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| Table of Contents | <= Previous page | Next page => Date published: 1996 Spring
Unconditional Positive Regard is the absolute acceptance of the person as she is without any limitations, any judgements, any goals or expectations of her: "a warm acceptance and prizing of the other person as a separate individual". (Rogers, On Becoming a Person)
The importance of this is evident. It is probably something that most clients have rarely, if ever, experienced. It is a recognition that every person deserves the deepest respect for what she is regardless of how inadequate she might feel. This acceptance on the part of the counsellor without conditions eventually helps the other person to start accepting herself. Rogers says "We cannot change, we cannot move away from what we are, until we accept what we are. Then change seems to come about almost unnoticed." (On Becoming a Person)
Unconditional Positive Regard is not something you can expect of yourself immediately. The key to developing greater UPR (even experienced counsellors never achieve 100% UPR for all clients) is to acknowledge the judgements you usually make because of differences in values or experience between yourself and the other person. |
