Mick Cooper is Professor of Counselling Psychology at the University of Roehampton, where he is Director of the Centre for Research in Social and Psychological Transformation (CREST). Mick is a chartered psychologist, a UKCP registered psychotherapist, and a Fellow of the BACP. Mick is author and editor of a range of texts on person-centred, existential and relational approaches to therapy; including Working at Relational Depth in Counselling and Psychotherapy (2005, SAGE, with Dave Mearns), Pluralistic Counselling and Psychotherapy

(2011, SAGE, with John McLeod) and Existential Therapies (2nd edn, 2017, SAGE). Mick has led a series of research studies exploring the processes and outcomes of humanistic counsel­ling with young people. Mick is the father of four children and lives in Brighton on the south coast of England.

Introduction: The Challenge of Research
The Outcomes of Counselling and Psychotherapy
Does Orientation Matter? The Great Psychotherapy Debate
Client Factors: The Heart and Soul of Therapeutic Change
Therapist Factors: Who Works for What?
Relational Factors: It's the Relationship That Heals... or Is It?
Technique and Practice Factors: Is It What You Do or the Way That You Do It?

Are some therapies more effective than others? How important is the relationship? Which clients do best in therapy?

Essential Research Findings in Counselling and Psychotherapy answers these questions and many more, providing trainees, practitioners and researchers with a comprehensive introduction to the latest findings in the field. The book sets out in a jargon-free way the evidence for the effectiveness of therapy and the factors associated with positive therapeutic outcomes. It gives suggestions for further reading, definitions of key terms and questions for discussion, making this an ideal text for use in training.

The book is also designed for practitioners who increasingly need to justify their therapeutic work on empirical grounds. Essential Research Findings in Counselling and Psychotherapy gives them the knowledge and confidence to do just that. More than that, it makes research findings accessible and provides information on how to practice counselling and psychotherapy in an effective way.