Stephen Gilligan PhD

Key Contributions and Concepts

Dr. Steven Gilligan is a psychotherapist who developed self-relations psychotherapy and generative therapy, which focus on accessing inner resources, fostering self-compassion, and cultivating creativity. His approaches reframe therapy as a process of collaboration and co-creation, that focus on personal growth potential and the importance of integrating multiple levels of consciousness.     

A student of Milton Erickson, Gilligan’s approaches expand on Ericksonian principles by integrating them with humanistic psychology, somatic practices, and Eastern mindfulness traditions. In his approach, the mind and body are interconnected. Working with disturbances to this connection can promote healing and transformation.

Self-Relations Therapy

Self-relations therapy (SRT) is based on the importance of building a compassionate relationship with oneself. The core premise is that psychological struggles often stem from an adversarial or disconnected relationship between different parts of the self. Healing involves nurturing  supportive, integrative self-talk that promotes self-acceptance and creativity.

SRT proposes that people have three levels of consciousness:

• Somatic consciousness, which is rooted in the body’s felt sense and emotional experiences.
• Cognitive consciousness, the rational and analytical aspect of the mind.
• Field consciousness, which represents relational and environmental awareness.

In Gilligan’s approach, psychological well-being depends on harmony among these levels. When they are misaligned or in conflict, individuals may experience symptoms of distress or dysfunction.

Self-compassion is important in SRT. Clients are encouraged to approach their inner world with curiosity and kindness, even when encountering painful emotions or challenging aspects of themselves. By transforming self-criticism into self-support, SRT helps individuals access their resilience and resourcefulness.

Trance states are viewed in SRT as natural states of consciousness where healing and creativity can occur. These states are used to bypass habitual patterns of thought and access deeper layers of experience, allowing clients to connect with their inner wisdom.

Generative Therapy

Generative therapy builds on the foundations of self-relations therapy. SRT focuses on self-acceptance and integration, while generative therapy focuses on creativity, flow, and the co-creation of solutions to challenges.

In generative therapy, the co-creation of the relational field between the therapist and the client is an important part of therapy. The therapist acts as a guide and sponsor, supporting the client in accessing their inner resources while maintaining a sense of partnership and collaboration.

Generative therapy is based on the concept of the generative state—a state of openness, mindfulness, and resourcefulness that allows individuals to transcend limiting patterns and access their creative potential. These states are cultivated through techniques like guided visualization, somatic awareness, and focused attention, which help clients to connect with their values and intentions.

One of the defining features of generative therapy is its focus on positive intention. Challenges, symptoms, and even negative emotions are viewed as signals of deeper needs or opportunities for growth. Therapy helps clients explore these experiences with curiosity and transform them into sources of strength and creativity.

Like SRT, generative therapy emphasizes the mind-body connection. Gilligan encourages clients to connect realizations to a felt sense in the body, that is, to anchor insights and changes in their physical experience, making transformation more tangible and sustainable.

Creative Consciousness and the Generative Self

Creative consciousness and the generative self are interconnected concepts developed by Stephen Gilligan that emphasize the role of creativity in personal transformation and well-being. Creative consciousness refers to the ability to connect with all parts within oneself and creatively interrelate with the systems around us, including communities, family, and environment. The generative self is the aspect of identity that can create new realities and possibilities. These concepts are based on the idea that consciousness is the creator of reality, operating through various filters or "minds" such as the cognitive, somatic, and field minds.

Centering 

Stephen Gilligan defines centering as the ability to be both part of and apart from an experience, allowing for vulnerability and new learning.

Creative Acceptance

Gilligan redefines acceptance as an active curiosity about what something might become if accepted.

Biography

Stephen Gilligan was born December 26, 1954. He grew up in San Francisco and lived in a strict Catholic Household where he suffered abuse. He noticed, even as a child, that what people said often didn’t match what he observed in them, which inspired him to study psychology.