Humanistic Psychology and the Mental Health Worker

This article discusses the precarious relationship of humanistic psychology to the mental health worker in our current managed care, empirically based, behaviorally focused, excessively medication-oriented mental health system. Some of the challenges, frustrations, and potential successes of bringing real and nurturing human relationships in the context of humanistic psychology into the day-to-day involvements with clients for the mental health worker are described. Some of the particular ethical dilemmas of the mental health worker attempting to work in this context of humanistic psychology are discussed, inclusive of the enormous difficulties of bringing humanistic psychology into the all pervasive medical model that controls mental health practice in our society. Through a series of case descriptions, the author provides a narrative account of his own experiences in attempting to bring the authentic nurturing relationship context of humanistic psychology into his various mental health worker jobs. The author reaches the conclusion that this relationship context of humanistic psychology is in actuality being practiced by many mental health workers without knowing it by name. He further concludes that in spite of the challenges and frustrations of engaging in real and nurturing relationships with clients as part of the mental health worker's job in our current society, the core ingredients of empathy, authenticity, and realness of bond between client and mental health worker, which are the hallmarks of humanistic psychology, are apparently being practiced with partial success through the cleverness, flexibility, and humaneness of mental health workers despite the enormous obstacles against this kind of humanistic practice.