Mick Cooper and John McLeod pioneer a major new framework for counselling theory, practice and research - the ′pluralistic′ approach. This model breaks away from the orientation-specific way in which counselling has traditionally been taught, reflecting and responding to shifts in counselling and psychotherapy training. As accessible and engaging as ever, Cooper and McLeod argue that there is no one right way of doing therapy and that different clients need different things at different times. By identifying and demonstrating the application of a range of therapeutic methods, the book outlines a flexible framework for practice within which appropriate methods can be selected depending on the client′s individual needs and the therapist′s knowledge and experience. This is a must-read for anybody training or practising in the counselling or helping professions - it should not be missed!

Pluralistic Therapy: Distinctive Features offers an introduction to what is distinctive about this increasingly popular method. Written by one of the co-founders of pluralistic therapy, and a leading UK figure in counselling and psychotherapy, this book describes 15 theoretical features and 15 practical techniques for practitioners. Pluralistic therapy is a flexible, integrative approach to counselling and psychotherapy, which has also found applications in fields such as mental health, life coaching and careers guidance. Pluralistic Therapy: Distinctive Features will provide an essential guide to students and practitioners of psychotherapy, or an allied area of practice, who are open to learning about new ideas and techniques from current interdisciplinary research.

Bringing Religion and Spirituality into Therapy provides a comprehensive and timely model for spirituality-integrated therapy which is truly pluralist and responsive to the ever-evolving World of religion/spirituality. This book presents an algorithmic, process-based model for organizing the abundance of theoretical and practical literature around how psychology, religion and spirituality interact in counseling. Building on a tripartite framework, the book discusses the practical implications of the model and shows how it can be used in the context of assessment and case formulation, research, clinical competence, and education, and the broad framework ties together many strands of scholarship into religion and spirituality in counseling across a number of disciplines. Chapters address the concerns of groups such as the unaffiliated, non-theists, and those with multiple spiritual influences. This approachable book is aimed at mental health students, practitioners, and educators. In it, readers are challenged to develop richer ways of understanding, being, and intervening when religion and spirituality are brought into therapy.

Pluralistic Therapy provides answers to the most important and common questions asked about the origins, principles, and practice of pluralism. Written in an accessible style by experts in the field, the book provides the reader with a comprehensive understanding of the pluralistic approach in theory and practice, and builds on the contemporary developments in the field. The questions cover five areas, including an overview of pluralism, pluralism in practice, client factors, pluralistic developments outside of individual therapy, and critical questions about pluralism. The questions also cover some of the key challenges posed to the approach. This book will appeal to a wide range of audiences, including therapeutic practitioners, researchers, and professionals interested in the application of the approach within mental health contexts. It will also serve to help professionals from non-therapy backgrounds such as mental health services, education, and social care, understand the nature of pluralistic work.

This book is for trainees and practitioners across the orientations who wish to incorporate an existential approach into their practice. Using a pluralistic perspective that recognises the diversity of clients and their individual needs, it shows trainees how and when existential concepts and practices can be used alongside other approaches. A wealth of resources and the author’s writing style make this is one of the most accessible and inspiring introductions to existential therapy. Videos of existential counselling in practice and written case studies ensure existential theory is illustrated in practice, while reflective questions and exercises help trainees relate notoriously complex existential themes to their own knowledge and experience. A companion website offers relevant journal articles, video tutorials on existential counselling skills, the results of the author’s survey of the ‘Top 10’ existential films, novels and songs, and much more. This passionate and insightful book is the ideal guide to help your trainees understand existential therapy and learn how to integrate its ideas and practices into their therapeutic work. Mick Cooper is Professor of Counselling Psychology at University of Roehampton.

How can therapists integrate theories and practices from across the psychological therapies? This book presents a framework for understanding distress and change that can unite different orientations, along with sociopolitical perspectives. Its starting point is that therapy aims to help clients move towards the things they most deeply want. It shows how the actualisation of these ‘directions’ leads to greater well-being, and how this can be brought about through the development of internal and external synergies. Using in-depth cases, the book provides detailed guidance on how this framework can be applied. After reading this book, you’ll feel better equipped to understand, and work with, your clients’ directions—tailoring the therapy to their unique wants.