What is Philosophical Counseling? |
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Ok, so you've heard the phrase a couple of times. But what is this philosophical counseling thing anyway, and how can it help you?
As the world of philosophical counseling is still in its pioneering stages, my hope is to introduce the field to potential clients who are looking for an alternative to psychotherapy and want to try out a different approach. You're in the right place to learn about the burgeoning field of philosophical counseling and to make your first appointment!
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Philosophical Counseling with
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What do we do in philosophical counseling?
In philosophical counseling, we embark on an inquiry into your life.
Philosophical counseling is a collaborative and conversational activity in which you and a trained philosopher work through your life-problems by identifying, examining, and revising as necessary the operating beliefs, values, and habits of action that inform those problems.
(1) The process of identifying your implicit “truths” and values, and making them explicit, improves your self-awareness and puts you in a position to clarify and critically examine the fundamental principles that have been guiding your life.
(2) The process of critically examining your core truths and values helps you to analyze the reasons and evidence that support your beliefs, discover the strengths and weaknesses as well as the benefits and challenges of your ways of thinking, and compare them with alternative perspectives. It also helps you to become aware of inconsistencies between beliefs, and conflicts between beliefs and habits of action (what you say and do). These revelations help you to become aware of instances in which you might be working at cross-purposes with yourself.
(3) The revision stage is one of creative re-building, in which your core truths and values shift, expand, and sharpen, with the consideration of various perspectives from philosophical wisdom traditions. It is also a stage of application, in which you experiment with putting new ideas into practice, and work to direct your actions, relationships, and ways of communicating with intentional choice.
In philosophical counseling, the three stages tend to move in a circular manner, rather than a linear one. As new insights emerge, it can be valuable to circle back to earlier stages with new ideas for deeper examination.
The ultimate goal of philosophical counseling is to help you to conduct an inquiry into your own life, to develop your own coherent, empowering, and fulfilling philosophy of life, and to live it! Minimally, what you can expect to get out of philosophical counseling is greater self-knowledge and understanding of your problems. Maximally, you can become empowered to solve those problems, relieve suffering, and create greater fulfillment in your life.
Philosophical counseling is a collaborative and conversational activity in which you and a trained philosopher work through your life-problems by identifying, examining, and revising as necessary the operating beliefs, values, and habits of action that inform those problems.
(1) The process of identifying your implicit “truths” and values, and making them explicit, improves your self-awareness and puts you in a position to clarify and critically examine the fundamental principles that have been guiding your life.
(2) The process of critically examining your core truths and values helps you to analyze the reasons and evidence that support your beliefs, discover the strengths and weaknesses as well as the benefits and challenges of your ways of thinking, and compare them with alternative perspectives. It also helps you to become aware of inconsistencies between beliefs, and conflicts between beliefs and habits of action (what you say and do). These revelations help you to become aware of instances in which you might be working at cross-purposes with yourself.
(3) The revision stage is one of creative re-building, in which your core truths and values shift, expand, and sharpen, with the consideration of various perspectives from philosophical wisdom traditions. It is also a stage of application, in which you experiment with putting new ideas into practice, and work to direct your actions, relationships, and ways of communicating with intentional choice.
In philosophical counseling, the three stages tend to move in a circular manner, rather than a linear one. As new insights emerge, it can be valuable to circle back to earlier stages with new ideas for deeper examination.
The ultimate goal of philosophical counseling is to help you to conduct an inquiry into your own life, to develop your own coherent, empowering, and fulfilling philosophy of life, and to live it! Minimally, what you can expect to get out of philosophical counseling is greater self-knowledge and understanding of your problems. Maximally, you can become empowered to solve those problems, relieve suffering, and create greater fulfillment in your life.
The role of the philosophical counselor:
A philosophical counselor approaches their client as a fully functioning individual with the courage to deal with the perplexities and struggles central to the human condition.
A philosophical counselor does not diagnose or treat emotional or behavioral disorders, and if problems arise of a medical nature, the philosophical counselor will help you to seek an appropriate health care professional.
A philosophical counselor works collaboratively with you to solve life-problems by activating and cultivating the powers you already possesses — like critical thinking, imagination, empathy, desire, self-discipline, and creativity. A philosophical counselor acts as a navigation partner on your journey to gain awareness, find direction, create solutions, and develop a fulfilling life.
The philosophical counselor does not tell you what to think or what to do, but instead asks questions, uses tools of critical examination, offers fresh perspectives, draws connections, and gives encouragement. Most importantly, a philosophical counselor listens carefully to you, works to understand your problems and your operating worldview, and works with you to develop a coherent philosophy of life that will serve your own well-being.
It may seem that philosophical counseling is a new invention. Actually, it is as old as philosophy itself. The ancient Greeks — Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, the Stoics, the Epicureans — saw philosophy as not only an educational activity, but as a kind of therapy for the soul that eased suffering, developed personal integrity, encouraged self-mastery, created justice, and cultivated the good life.
Even in the era of academic philosophy, this ancient vision of philosophy has survived in the philosophical traditions of ethics, political philosophy, existentialism, pragmatism, and feminism (among others). Modern day philosophical counselors revive the ancient Socratic art of philosophy, and put it to work to pursue the examined life in a one-on-one setting.
A philosophical counselor does not diagnose or treat emotional or behavioral disorders, and if problems arise of a medical nature, the philosophical counselor will help you to seek an appropriate health care professional.
A philosophical counselor works collaboratively with you to solve life-problems by activating and cultivating the powers you already possesses — like critical thinking, imagination, empathy, desire, self-discipline, and creativity. A philosophical counselor acts as a navigation partner on your journey to gain awareness, find direction, create solutions, and develop a fulfilling life.
The philosophical counselor does not tell you what to think or what to do, but instead asks questions, uses tools of critical examination, offers fresh perspectives, draws connections, and gives encouragement. Most importantly, a philosophical counselor listens carefully to you, works to understand your problems and your operating worldview, and works with you to develop a coherent philosophy of life that will serve your own well-being.
It may seem that philosophical counseling is a new invention. Actually, it is as old as philosophy itself. The ancient Greeks — Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, the Stoics, the Epicureans — saw philosophy as not only an educational activity, but as a kind of therapy for the soul that eased suffering, developed personal integrity, encouraged self-mastery, created justice, and cultivated the good life.
Even in the era of academic philosophy, this ancient vision of philosophy has survived in the philosophical traditions of ethics, political philosophy, existentialism, pragmatism, and feminism (among others). Modern day philosophical counselors revive the ancient Socratic art of philosophy, and put it to work to pursue the examined life in a one-on-one setting.
What kinds of problems are philosophical problems?
You might wonder whether or not you’ve got any philosophical problems. Most of the time we characterize our problems in terms of a particular relationship we're struggling with, a big life change, or a feeling of sadness, loss, confusion, loneliness, frustration, powerlessness, burnout, or worry. But, quite often these very problems are signs of broader philosophical problems that deserve attention.
Common philosophical problems include questions or difficulties with:
Common philosophical problems include questions or difficulties with:
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It’s important to recognize that not all life-problems are medical in nature. Not every instance of struggle, suffering, or unhappiness is a sign of a mental illness. There are times when it is appropriate to seek a health care professional with training in psychology for treatment of an emotional or behavioral disorder. There are instances in which a problem in one’s brain-chemistry exists and it is appropriate to get the help of a psychiatrist who can prescribe medication. But when problems are not medical in nature, one needs a different kind of counsel.
Sometimes non-medical problems are narrow in scope, requiring legal, financial, business, or academic counsel. And sometimes the problems are more general, having to do at their root with "the big questions" like:
Sometimes non-medical problems are narrow in scope, requiring legal, financial, business, or academic counsel. And sometimes the problems are more general, having to do at their root with "the big questions" like:
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These are classic questions of philosophy.
Most everyday problems dealing with ethics, values, meaning, purpose, truth, certainty, justice, power, freedom, and happiness are not medical in nature and cannot be resolved with medical intervention. They are best approached through philosophical dialogue.
Most everyday problems dealing with ethics, values, meaning, purpose, truth, certainty, justice, power, freedom, and happiness are not medical in nature and cannot be resolved with medical intervention. They are best approached through philosophical dialogue.
What's the difference between philosophical dialogue and psychotherapy?
Philosophical dialogue is a unique kind of dialogue. In it, we take our time to slowly and thoroughly clarify the meaning of our terms, examine lines of reasoning with critical thinking tools, compare our ways of thinking with other perspectives and worldviews, and consider the relationship between our ways of thinking and our ways of feeling, choosing, communicating, and acting.
Unlike psychotherapy, philosophical dialogue is not diagnostic. A philosopher does not treat you as a patient, nor assume that there is a disorder or illness present in you (beyond the challenges with the human condition that we all face). A philosopher does not presume causal explanations for your behaviors, feelings, or thoughts: He or she does not view you as one who is "determined" to feel, act, or think in a certain way because of internal or external conditions. A philosopher assumes that with your human abilities to think and choose, you have the power to change your life. A philosophical counselor acts as your partner and collaborator in that process.
Whereas many psychotherapists tend to approach your problems by focusing on your emotional life, eliciting affect, tracing a personal history of trauma, and identifying childhood origins of current difficulties (a retrospective approach focused heavily on emotion); philosophical counselors approach your ways of feeling as a starting point for uncovering your ways of thinking, examining assumptions, and considering which choices you might make going forward for a more fulfilling life (a prospective approach that connects thinking, feeling, and choosing).
Philosophers are trained to notice the assumptions — the truth claims and value claims — that are at work in what another person says. Philosophical counselors ask questions about those operating assumptions, and work to elicit reasons and evidence for the ways you think, ask questions about what is true, good, and fair, and open up different perspectives for discussion. So, philosophical counselors investigate why you feel the way you do by examining the thoughts — the assumptions, the judgments, the values — that inform those feelings and that influence the way you approach and experience the world. They then help you to revise those thoughts as needed, and apply new insights to your life. As your ways of thinking develop and transform in philosophical counseling, so do your ways of feeling, choosing, acting . . . living!
One more important thing. Philosophical counselors consider the ways in which your personal history takes place within a wider context of social-political structures. There are times when your distress has much to do with the power relations in which you exist or the state of injustice in the world, and the remedy is not so much about turning inward and learning to adapt to that injustice, but learning how to engage politically, and resist in active, creative, and fruitful ways that bring a greater sense of meaning, purpose, and agency to your life. Sometimes "the personal is political" — which means that sometimes a person's problems should not be treated merely as psychological difficulties to adapt to the norms of society, but as manifestations of systemic injustices or toxic cultures that need reform.
In summary, philosophical counseling takes a holistic approach to the thinking-feeling-choosing-doing of the individual in a social-political world, and considers the individual’s powers of examination, creative exploration, and reflective choice to be vehicles of movement, change, and growth. Though there are indeed patterns of thinking that can cause us problems, thinking itself is not considered a problem in philosophical counseling. It is harnessed as a wonderful tool and key ingredient for living with vision, intention, and freedom.
There are some psychotherapeutic methods that are not in tension with, but have a kinship with philosophical approaches, as their theoretical roots can be traced back to Socratic, Stoic, Buddhist, Existential, or Feminist philosophies, among others. But as a psychotherapist's and philosopher's training can be quite different, there is a difference in which dimensions of their clients' problems they focus on (even when they share theoretical foundations), and a difference in the tools they bring to the table to grapple with those problems.
Unlike psychotherapy, philosophical dialogue is not diagnostic. A philosopher does not treat you as a patient, nor assume that there is a disorder or illness present in you (beyond the challenges with the human condition that we all face). A philosopher does not presume causal explanations for your behaviors, feelings, or thoughts: He or she does not view you as one who is "determined" to feel, act, or think in a certain way because of internal or external conditions. A philosopher assumes that with your human abilities to think and choose, you have the power to change your life. A philosophical counselor acts as your partner and collaborator in that process.
Whereas many psychotherapists tend to approach your problems by focusing on your emotional life, eliciting affect, tracing a personal history of trauma, and identifying childhood origins of current difficulties (a retrospective approach focused heavily on emotion); philosophical counselors approach your ways of feeling as a starting point for uncovering your ways of thinking, examining assumptions, and considering which choices you might make going forward for a more fulfilling life (a prospective approach that connects thinking, feeling, and choosing).
Philosophers are trained to notice the assumptions — the truth claims and value claims — that are at work in what another person says. Philosophical counselors ask questions about those operating assumptions, and work to elicit reasons and evidence for the ways you think, ask questions about what is true, good, and fair, and open up different perspectives for discussion. So, philosophical counselors investigate why you feel the way you do by examining the thoughts — the assumptions, the judgments, the values — that inform those feelings and that influence the way you approach and experience the world. They then help you to revise those thoughts as needed, and apply new insights to your life. As your ways of thinking develop and transform in philosophical counseling, so do your ways of feeling, choosing, acting . . . living!
One more important thing. Philosophical counselors consider the ways in which your personal history takes place within a wider context of social-political structures. There are times when your distress has much to do with the power relations in which you exist or the state of injustice in the world, and the remedy is not so much about turning inward and learning to adapt to that injustice, but learning how to engage politically, and resist in active, creative, and fruitful ways that bring a greater sense of meaning, purpose, and agency to your life. Sometimes "the personal is political" — which means that sometimes a person's problems should not be treated merely as psychological difficulties to adapt to the norms of society, but as manifestations of systemic injustices or toxic cultures that need reform.
In summary, philosophical counseling takes a holistic approach to the thinking-feeling-choosing-doing of the individual in a social-political world, and considers the individual’s powers of examination, creative exploration, and reflective choice to be vehicles of movement, change, and growth. Though there are indeed patterns of thinking that can cause us problems, thinking itself is not considered a problem in philosophical counseling. It is harnessed as a wonderful tool and key ingredient for living with vision, intention, and freedom.
There are some psychotherapeutic methods that are not in tension with, but have a kinship with philosophical approaches, as their theoretical roots can be traced back to Socratic, Stoic, Buddhist, Existential, or Feminist philosophies, among others. But as a psychotherapist's and philosopher's training can be quite different, there is a difference in which dimensions of their clients' problems they focus on (even when they share theoretical foundations), and a difference in the tools they bring to the table to grapple with those problems.
What's special about a philosopher's training?
Philosophers have a kind of training that makes them well suited for the kind of dialogue-work described above. It is probably well known that philosophers have a knack for asking questions, clarifying ideas, challenging popular opinions, drawing connections, offering fresh perspectives, and getting involved in painstakingly careful inquiries into big questions. There are some other skills philosophers have that are particularly useful in a one-on-one counseling relationship.
So, here's the punchline: A philosopher can make an excellent co-traveler on your journey into the big questions of life. A philosopher can offer a unique inquiry-experience that opens up distinct dimensions of thought, and that complements and moves beyond other forms of "talk-therapy."
- Philosophers have a trained ability to understand others’ worldviews, to learn them inside and out, to explain them, compare them, evaluate their strengths and weaknesses, to analyze their benefits and challenges, and to think through their concrete implications in practice.
- Philosophers have a trained ability to listen carefully for an argument in what another person says, and to identify assumptions, implicit truth claims, and implicit values. They can trace carefully another’s line of reasoning, and ask the questions needed to examine it.
- Philosophers carry around with them a toolbox of well-used critical thinking tools that allow them to recognize and remedy faulty reasoning, fallacies, and contradictions.
- Philosophers have experience with uncertainty and exploring uncharted territories of thinking without a map. They are accustomed to working without a formula, and dealing creatively with open-ended questions.
- Philosophers know how to inspire learning, activate and awaken the inner philosopher in others (Socrates' gadfly effect), and empower people to think for themselves and choose reflectively.
- Philosophers know how to learn from others, take what they say seriously, interpret their meaning, and engage in an ongoing practice of self-critique and revision of their own understanding, providing a helpful model to others who are on their own philosophical journey for the first time.
- Philosophers know how to recognize relativism, nihilism, solipsism, and other “tail-spin” positions.
- Philosophers have been trained in, and can discuss, a broad array of wisdom traditions (ancient and modern, eastern and western). They are also experts in a few of their favorite theories, about which they have usually taught, debated publicly with other experts, and published in a deep and thorough manner.
So, here's the punchline: A philosopher can make an excellent co-traveler on your journey into the big questions of life. A philosopher can offer a unique inquiry-experience that opens up distinct dimensions of thought, and that complements and moves beyond other forms of "talk-therapy."
*I'm indebted to the conversations that took place at the certification program for philosophical counseling at the American Philosophical Practitioners Association in 2018 for many of the ideas articulated here, as well as to my discussions with fellow philosophical practitioners.
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