This article was downloaded by: [Flinders University of South Australia] On: 08 February 2015, At: 21:36 Publisher: Routledge Informa Ltd Registered in England and Wales Registered Number: 1072954 Registered office: Mortimer House, 37-41 Mortimer Street, London W1T 3JH, UK Psychotherapy Research Publication details, including instructions for authors and subscription information: http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/tpsr20 Humanistic psychotherapy research 1990–2015: From methodological innovation to evidence-supported treatment outcomes and beyond Lynne Angusa, Jeanne Cherry Watsonb, Robert Elliottc, Kirk Schneiderd & Ladislav Timulake a Department of Psychology, York University, Toronto, ON, Canada b Department of Adult Education and Counselling Psychology, University of Toronto, OISE, Toronto, ON, Canada c Counselling, University of Strathclyde, Glasgow, UK d Psychology, Saybrook University, San Francisco, CA, USA e School of Psychology, Trinity College, Dublin, Ireland Click for updates Published online: 17 Dec 2014. To cite this article: Lynne Angus, Jeanne Cherry Watson, Robert Elliott, Kirk Schneider & Ladislav Timulak (2014): Humanistic psychotherapy research 1990–2015: From methodological innovation to evidence-supported treatment outcomes and beyond, Psychotherapy Research, DOI: 10.1080/10503307.2014.989290 To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/10503307.2014.989290 PLEASE SCROLL DOWN FOR ARTICLE Taylor & Francis makes every effort to ensure the accuracy of all the information (the “Content”) contained in the publications on our platform. However, Taylor & Francis, our agents, and our licensors make no representations or warranties whatsoever as to the accuracy, completeness, or suitability for any purpose of the Content. Any opinions and views expressed in this publication are the opinions and views of the authors, and are not the views of or endorsed by Taylor & Francis. 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Terms & Conditions of access and use can be found at http:// www.tandfonline.com/page/terms-and-conditions Psychotherapy Research, 2014 http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/10503307.2014.989290 EMPIRICAL PAPER Humanistic psychotherapy research 1990–2015: From methodological innovation to evidence-supported treatment outcomes and beyond LYNNE ANGUS1, JEANNE CHERRY WATSON2, ROBERT ELLIOTT3, KIRK SCHNEIDER4, & LADISLAV TIMULAK5 1Department of Psychology, York University, Toronto, ON, Canada; 2Department of Adult Education and Counselling Psychology, University of Toronto, OISE, Toronto, ON, Canada; 3Counselling, University of Strathclyde, Glasgow, UK; 4Psychology, Saybrook University, San Francisco, CA, USA & 5School of Psychology, Trinity College, Dublin, Ireland (Received 2 June 2014; revised 14 October 2014; accepted 14 November 2014) Abstract Objective: Over the past 25 years, humanistic psychotherapy (HP) researchers have actively contributed to the development and implementation of innovative practice-informed research measures and coding systems. Method: Qualitative and quantitative research findings, including meta-analyses, support the identification of HP approaches as evidence-based treatments for a variety of psychological conditions. Results: Implications for future psychotherapy research, training, and practice are discussed in terms of addressing the persistent disjunction between significant HP research productivity and relatively low support for HP approaches in university-based clinical training programs, funding agencies, and government- supported clinical guidelines. Conclusion: Finally, specific recommendations are provided to further enhance and expand the impact of HP research for clinical training programs and the development of treatment guidelines. Keywords: experiential/existential/humanistic psychotherapy; outcome research; process research; qualitative research methods Arising out of the nineteenth-century romantic psychotherapy research (HPR) from 1990–2015, in movement and existentialist and phenomenological honor of the twenty-fifth anniversary of Psychotherapy philosophy, modern humanistic psychology Research, and to reflect on future directions, chal- addresses two basic questions: “What does it mean lenges, and opportunities for HPR in the twenty-first to be fully human?” and “How does that under- century. standing illuminate the vital or fulfilled life?” Accordingly, we first provide a brief historical (Schneider, Pierson, & Bugental, 2015, p. xvii). overview of the development of HP treatment Schneider and Leitner (2002) suggest that human- approaches, principles of practice, and research istic psychotherapy (HP) addresses the conditions by methods that also addresses research, practice, and Downloaded by [Flinders University of South Australia] at 21:36 08 February 2015 which people can come to intimately know them- training challenges currently faced by HP practi- selves and each other, and, to the extent possible, tioners and researchers. Next we provide a summary fulfill their aspirations. As evidenced in the psycho- of humanistic therapy research contributions to the therapy research literature, a diverse range of field of psychotherapy research, over the past quarter humanistic therapy approaches and research meth- century, that summarizes HP meta-analytic outcome ods have emerged over the past quarter century to findings and recent qualitative and process-outcome further understand and address clients’ problems in studies investigating key mechanisms of client living. The purpose of this paper is to provide an change in humanistic therapy approaches. Finally, overview/update of developments in humanistic we critically review significant HPR findings in the Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Lynne Angus, Room 213 BSB, 4700 Keele Street, North York, ON M3J 1P3, Canada. Email: [email protected] © 2014 Society for Psychotherapy Research 2 L. Angus et al. context of recent developments in psychotherapy wanting/intending. As such, therapist inter- training, research, and practice as a whole and ventions and responses that deepen or stimu- discuss key opportunities and challenges facing HP late client emotional experiencing are practitioners and researchers over the next quarter embedded within the context of an empathic century. facilitative relationship. Clients are viewed as meaning-creating, symbolizing agents, whose subjective experience is an essential HPR and Practice: A Brief Overview aspect of their humanity. While it is difficult to do justice to the complexity (3) Emphasis on the operation of an integrative, and breadth encompassed by a humanistic approach formative tendency, oriented toward sur- to psychological research and practice, we offer the vival, growth, personal agency, and the following working definition of HP for the purposes creation of meaning. Internal tacit experien- of the present paper: cing is seen as an important guide to conscious adaptive experience and poten- Humanism is concerned with such existential tially available to awareness when the client themes as meaning, mortality, freedom, limitation, turns attention internally within the context values, creativity, and spirituality as these arise in of a supportive therapeutic relationship. personal, interpersonal, social, and cultural contexts. (4) Consistently person-centered when engaging In psychotherapy, humanism places special emphasis on the personal, interpersonal, and con- clients. This involves genuine therapist con- textual dimensions of therapy and on clients’ reflec- cern and respect for each client who is seen tions on their relationship with self, others, and the holistically, as a unique individual, who larger psychosocial world. (Schneider & Langle, possesses a complex array of emotions, 2012, p. 428) behaviors, stories, and capacities that can, at times, be viewed as representative of a Accordingly, humanistic therapies are part of the particular clinical diagnostic category, but main tradition of humanistic psychology and never reduced to one (Elliott et al., 2013; include client-/person-centered (Rogers, 1961), p. 495–496). constructivist (Neimeyer & Mahoney, 1995), emo- tion-focused therapy (EFT, also known as process- It is important to point out that some of these HP experiential; Greenberg, Rice, & Elliott, 1993), assumptions and practices clash with what Wampold existential meaning-making (Schneider & Krug, (2008) has termed an “excruciatingly narrow” con- 2010; Yalom, 1980), focusing-oriented (Gendlin, sensus on what is scientific and should contribute to 1978); Gestalt (Perls, Hefferline, & Goodman, twentieth- and twenty-first-century social science 1951), and transpersonal (Wilber, Engler, & Brown, research. Critically, this includes group designs, 1986) psychotherapies. unidimensional measurement, and emphasis on the Despite the fact that these HP approaches vary to statistical central tendency, all of which ignore the some degree