A Behavioral View of the Therapeutic Relationship

If learning is defined as those changes in behavior that are not due to native response tendencies, maturation, or temporary states of the organism (as a result of fatigue or drugs, for example), (19) then counseling or psychotherapy must involve learning. But there are different views of the nature of learning, differing descriptions of the learning process, and different theories of learning. When I referred to perceptual or phenomenological changes leading to behavior changes, I was speaking in terms of one theory of learning. The detailed considerations of the therapy process by Carl Rogers are formulated, essentially, in terms of a perceptual theory of learning and behavior. (20) Perceptual theory is not currently popular or influential in psychology, however. The prevailing orientation in the field of learning is toward behavior theory, and discussions of a learning approach to counseling or psychotherapy usually assume this orientation.