Reality Therapy Theory

Some people come into therapy with the misconception that the therapist is overly responsible for figuring out what is wrong with them and then can change it. The problem with this misconception is that it makes the therapist the impetus for change; clients take on the role of passive recipient, waiting to be cured. It puts unrealistic expectations on the therapist. As a new therapist, this is something I will have to watch out for myself. I will need to watch for the client having unrealistic expectations that I will be able to fix them all by myself. I will also have to watch that I don’t put unrealistic expectations on myself; needing to be the expert that has all the answers and amazing insights and solutions for the client’s problems.

Glasser asserts that in order to understand one another, we must recognize the factors that influence human behavior. According to Choice Theory, all student actions are driven by an attempt to fulfill one of the 5 basic needs of survival, love/belonging, freedom, fun, and power. Instead of reacting to student behavior with rewards and punishments, Glasser prefers to

My emerging theory employed aspects of therapy from the humanism, existentialism, dialectical behavior, and when necessary exposure therapy. These theories have represented me as a person. As I have presented them here, they through the lens of each other, they work to form one integrative approach. As Rogerian humanism has laid the foundation for ways of being, this theory also incorporated Dr. Marsha Linehan’s structure of dialectical behavioral therapy’s and goals expressed by Yalom in existentialism with specific practices in Viktor Frankl’s logotherapy. I intend to present specific elements theory that I have used as well as their limitations, and present them working together.

These basic needs “serve as sources of all behavior.” Therefore, reality therapist often reminds the client to be responsible of his/her own behavior. The goal of the reality therapy is to help the client to evaluate their current behaviors, and to help them determine if their behaviors are able to meet their needs. If the behaviors are not effective, the reality therapist will formulate a plan of action for changing behaviors and obtain needs. Some of the steps employed by reality therapy are: 1) analyze the situation and indentify unmet need, 2) identify aspects if their problems that can be changed, 3) make plan for change, and 4) follow through on

William Glasser developed the Choice Theory (CT). Glasser believed that students would become more engaged in their education when they are actively involved with their curriculum and allowed to study subjects and topics that interest them. Glasser stated that pedagogy is a more successful venture when students are permitted to take charge of their education as opposed to being given an arbitrary, universal blanket of subjects as occurred in many traditional classrooms. One strength of choice theory is its belief that students have the capacity to fully control their behaviour at all times.

The participant is a 49 year old African American male who began using substances at the age of 13. He was diagnosed with severe alcohol, cocaine, and opioid use. The participant has been incarcerated over the past 32 years. He was recently paroled after completing eight years of a sixteen year sentence in the Illinois Department of Corrections for burglary and theft. The participant is on medications to treat HIV/AIDS and has been diagnosed with Major Depressive Disorder. He was referred to Healthcare Alternative Systems residential program through TASC as a condition of his probation.

Furthermore, client struggles to meet the five basic needs of reality therapy. The client lacks belonging because he has withdrawn himself from friends and family. He struggles to meet the needs of his relationship with his fiancée because he feels unsatisfied. He lacks power because he feels “stuck” and unable to achieve any goals he sets. Furthermore, freedom is difficult for the client to meet because he struggles with his culture. He wishes to become more independent and autonomous but lacks the motivation to do so. Due to the report of loss of interest, the client does not enjoy fun activities that he once enjoyed. Lastly, survival is met because the client’s parents provide him with food and

This article is discussing the impact that Dialectical Behavioral Therapy (DBT) group counseling can have on adolescents in Disciplinary Alternative Education Program (DAEP). The results show an overall reduction of student behavioral distress. As school counselors can only notice the augmentation of troubled students on campus, it is important to find school-based interventions, theoretically grounded, with a demonstrate efficacy to help them manage this issue.

Choice Theory: Reality Therapy: Week Five Discussion Question Choice theory, applying reality therapy, is an appropriate choice for Marla, the presenting client. Choice theory is founded on the tenets that embedded needs exist within each individual; these wants and/or needs must be met in order to live a healthy and productive life (Corey, 2017). Another foundational principle of choice theory is the view of behavior; acting and thinking, and then feeling and physiology, which make up an individual’s “total behavior”, are the driving forces of choice and responsibility (Tan, 2011). For multiple reasons, reality therapy will be constructive and beneficial in helping Marla identify her needs, accept responsibility for her choices, establish

Behavioral Therapeutic techniques have been one of the few theories that impact many people lives. Many therapists use this technique to understand and observe their client’s behavior and how their situation can affect their behavior. The roles and goals a therapist uses to help their client makes the therapist and client session successful. In my mock interview with my client, I learn various behavioral principles many therapists uses to understand their client behavioral problems. Behavioral therapeutic techniques have been a good resource for understanding a person situation.

Affect refers to a client’s emotion whereas cognitive content refers to the process of cognition or understanding. This is the primary content that is utilized when working with a client. At times the client may express emotion without much cognition and at other times they may express cognition without emotion (Cormier, 2014). The therapist can summarize what the client is saying and add the emotion to a cognitive statement and wait for feedback to assure that the emotion is understood correctly (Cormier, 2014).

One needs to assume personal responsibility for his or her feelings. The Choice theory of Reality therapy challenges the client to accept his or her part in actually creating his or her feelings. The choice theory emphasizes how people think and act therefore we can see that it shares some of the concepts of the cognitive behavior approach.

Choice theory was born out of the perspective of crime causation which states that criminality is the result of conscious choice. This theory is also known as the rational choice theory. According to this theory, the choice whether or not to commit a criminal act is the result of a rational thought process that weighs the risks of paying the costs of committing a crime, against the benefits obtained. In other words, if the benefits--monetary or otherwise--outweigh the risks of sustaining the costs, such as fines, imprisonment or execution, then according to this theory the individual would be inclined to commit the crime, all other things being equal. In this calculus, the benefits are known. For example, “this diamond that I want to

that we are born with five basic human needs that drive us all our lives: survival, love and

In this paper, we will discuss what Choice Theory is and how it relates and differs from Positive Psychology. Also in this paper, two articles will be reviewed. One about Choice Theory and the other about Positive Psychology. This will help get a better understanding about the background of these two theories. Choice Theory was developed by Dr. William Glasser. It is the theory that states, “We choose all of our actions and thoughts, based on the information we receive in our lives.” (Bradley, 2014) This means we are in charge of how we feel, no one can make us feel or act in a certain way. Reality Therapy goes hand in hand with this theory. Reality therapy is used by counselors in order to train a client to take control of their lives. Positive Psychology is “A branch of psychology that focuses on building positive qualities that lead to more fulfilling lives.” (Project Innovation Inc., 2013) This branch contrasts many others because it does not focus on treating mental disorders. It is simply just training the brain to think more positively. It focuses on building up four characteristics – grit, optimism, positive affect, and life satisfaction. Both Choice Theory and Positive Psychology help achieve long term goals and help people to be successful