Grounded Therapy
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Abstract
From the beginning of my experience with therapy, I saw many areas in which it was evident to me that the therapeutic process and the therapeutic relationship could be improved. As I learned more about grounded theory, it also became evident to me that grounded theory might be very useful in this application. Some years later when I became a practicing therapist, I was able to empirically test this supposition. My original hunch has proven to be solidly correct. One of the original promises of grounded theory, "to be usable in practical applications" (Glaser and Strauss, 1967: p.3), has certainly been fulfilled, in this instance.
In fact, this promise has been fulfilled in a way which was evidently not originally perceived. The original thought appears to have been that with grounded theories, "prediction and explanation should be able to give the practitioner some understanding and control of situations" (Glaser and Strauss, 1967: p.3). What I have discovered is that the grounded theory process itself (not just grounded theories) is very useful as a model for guiding a grounded therapeutic process albeit in a modified form to fit the situation. Because of the inherent nature of this relationship, I refer to this approach as "grounded therapy." Grounded therapy is a methodology by which to achieve therapy.
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