A counselor instructs her client to read A Guide to Rational Living by Albert Ellis and Robert Harper. This is an example of

• A. Bibliotherapy
• B. Exposure Therapy
• C. Psychodynamic Therapy
• D. Aversion Therapy

Answer: (A)

Bibliotherapy uses reading as a therapeutic tool. When a counselor assigns A Guide to Rational Living, the client engages with material designed to teach and practice coping strategies and to challenge irrational beliefs. The book, rooted in Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy, guides readers to identify distortions, dispute them, and adopt more rational interpretations, which often reduces emotional distress. As a structured reading assignment, it can augment therapy by providing examples, exercises, and a framework for homework. This approach differs from exposure therapy (directly facing feared stimuli), psychodynamic therapy (focus on unconscious processes and past experiences), and aversion therapy (pairing unwanted behavior with unpleasant stimuli).