![]() Making the distinction between “an individual with problems” and a “problematic individual” is vital in narrative therapy. ![]() It can be difficult to place a firm separation between people and the problems they are having. The foundation of this therapeutic process has this understanding and asks clients to take a perspective that may feel foreign. These three ideas lay the foundation for the therapeutic relationship and the function of narrative therapy. Only the client knows their own life intimately and has the skills and knowledge to change their behavior and address their issues (Morgan, 2000). It is understood that the client is the expert in their own life, and both parties are expected to go forth with this understanding. In narrative therapy, the therapist does not occupy a higher social or academic space than the client. Narrative therapy views the client as the expert. Narrative therapy separates people from their problems, viewing them as whole and functional individuals who engage in thought patterns or behavior that they would like to change. Problems emerge in everyone’s lives due to a variety of factors in narrative therapy, there is no point in assigning fault to anyone or anything. In this form of therapy, clients are never blamed for their problems, and they are encouraged not to blame others as well. Individuals who engage in narrative therapy are brave people who recognize issues they would like to address in their lives. It requires each client to be treated as an individual who is not deficient, not defective, or not “enough” in any way. This therapy respects the agency and dignity of every client. White and Epston grounded this new therapeutic model in three main ideas. ![]() They believed that separating a person from their problematic or destructive behavior was a vital part of treatment (Michael White (1948-2008), 2015).įor example, when treating someone who had run afoul of the law, they would encourage the individual to see themselves as a person who made mistakes, rather than as an inherently “bad” felon. This form of therapy was developed in the 1980s by Michael White and David Epston (About Narrative Therapy, n.d.). It relies on the individual’s own skills and sense of purpose to guide them through difficult times (Narrative Therapy, 2017). Narrative therapy is a form of therapy that aims to separate the individual from the problem, allowing the individual to externalize their issues rather than internalize them.
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