A brief, hands-on, and experiential text that helps students understand and apply theory in counseling and psychotherapy This fully updated Second Edition helps students comprehend the variety and complexity of theories and internalize and apply the material to their own lives through the use of the reflective exercises in every chapter. Among the many approaches to theory discussed, the book includes an introductory chapter that provides the background necessary for understanding the theories, text that describes the main theory "families, " and content that focuses on synthesis and application. Throughout the chapters, authors Jeffrey A. Kottler and Marilyn J. Montgomery seek to excite students with the best of the past and the vitality of the present, and to prepare them for their futures as therapists.