ABSTRACT
Together with the ‘contact’ prescribed in condition one (and probably more than it), the elements of condition six, the communication to and/or perception by the client of the therapist’s UPR and empathic understanding is relatively little understood or discussed and yet Rogers is very clear that unless this happens to at least a minimal degree change will not occur. In Rogers (1957: 96) the sixth condition is articulated in terms of the communication to the client of the therapist’s empathic understanding and UPR while in Rogers (1959: 213) the emphasis is on the client’s perception of these from the therapist. These two different formulations are not in conflict but together aid a complete understanding of the desired process. In effect, what this condition states is that change depends on the client being and feeling understood and accepted, however dimly. Not only must the therapist have an understanding of the client’s experience and have unconditional positive regard for that client, the client must be aware of and receive these at least to some extent. If the latter does not occur then condition six has not been met regardless of how empathic and accepting therapists believe themselves to have been. This places the client at the centre of the therapeutic endeavour but it also lays a responsibility on the therapist. In some way, 64therapists must communicate (or make available) to the client their understanding of the client’s experience and UPR for the client. To be effective, this cannot be a mechanistic or uniform process. It need not be verbal but it must involve high-quality attention to the client’s process and a perceivable intention to understand the client’s experience and both of these must be presented in a climate of warmth, regard and genuineness. ‘Communication’ as a therapist behaviour is explored in Points 82 and 83. However, there is more to the sixth condition than a requirement for particular behaviours from the therapist.
