Narrative therapy

Narrative therapy was co-founded by Michael White and David Epston in the 1980s, and gained prominence in 1990 with the publication of their book, 'Narrative Means to Therapeutic Ends'.

Narrative therapy seeks to help people distinguish themselves from their problems through the use of narrative tools such as storytelling. Clients narrate specific events from their life, and work with their counsellor to reauthor these events. This means the counsellor helps the client to understand that their problems are part of a negative identity formed by themselves, other people, and various cultural, historical, social and environmental influences.

Recognising this enables the client to start reshaping a different, positive identity. They are able to move away from their problems in a direction that is in harmony with their values and goals. This can be particularly helpful in the career guidance process as it can assist people to recognise how they are stuck and then to find ways to move forward.

The power of narrative therapy lies in the uniqueness of the individual’s story, and the significance that the very act of telling their story holds for the narrator.

Career guidance counsellors use narrative therapy to help clients determine their current career situation and move towards their career goals. Clients narrate their career history and story to the counsellor, who listens and asks questions in order to:

• assess the client
• learn about the client's future goals
• help the client clarify where they are, and where they want to be
• help the client to make decisions about their career.

The primary role of the counsellor is to help the client question and reflect on their story, and harness untapped abilities to manage the problems in their lives. White describes this as follows:

"The therapist is influential not in the sense of imposing an agenda or in the sense of delivering interventions, but in the sense of building a scaffold, through questions and reflections, that makes it possible for people to:

a) more richly describe the alternative stories of their lives,
b) step into and explore some of the neglected territories of their lives, and to
c) become more significantly acquainted with the knowledges [sic] and skills of their lives that are relevant to addressing the concerns, predicaments and problems that are at hand" (White, Michael).

Sources

• Sharf, R S, 'Applying Career Development Theory to Counseling', California: Thomson Wadsworth, 2006.
• White, M, and Epston, D, ‘Narrative Means to Therapeutic Ends’, New York: Norton, 1990.
• White, M, 'Workshop Notes', accessed January 2009, (www.dulwichcentre.com.au).

Further reading

• Morgan, A, ‘What is Narrative Therapy? An Easy-to-read Introduction’, Adelaide: Dulwich Centre Publications, 2000.