Synopsis

Narrative therapy—first introduced by Australia's Michael White and David Epston more than ten years ago—is based on the theory that an individual's problems are manufactured in a social, cultural, and political context. Each person produces meaning for their own life, instead of meaning being made for us.As this important new book, Narrative Therapy in Practice, demonstrates this innovative approach requires that the therapist and client work in collaboration to help the client unearth dormant competencies, talents, abilities and resources and create a positive "redescription" of the client. The information presented in this instructive resource is grounded in solid scientific research in the fields of learning, language and cognitive behavior. And, for the first time, using practical examples, clinicians are shown how narrative therapy can be applied in a variety of situations, such as treating alcoholics, counseling students, working with indigenous native communities, treating male sexual abuse survivors, and more.

Biography

GERALD MONK is director of the counselor education program at the University of Waikato in Hamilton, New Zealand. JOHN WINSLADE is a counselor educator at the University of Waikato. KATHIE CROCKET is a counselor in the student counseling service of the University of Waikato. DAVID EPSTON is codirector of the Family Therapy Center in Auckland, New Zealand and one of the codevelopers of narrative therapy. He is the author of Collected Paper (1983) and Narrative Means to Therapeutic Ends (1991).