The task of the clinical psychologist is to use their clinical skills to combine these two
aspects, psychological theory/principles/evidence on the one hand, and personal
thoughts, feelings and meanings on the other, through ‘a process of ongoing collaborative
sense-making’ (Harper & Moss, 2003, p.8) in order to develop a shared account that
indicates the most helpful way forward.
It should be acknowledged that all human beings are meaning-makers who create
narratives about their lives and difficulties. Formulations differ from this kind of
explanation by being strongly rooted in psychological theory and evidence. Given the
widespread dissemination of psychological ideas in the media, self-help books and so on,
this is a relative rather than an absolute distinction