About Solution-Focused Approach

The Solution-Focused Approach was developed around 1980 at the world-famous Brief Family Therapy Center (BFTC) in Milwaukee, United States. Steve de Shazer (1940-2005) and Insoo Kim Berg (1934-2007) developed the so called Solution Focused Brief Therapy. While working with families and individual clients, they discovered that it is not necessary to know all the details of a problem, to investigate the cause of complaints or make a diagnosis. They focused much more on the desired changes of the client than on the problem history. A respectful, goal-oriented approach was created, based on collaboration with the client and working with clients’ ideas instead of insights of the therapist-expert . The basis assumption is that the client has the required knowledge, skills and resources to move towards the desired changes.

Shortly after developing the Solution-Focused Approach in the 1980’s, worldwide interest arises. In addition to the field of therapy field, also social work, coaching, hospital-care, education, business, sports, management and many other fields are inspired. Throughout the world, the Solution-Focused Approach is being applied by many professionals and more than 1900 books and articles are written in many languages ​​every year.