Unconditional Positive Regard

Unconditional Positive Regard

Different psychologists have come up with different approaches to the psychotherapy in a bid to make the process more effective in addressing clients’ needs. One of the initial approaches put forward in this field is the Person-Centred therapeutic approach which was proposed and developed by Carl Rogers, a human psychologist, in the 1940s and 50s. According to Rogers, every person has an in-built ability or actualizing tendency which functions to naturally facilitate the process of personal growth and development (Rogers, 1961). However, for the process to occur naturally and successfully; a favourable environment is paramount and this involves the interaction of three core conditions, namely; empathic understanding, congruence and unconditional positive regard.

Empathetic understanding involves a deep and active understanding of the client’s subjective experiences and awareness of his or her emotional world (Bozarth, 1998). Accurate empathy requires the therapist to put him or her self in the client’s ‘shoes’ so that they can truly understand the client’s cognitive and emotional feelings. On the other hand, congruence or what is commonly known as genuineness requires therapists to express themselves to the client in a real, sincere and transparent manner in regard to their feelings and reactions, without creating a notion that they are the experts or facades of detached objectivity.

The third core condition for effective therapy is unconditional positive regard which requires the therapist to genuinely develop a liking and acceptance for the client regardless of their behaviour. This however does not mean that the therapist must approve or condone the client’s behaviour but rather, it means that he or she must be able to separate the sins from the sinner thereby not judging the sinner according to his sins (Corey, 2005). For effective therapy, a fourth factor has also been added and this calls for the therapist to listen and learn from the client.

Unconditional positive regard

The term Unconditional Positive Regard (UPR) was coined by Carl Rogers in the 1940s and it generally refers to the ability of an individual to show love and acceptance to another individual without judging them according to their behaviour. Unconditional Positive Regard forms the basis of Person-Centred counselling whereby the client is seen as the custodian of their own experiences and personal growth ((Rogers, 1965). In psychotherapy, UPR refers to the therapist’s ability to accept and attend to the client unconditionally and non-judgementally. This kind of an attitude by the therapists is aimed at nurturing client growth and enhance self acceptance by encouraging the client to explore and express their feelings, thoughts and fears, without the fear of being judged or condemned by the therapist.

Components of UPR

There are a number of components that constitute unconditional positive regard in a therapeutic process (Rodgers, 1992). Some of the key components include; respecting the client as a person, being non-judgemental, accepting the person’s opinions, views, values and beliefs regardless of how absurd they may be, valuing the client and treating them as unique and valuable, showing genuine care and concern for person, showing empathy and not sympathy towards the situation that he or she is going through, expressing unconditional and non-possessive love for the person, and last but not least, nurturing and encouraging personal growth in the client.

Importance of UPR in psychotherapy

According to Rogers, unconditional positive regard is one of the most important conditions in person-centred therapy as it helps to facilitate the healing process and ensure positive outcomes in the therapeutic process (Rogers, 1992). In counselling, UPR provides the client with the freedom to explore their experiences, thoughts and feelings as themselves without any pressure or external demands. In this case, the client feels safe and is encouraged to explore deeper dimensions of their inner-selves and explore new options and opportunities thereby enhancing personal growth and development.

In enhancing psychological healing, UPR creates an environment of warmth and acceptance hence allowing the therapist to positively challenge the client in a constructive way (Wilkins, 2000). This helps the client to develop a sense of responsibility for their own actions and consequences thereby enhancing the process of healing. Moreover, the feeling of freedom cultivated by UPR gives the client the power to explore the many options that life presents as they realized that they are no longer imprisoned by circumstances and past experiences.

Challenges

Unconditional positive regard posses a major challenge for counsellors in the therapeutic process. This is because it requires therapists to control and restrict themselves from expressing any form of personal judgemental feelings, and accept the client unconditionally regardless of the content of the disclosure made by the client (Nelson-Jones, 2002). Some of the inhibitors which prevent the therapist from giving UPR to the client include; lack of proper training and experience in the area of counselling, a general dislike for the client as a person as well as personal prejudices, among others. In order to be able to convey UPR to the clients effectively, counsellors are required to undergo specific counselling training sessions where they acquire special skills for the same purpose.

On the other hand, some clients may fail to experience UPR despite efforts by the therapist to demonstrate it throughout the therapeutic process. Certain personality character traits such as defensiveness, aggressiveness and vulnerability have also been found to hinder clients from experiencing total unconditional positive regard in therapy (Thomas & Woods, 2003). In such cases, the therapist is required to pay even closer attention towards their own behaviour and the way they demonstrate UPR to the client since even the slightest form of judgement is likely to scare away the client.

Unconditional acceptance and condoning behaviour

As it has already mentioned above, conveying unconditional positive regard through unconditional acceptance as proposed by Rogers does not mean that the therapist must condone the client’s behaviour (Rodgers, 1965). In this case, accepting a person’s behaviour unconditionally does not necessary translate into condoning all the types of behaviour they exhibit. For instance, a counsellor who is dealing with a client who has been involved in mass murder is expected to show acceptance for the client’s feelings of anger at being charged with the crime unconditionally (Prouty, 2004). However in such a case, the therapist does not necessarily have to agree with the client’s decision to commit the murder; but at the same time, he or she is not supposed to express condemnation towards the client for having committed the crime.

Unconditional love

One of the key components of UPR in psychotherapy is expressing unconditional love for the client. According to Brennam Manning, a former Roman Catholic priest, this love can be likened to the unconditional love of God which represents a true picture of God’s grace to mankind through the gospel of Jesus Christ (Manning, 1990). In this case, the sacrificial death of God’s only begotten son, Jesus Christ who died for the sins of all mankind, presents a perfect example of unconditional love. Having been created in the image of God, all believers should strive to know Christ and become like Him by expressing unconditional love towards fellow men, the same way Christ died for all sinners (1 Peter 4: 1).

In the spiritual context, Manning exhorts that all believers should express unconditional love and acceptance towards fellow human beings the same way God gave His only begotten son to die and sanctify the sins of mankind with no demand for allegiance. From a Biblical point of view, unconditional love and acceptance is seen in various scriptures (Crabb, 1986). A good example of one such scripture is 1 Thessalonians 5: 14, Paul urges all believers to confront, warn and rebuke any brethren who is rebellious, timid and wilfully wrong but in so doing, they should also be patient, kind and non-judgemental towards everyone.

Conclusion

Though Rodger’s theory of person-centred therapeutic approach was created in a different time and age, its principles still remain highly relevant and effective in any therapeutic situation today. These principles have especially been found to be effective when dealing with cases of depression and low self esteem whereby they enhance the healing process by providing unconditional love and acceptance for the client (Greenberg & Watson, 1998).

In psychotherapy, unconditional positive regard promotes personal growth and facilitates the healing process by helping the client to come to terms and accept the outcomes of a certain traumatic event or psychological problem. Apart from psychotherapy, Roger’s theory can be applied to other aspects of life as it helps to develop harmonious relationships between spouses, parents and their children, and people in society at large, based on mutual respect, empathy and congruence.

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