knowledge and experience. This is a must-read for anybody training or practising in the counselling or helping professions - it should not be missed!

Pluralistic Counselling and Psychotherapy

Maureen O'Hara

Peter F. Schmid

Arthur Bohart

Building on the success of the first edition, this substantially revised and extended new edition is set to remain the most in-depth and wide-ranging book available on person-centred psychotherapy and counselling. The book is thoroughly updated to reflect the latest trends in theory and practice: • It extends its coverage of professional settings and applications, including brand new chapters on children, older people, arts-based therapies, addiction and bereavement. • It engages systematically with urgent contemporary issues, such as evidence-based practice, political and medical discourses, and theoretical integration. • It uses case illustrations, therapist-client dialogues, points of reflection and further resources to bring person-centred therapy to life for the reader, in a user-friendly way. • It includes contributions by an increasingly extensive group of writers, thinkers, teachers and practitioners.

The Handbook of Person-Centred Psychotherapy and Counselling

What does it mean to practice therapy in an existential way? What are the different existential approaches? What are their strengths and limitations? Focusing on practical, face-to-face work with clients, the book introduces students to six existential therapies, highlighting areas of commonality and difference, and discusses key figures and their contributions, including Yalom, van Deurzen, Spinelli, Frankl and Laing. It outlines the critical perspectives and key debates, and presents implications for practice, reflection and further reading. Fully updated to reflect current issues, this book now includes: · Sections presenting research evidence for each approach · An extended case study running through the book, demonstrating how different therapies might approach the same case · Chapter overviews, questions for reflection, and additional case studies of actual existential practice.

John Rowan

[This book's] fundamental thesis is a rather challenging one - the idea that the unified, singular "self," which we all take for granted we possess, does not exist... fascinating and important... I will certainly revisit the book... when you're ready for a challenge, this book is certainly worth dipping into' - "Counselling News " I thoroughly recommend this book. I found it challenging, provocative, exciting and full of delights. (It makes such a change to be told that ideal personality characteristics would include a Monty Pythonesque sense of humour and a tolerance of mind-altering drugs!) While reading it I often felt nourished and refreshed'" - The Journal of Critical Psychology, Counselling and Psychotherapy "With the emergence of postmodern thinking, the notion of a unified, singular self' appears increasingly problematic. Yet for many, postmodernism's proclamation of the death of the subject' is equally problematic. As a response to this dilemma, there has been a rise of interest in pluralistic models of the self' in which the person is conceptualized as a multiplicity of subpersonalities, as a plurality of existential possibilities or as a being' which is inextricably in-dialogue-with-others. Bringing together many disciplines, and with contributions from foremost writers on self-pluralism, The Plural Self overviews and critiques this emerging field. Drawing together theory, research and practice, the book expands on both the psychological and philosophical theories underlying and associated with self-pluralism, and presents empirical evidence in support of the self-pluralistic perspective, exploring its application within a clinical and therapeutic setting.

Mick Cooper

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