Bibliotherapy is a form of therapy that uses reading materials to help patients. It can be used as an adjunct to traditional psychotherapy or on its own. Books are prescribed to help patients gain insight, reduce feelings of isolation, and find solutions. There are three stages - identification, catharsis, and insight. While it has benefits, bibliotherapy also has limitations if not properly implemented, such as causing anxiety or using inappropriate materials.
3. Bibliotherapy is…
• A kind of therapy which involves your mind as
a patient.
• An adjunct to psychological treatment that
incorporates appropriate books or other
written materials, usually intended to be read
outside of psychotherapy sessions, into the
treatment regimen.
4. • Successfully prescribed in a variety of settings.
• Effective not only for patients suffering from
mental disorders, but it might also have a
significant role in public education, in mental
disorder prevention programs and it also
increases the reading rate in the society.
5. Historical Foundations
• Use of literature for healing is deeply
rooted within ancient and modern history.
"Books have been used as preventive aids
as far back as problems and books have
existed. In ancient Greek times, the door of
the library at Thebes bore the inscription,
Healing place of the Soul'.
6. • Crothers (1916) described the use of books to
help patients better understand their health
problems and symptoms, coining the
term bibliotherapy.
7. • The field of bibliotherapy expanded further in
the 1930s when Menninger used books to
assist nonprofessionals in understanding
psychology and psychiatry. In this early form
of bibliotherapy, librarians compiled lists of
books to assist patrons therapeutically with
concerns from child rearing to mental illness.
8. • At that time, bibliotherapy was primarily a
stand-alone treatment, rather than
conjunctive to psychotherapy
9. Current Components of Bibliotherapy
• Self-help books
- applied as adjuncts to traditional
therapies .
• Use of literature
- poems, short stories, and novels.
10. Benefits and Uses of Bibliotherapy
• providing information
• augmenting insight
• stimulating discussion
• communicating values
• reducing perceived isolation
• generating solutions
11. THREE STAGES of BIBLIOTHERAPY
• IDENTIFICATION
-The child identifies with a character, a
story line, SOMETHING in the book that
catches their attention.
12. • CATHARSIS
- The child is able to release emotions
when he/she becomes emotionally involved
in the story.
13. • INSIGHT
- With the therapist's help, the child can
come to possible solutions to their problem.
Or sometimes, there is no solution, but coping
strategies can be suggested and goals made.
14. Limitations of Bibliotherapy
• Literature and self-help books can be
inappropriate for some clients.
• A therapist with limited knowledge of human
development may not match a literature
selection with a client appropriately.
15. • A client with a reading disorder may not
benefit or may even be harmed by an
assigned reading.
• Client who has a history of academic problems
may experience anxiety.
16. • By incorrectly implementing bibliotherapy
techniques, a therapist may increase
frustration for the client.
• Materials also need to be selected with care
to ensure they are not offensive or in some
other way inappropriate
