Case Studies in Existential Therapy: Translating Theory Into Practice

The ethos of existential therapy is that practitioners seek to co-create a therapeutic alliance with clients that emphasises being with rather than doing to. Trainees and practitioners alike are therefore eager to have access to accounts of what senior practitioners do in their day-to-day practice. Also, it is rare that books both show the reader what the therapist does and explicitly relate this to cutting-edge thinking in theory.

Case Studies in Existential Therapy is designed to address both these gaps by providing, through the medium of the case study, a platform for leading practitioners in the existential therapy community to show how they are applying their own innovations in theory to enrich their practice. Each of the contributors describes a specific innovation in theory, and then brings this to life in an account of their engagement with a specific client. Every chapter concludes with a “Question and Answer’ section in which the author reflects on the significance of their work in dialogue with the editor.

This is a book both for students of therapy and for the experienced practitioner keen to expand their repertoire. It will also be of interest to the psychologically minded general public.