Focusing

Focusing is a naturally occurring human process first observed and made teachable by philosopher and psychotherapist Eugene Gendlin. During his 15 years of research, beginning in 1953 at the University of Chicago, Gendlin analyzed what made psychotherapy either successful or unsuccessful. He found that it is not the therapist's technique that determines the success of psychotherapy, but something the patient does during therapy sessions. Though this 'something' is an inner act, it is one which is consistently marked by an observable set of behaviors so that it was possible for Gendlin to see in his research when this inner act was happening, and when it wasn't. Gendlin found that successful patients intuitively focused on a very subtle and vague internal bodily awareness &mdash; or "felt sense."

Much of what a person knows has never been consciously thought and verbalized. A felt sense forms as a person pays attention to 'all that about ....' which is pertinent in some situation but which has not yet been made explicit. Gendlin observed successful patients turning their attention to this not-yet-articulated knowing. As a felt sense formed, there would be long pauses together with sounds like 'uh....' Then new words would come which framed new insights into the situation. These successful patients were able to be successful because they could move beyond the 'old thoughts' they'd already had which had not been helpful to them, while remaining connected with their own experience. Since these insights came from what they already knew implicitly, they 'owned' these insights and therefore could act from them. Gendlin laid out steps for the process he had observed, so that it could be taught to other patients who did not already know it. His six steps are detailed in the book Focusing,.

Focusing is now practiced all over the world. Most practitioners of the skill find it easiest to Focus in the presence of a "listener" who has been trained in the kind of listening which best supports the Focusing process. Focusing and listening sessions take place in professional settings with focusing trainers, focusing-oriented therapists or coaches, and also informally between laypeople. A focusing session can last from approximately 30 minutes to an hour, on average &mdash; with the "focuser" being listened to, and his verbalized thoughts and feelings being reflected back, by the "listener."

There is a school of therapy based on the process. The Focusing-oriented psychotherapist, among other things, attributes a central importance to the client's capacity to be aware of their "felt sense," and the meaning behind their words or images. The client's ability to sense into feelings and meanings which are not yet formed is also important. Additionally, the therapist pays attention to their own felt sense as a source of information and insight during the therapy process.

Focusing has also been been applied in other domains besides therapy. Attention to the felt sense naturally takes place in all manner of processes where something new is being formed: for example in creative process, learning, thinking, and decision making.

Gendlin's training as a philosopher before he became a psychotherapist and researcher is relevant to the history of Focusing. His philosophical investigations, which concerned themselves with the nature of 'the implicit', made it easy for him to notice that there was something being attended to by successful clients which was not yet explicit. His later philosophical work also builds on what he learned as a psychotherapist and researcher. The whole of Gendlin's philosophical work forms a framework for understanding what the felt sense 'is', and what makes Focusing possible.