Michael White: theoretical references of the Narrative Practice

Abstract

Post-modernity, narrative turn, constructivist and constructionist paradigms have opened various perspectives for the psychotherapeutic intervention. This study will highlight the theoretical knowledge that reinforces the Narrative Practice produced by David Epston and Michael White, with emphasis on the contribution of Michael White, an author who plans narrative co-construction between therapist and person in therapy. The Narrative Pratice is characterized for desconstruction of the saturated story, the narrative reconstruction and self reautoring through favorite stories basing on the experience of the person in therapy. The survey objective was to recognize, integrate and organize the diverse information dispersed throughout the Narrative Practice literature. It was performed a literature review emphasizing postmodernity characterization and Michael White’s dialogue with Bruner, Bateson, Foucault, Vygotsky, and Derrida. The method used was the bibliographic survey of books, articles, dissertations, and theses. The theoretical study may favor the therapist to create contexts conducive to change, which may contribute to the psychotherapeutic process.