Personal styles, constructive alternativism and the provision of a therapeutic service

Abstract

A series of studies on the 'personal styles' of clients and therapists is reviewed, and their findings are drawn together within the framework of personal construct theory. It is argued that the technical eclecticism of personal construct theory reflects its central philosophical assumption of constructive alternativism; and that a treatment service organized in accordance with this assumption could accommodate therapists of different theoretical persuasions, matching clients and therapeutic conditions in terms of dimensions suggested by the 'personal styles' research.