The field of psychology has an extensive selection of approaches to therapy, many of which have shown positive results. One of the most highly-recognized approaches to therapy is the narrative one, the main feature of which is the separation between the person and their problems (Afary & Fritz, 2020). Narrative therapy has been in existence for more than thirty years and today is used by counselors worldwide. Narrative therapy enables people to develop their alternative life stories, which is particularly beneficial during career counseling.
Before covering the key ideas of the narrative therapy approach, it is important to mention the authors of such influential practice. David Epson and Michael White developed narrative therapy during the 1970s-1980s (Wallace & Lewis, 2020). Unlike other therapy approaches, one chose the authors of the narrative as their foundation of anthropology, feminism, and Foucauldian philosophy instead of classic psychiatry (McLeod, 2019). As a result, narrative therapy can be considered an innovative approach, which is one of the primary reasons it attracted considerable attention.
The therapy relies on the basic principle of separating the individual and their problem and attempting to develop a story that would encourage them or to make a positive change. Narrative therapy views a person as a social being and therefore takes into consideration how the individual interacts with the community they live in (Tilsen, 2021). Every person has a dominant narrative in their life imposed on them by society and family, ultimately shaping their experiences and choices. The narrative approach enables people to deconstruct the dominant narrative in their life and to address it, thus solving the existing problem. Moreover, one of the main features of the narrative approach is that the client, instead of the professional, acts as an expert since they possess exclusive knowledge about their life (Tilsen, 2021). The process of narrative therapy involves the professional asking the client questions, which can encourage them to deconstruct their problem and create new realities which they prefer. Essentially, the conversational form of narrative therapy helps the client to view certain experiences from another angle and to distill a new meaning.
Narrative therapy can be successfully applied in career counseling to help people determine which occupation they would like to have. Counselors can employ narrative therapy to assist clients in uncovering the problem they face career-wise and their key strengths or interests (Niles & Nassar, 2019). Based on the established strengths and interests, clients can form a new reality that will shape their lives. Counselors must assume a supportive role in the conversation with their clients and ask them questions concerning their professional experiences. Additionally, the counselor should help the client to reflect on the experiences and to extract certain meanings. For instance, a person who is bored at their job can be asked about certain tasks, which makes them actually enjoy their work (Maree, 2019). Thus, the counselor can encourage clients to analyze their experiences and discover those that bring them satisfaction and joy. Next, the counselor can offer the client to build a reality in which they have an occupation that corresponds to their needs and interests.
Narrative therapy is an effective approach in the sphere of psychology that enables people to construct new realities and thus can be used successfully in career counseling. The narrative therapy approach was created by David Epson and Michael White and was influenced by anthropology and feminism. Narrative therapy is based on the principle of cooperation between two people, where the counselor helps the client to deconstruct the dominant narratives and to create or discover new ones. The narrative approach can be used in career counseling to enable the client to reflect on their professional experiences and aspirations and uncover those they truly value.
References
Afary, K., & Fritz, A. (2020). Expressive arts and narrative as forms of healing: More than words. Rowman & Littlefield.
Maree, K. (2019). Shaping the story: A guide to facilitating narrative career counseling. BRILL.
Niles, S., & Nassar, S. (2019). Orientation to professional counseling: Past, present, and future trends. John Wiley & Sons.
McLeod, J. (2019). An introduction to counseling and psychotherapy: Theory, research and practice. McGraw-Hill Education.
Tilsen, J. (2021). Queering your therapy practice: Queer theory, narrative therapy, and imagining new identities. Routledge.
Wallace, K., & Lewis, P. (2020). Trauma-informed teaching through play art narrative (pan). BRILL.