Abstract

In The Practice of Person Centred Couple and Family Therapy, Charles O'Leary offers a rich description of relationship therapy that draws on the resources of both person-centred psychotherapy and systemic and family therapy to present a skilful, respectful and empathic approach to working with couples and families.
Grounded in detailed descriptions of client goals and predicaments, the book takes an inside look at the therapist's options and decision-making with both clarity and compassion. Written in a refreshing, lively and personal style, the book:
• Provides an abundance of ideas and techniques relevant to each step of the therapeutic process.
• Addresses the complexity of family and couple therapy, including chapters on working with same-sex couples and working with children and adolescents.
• Offers humanistic depth and breadth to a challenging area of practice, with a strong value base and a philosophy that always privileges the client's viewpoint.
Clear, concise, and highly readable, this is a vital, thought-provoking text for students, trainees and practitioners of counselling and psychotherapy working with couples and families.
Dr CHARLES J. O'LEARY is a licensed marriage and family therapist and American Association of Marriage and Family Therapists Approved Supervisor in private practice in Denver, Colorado, USA. He has held faculty positions teaching graduate students at National University, San Diego, California, San Diego State University and Regis University in Denver, Colorado. Charlie is the author of Counseling Couples and Families: A Person-Centred Approach, published by Sage in 1999, which has sold over 3000 copies in English and been translated into Italian and Japanese.
A very enjoyable text. Highly accessible, it guides the reader through a great deal of complex relational material, never leaving the inquiring reader stranded.' - John Hills, Consultant Family and Systemic Psychotherapist, and former editor of Context, the Association for Family Therapy publication, UK

'It gives a sense of creativity as possible for therapists, taking the core conditions beyond stereotyping into real life applications. I am grateful for this softness and caring that also provides clear limits and firm stands at the same time...I hope so much that it gets widely read, used and applied. ' - Dr Gay Barfield, Marriage and Family Therapist, Hawaii

'What is especially appealing is his generosity in sharing his humility and his doubts as well as his achievements, and his sense of humour. This is what transforms this book from just another theoretical work to a memorable encounter. When I did my couples training, I read several books. But it was only after getting my hands on this one that I felt truly confident to practise in this fascinating arena.' - Therapy Today

'An excellent book chock full of useful examples of how the therapist gets out of tight spots, deals with troublesome adolescents, husbands, and wives, and manages his or her own frustrations and feelings in order to help couples and families'- Art Bohart, Professor Emeritus of the University of Georgia