Abstract

This text examines the five theoretical approaches to psychotherapy that have been most significant in helping psychotherapists understand and treat their clients. These theories have not been static but have continued to evolve. The authors lay out the major tenets in several enduring theories of psychotherapy, discuss the ideas of the authors who have expanded them, and describe the evolution of these concepts over time. The number of theories is kept to a minimum in order to focus on those that are important historically and that continue to be central in guiding research and practice today.