Course summary

Subject to validation Integrative psychotherapy is the integration of elements from different schools of psychotherapy in the treatment of a client. It may also refer to the psychotherapeutic process of integrating the personality, unifying the affective, cognitive, behavioural, and psychological system within the person. This framework provides an integrative principle which focusses on similarities and differences of different approaches to psychotherapies and differentiates which relationships each approach tends to favour. A consistent and coherent integrative approach to psychotherapy has been developed using this framework.’ Petruska Clarkson. (1994). Students will learn modalities from the five schools of thought – cognitive, humanistic, phenomenological, psychodynamic, and transpersonal. The integration of these approaches and methodologies around a sound unifying personal philosophy allows for an approach in which the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. Given this, each student will create their own individual Integrative Framework which has strong foundations within the theoretical approaches. The model draws on a range of theories that explore how human beings develop as people and interact in relationship. The aim of integrative counselling is always to provide a reparative therapeutic relationship. The key principles are theory into practice, theoretical modalities, and practical skills development. You will be engaged in practical counselling skills development, first with your peers and then in your placement settings with real clients as your competencies expand. Throughout the programme, you will be asked to engage in a process of self-awareness that will support your learning and development during the course, this process will all be linked to Integrative theory.