ABSTRACT
Carl R. Rogers probably influenced modern psychotherapy in this country and beyond its borders as much as, and perhaps more than, any other American-born psychologist or psychiatrist. After his undergraduate degree, Rogers explored a liberal religious outlook at Union Theological Seminary for a time and then switched to psychology at Teachers College, Columbia University, where he became acquainted with Leta Hollingworth's commonsense approach to the study of human behavior. The psychotherapy that Rogers created was uniquely American, the first viable alternative to European psychoanalytic therapy. Rogers' main reason for leaving the University of Chicago and moving to the University of Wisconsin-Madison and its department of psychiatry was the challenge offered by the opportunity to apply client-centered therapy at Mendota State Hospital. Carl Rogers left an enduring legacy of contributions, of which even the most controversial continue to stimulate thought and activity in psychology.
