In: Psychology
a) explain in detail the theoretical foundations of
therapeutic psychology
b) name the four steps of the therapeutic process and give a short
example of each step
A therapeutic approach is the theory by which a psychologist or a counsellor frames how they view human relationships and the issue that occur for people throughout their lives. Therapeutic processes refers to aspects of the interaction in treatment between a variety of therapy professionals and their clients and is a broader term than psychotherapeutic processes which address many of the same issues in the psychotherapeutic relationship
Psychotherapeutic relationship has mainly four stages; commitment,process, Change and Termination. Each stage has its own tasks and sub-stages and has to be completed before transition to the next can take place. Commitment stage are, perception of the therapist, motivation and technical suitability. One of the important tasks in process stage is search for patterns particularly the breaking of vicious circles or pathological positive feedback loop. Change requires to relinquish the illness,to initiate a new healthier psychic life and to develop adequate procedures to protect and maintain the newly acquired strengths. Termination requires the development in the patient of a therapeutic attitude towards himself and the mutual acknowledgement of independence and autonomy between patient and therapist.