Theory Series: Reality Therapy
Reality Therapy (RT) is based on William Glasser’s Choice Theory, designed to help people take charge of their lives and fulfill their needs. As clinicians we are taught to treat people as individual, autonomous beings. However, several theories provide conflicting messages, positing that people are products of their environment, genetics, and so on. RT, on the other hand, is founded around this principle, maximizing the idea that individuals are autonomous, with the ability to exercise free will in all scenarios.
Unlike many humanistic approaches, this theory focuses on the here and now, instead of examining the past to determine cause. Clients are also challenged to be honest with themselves in determining how committed and willing they are to make the changes they desire.
Challenges are then approached pragmatically, considered as obstacles that can be overcome by adjustments made by the individual. Most challenges are viewed as the byproduct of a detriment within five domains. These domains are known as the Five Basic Needs and include:
Survival - feeling fulfilled with food, shelter, and sex
Love and Belonging - feeling needed and loved by a partner, family, or friends
Power - feeling self-worth, confidence, or self-esteem
Freedom - feeling autonomy, independence, and achieving of personal goals
Fun - feeling happiness, enjoyment, and pleasure
Once the challenging domain is identified, clients of RT are asked to consider their issues using 3 guiding principles of Realism, Responsibility, and Right/Wrong. The application of these principles is meant to provide a structure for considering their values and the reality of the situation before working on a solution.
Realism/Reality - clients must determine what is achievable versus what is intangible or unachievable
Responsibility - clients must determine what choices are within their power to make and what choices are beyond their preview
Right/Wrong - clients must determine their personal beliefs of right and wrong regarding an issue, while also weighing the larger cultural and societal views on the matter
Once their values are established, clients can then move on to work on solving their issue. This is done using the WDEP approach, which posits a series of questions that should ultimately lead to some type of attempt at a resolution.
What - what do you want?
Doing - what are you doing to get it?
Evaluation - how are you doing so far in attaining that goal?
Plan - make a plan that is doable and repetitive.*
*note: Goal setting should be critical, attainable, measurable, immediate, committed, and consistent.
Choice theory and RT are very controversial, as critics claim it fails to give adequate weight to the role that external factors have on behavior and mental health. The here-and-now focus is critiqued for overlooking valuable psychological insight into mental health by failing to examine the past. Similarly, the general idea of the subconscious is dismissed, which was foundational to cognitive theory since the time of Freud. Emotions are also devalued in favor of a logical/cognitive approach. On the other hand, this approach can work well for logical/left brain dominant individuals. Advocates for RT note that it is beneficial to clients by empowering them to feel control over themselves and their lives. Additionally, its pragmatic and measured approach makes it easier to identify progress achieved in therapy.
Although I view several aspects of RT as reductionist, I am personally a huge fan of this approach. While I recognize external factors as greater influences on the human psyche than Glasser, I believe the absolute focus on choice/free serves clients well in the end. Believing one can affect positive change in their life is often a large hurdle for those struggling to become mentally healthy. RT teaches this perspective as table stakes. It is also a welcome dose of objectivity in a field that is becoming increasingly blurred by conflicting subjective realities.
For more on RT, I recommend reading Choice Theory by William Glasser, the founder of RT. In this book, he clearly lays out the main principles of Choice Theory and provides success stories of how it can be properly applied in a therapeutic setting. Happy reading!
