Grounded Encounter Therapy: Its Characteristics and Process

Grounded Encounter Therapy (GET) is a sociodiagnostic and sociotherapeutic approach for clinicians applying sociological knowledge to problems that are lodged in a social context. It is a process of encounter which allows for the discovery of essential facts and explanations grounded in the social context of the client. It allows for a creative interplay between research, theory, education and practice to produce knowledge and courses of action. It helps clients discover, determine, understand and decide on a plan of action for problem solving and for growth. This article describes the basic philosophy and some of the techniques of GET.