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PRACTICAL PHILOSOPHYTHE JOURNAL OF THE SOCIETY FOR PHILOSOPHY IN PRACTICEwww.practical-philosophy.org.uk www.society-for-philosophy-in-practice.org |
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PRACTICAL PHILOSOPHYTHE JOURNAL OF THE SOCIETY FOR PHILOSOPHY IN PRACTICEwww.practical-philosophy.org.uk www.society-for-philosophy-in-practice.org |
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Philosophy for Counselling and Psychotherapy: Pythagoras to Postmodernism
Alex Howard
2000 Basingstoke: Macmillan
Practical Philosophy (Book Reviews) November 2000 Volume 3.3
Reviewed by: Trevor Curnow
The introduction of philosophical materials into the contexts of counselling and psychotherapy is an interesting and growing area of study and practice. From being seen (partly through its own choice of self-definition) as an abstract and remote subject for many years, philosophy is increasingly perceived as something having real relevance to everyday life. Those with even a smattering of knowledge of the history of philosophy will readily recognise that this is not a radical new development, but rather a rediscovery of what philosophy was always meant to be, and often succeeded in being.
Modern philosophical counselling, however, is a relatively recent phenomenon, and is largely the domain of those whose original expertise lies in philosophy. For such people, the combination of philosophy and counselling is achieved through the acquisition of the requisite counselling skills. This book is rather aimed at those moving, or wishing to move, in the opposite direction. What does someone with counselling skills do, who wishes to introduce philosophical perspectives into his or her practice? What Alex Howard has sought to do is to provide a substantial resource for such a person to draw upon.
The scope of the book is ambitious. As its subtitle indicates, it presents the insights which philosophy has to offer within an historical structure. Thirty-one individuals, two ancient schools, and postmodernism are covered. Each section consists of a number of elements. First there are the 'key points', the essentials of the philosophical perspective condensed into no more than half a dozen brief statements. Next come the 'applications', where the general relevance of the perspective to the counselling and/or psychotherapeutic context is explored. Again this is done in a few brief statements. There is then a more discursive treatment of the perspective in question, followed by some questions and exercises to stimulate further reflection and suggest further avenues of application. Each section ends with a brief bibliography, which includes a list of useful websites.
Any history of western philosophy which occupies fewer than four hundred pages is bound to contain contentious statements and questionable compressions which it is possible to dispute. But philosophy is a disputatious discipline at the best of times. Furthermore, anyone who seeks to cover a broad expanse is bound to acknowledge that others may have greater expertise when it comes to individual areas within it. These seem to me to be facts of philosophical life, and I do not have a problem with them.
My main problems with the book are more practical than philosophical. If the aim is to produce a resource book for counsellors and psychotherapists who wish to have some knowledge of, and access to, philosophical ideas, why present the materials within a structure dictated by the chronology of the history of philosophy? Will it matter to any of the intended users of the book that Luther came before Hobbes, or Schopenhauer after Rousseau? I think not. And why are most of the chapters in the book dedicated to individuals? Isn't it the ideas that are important, rather than the names of the individuals which can be attached to them? I think so.
These problems would not be so intrusive if there were a helpful index enabling the book's users to track down the topics they were looking for. Unfortunately, the index is limited, and heavily weighted towards names. 'Happiness', a topic one might consider a likely one to be sought out, has a single reference in the index, to the section on Aristotle. This is despite the fact that Epicureanism, Bentham and Mill each have their own chapters. There is no mention at all in the index of 'self', although the chapter on Hume deals extensively with the topic. And so on.
I am pleased that the bibliographical section includes references to internet websites, which are becoming an increasingly valuable resource. However, for a book aimed at beginners it is a pity that few books other than primary sources are cited. It is quite a leap from a fourteen page introduction to Heidegger to Being and Time, and I think the citation of some secondary sources alongside the primary ones would have been helpful.
There is much of value in this book, and I would not wish to suggest otherwise. However, unless counsellors and psychotherapists are prepared to work diligently through the whole book, I fear they may derive little benefit from it. In any event, I think that it is a mistake to structure a book aimed at such an audience historically rather than thematically. In fact, it is more likely to be of use to those who already possess a reasonable amount of philosophical knowledge who want to think more about the practical applications of that knowledge.
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