ABSTRACT
There are two basic tenets of feminist alternatives in theory and therapy. The first concerns a view of the nature of women. Women must be viewed as possessing basically healthy and powerful sources of personal growth and expression. Women’s experiences are viewed as important in their own right and not merely as deviations from a male norm. Appropriate development need not occur in the service of fulfilling a role in relation to a man. The second tenet is that the human experience can only be properly understood from the interaction of person and situation variables. Intrapsychic events always occur in a field of social expectations, interpersonal history, and differential access to resources. Thus, while personal events are recognized as a legitimate area of attention and reflection, they are qualified and interpreted within a social context.
