here and now
the immediate situation. In psychotherapy, it comprises the cognitive, affective, and behavioral material arising at any given point in a session, as well as the relationship between the therapist and client at the corresponding point in time. When the here-and-now approach is used in psychotherapy, the emphasis is placed on understanding present feelings and interpersonal reactions as they occur in an ongoing treatment session, with little or no emphasis on or exploration of past experience or underlying reasons for the client’s thoughts, emotions, or behavior. The approach is often used in psychodynamic psychotherapy with regard to the therapeutic relationship, gestalt therapy, and many forms of family therapy to heighten client awareness.