A study of eclectic views.

Abstract

The present study reports on the views of 1S4 clinical psychologists who had designated themselves as eclectics in a previous survey. Both communalities and differences were found among the respondents' characterizations of their theoretical views, as well as a great diversity of combinations of theoretical views and therapeutic techniques. A common theme was that no current was adequate for handling the diversity of clients seen in practice and that clinicians must select the approach that best fits a given client. The findings appear to have some implications for research on psychotherapy . In a recent survey of theoretical orientations among a sample of clinical psychologists, it was found that a majority of the sample labeled themselves as eclectics (Garfield & Kurtz, 1974). This was clearly the dominant orientation reported, an increase in adherence to an eclectic viewpoint was reflected as compared with a comparable survey reported some years earlier (Kelly, 1961). In contrast, the number adhering to psychoanalyti c and related orientations had decreased from 417o in the previous survey to 19% in the 1974 survey. Although the latter drop was not totally unexpected, the shift appeared to be primarily toward the eclectic view, rather than to such currently popular orientations as learning theory and humanistic, which increased by only 1 percentage point each and together accounted for slightly less than 13% of the sample. Clearly, a significant shift toward an eclectic view appears to have taken place, with almost 55% of those surveyed identifying themselves as eclectics. Because of this heavy emphasis on an eclectic orientation, it was deemed worthwhile to conduct an additional inquiry concerning this point of view. Most individuals understand that an eclectic does not follow one specific theoretical view but instead draws We would like to acknowledge the assistance of Robert Assacl in tabulating the replies received and to thank the 1S4 psychologists who participated in this study. Requests for reprints should be sent to Sol Gar