Existential Therapy Values Worksheet: Defining Authentic Beliefs

This Existential Therapy Values Worksheet guides clients through a series of six core existential inquiries designed to uncover the bedrock of their personal identity. Across targeted prompts, clients are asked to reflect on their worldview regarding human existence, their definition of purpose, and their ethical standards for treating others and being treated in return. The worksheet concludes by asking the client to identify their primary concerns and their ultimate vision for how they want to live. By requiring written responses to these profound questions, the tool forces a shift from abstract feeling to structured belief, providing the “raw data” necessary for deep clinical processing and authentic goal setting.

The structured layout is designed to highlight discrepancies between a client’s current behavioral patterns and their stated values. By documenting these beliefs in a single, accessible format, the worksheet serves as a “moral compass” that clients can use to navigate complex life decisions and interpersonal conflicts with greater clinical clarity and confidence.

How This Worksheet Can Be Used

Clinical Sessions:
Therapists use the worksheet to anchor “Values Exploration” sessions. It serves as a starting point for Socratic dialogue, helping the clinician identify where a client may be experiencing “existential guilt” due to living in a way that contradicts their deeply held beliefs.

Initial Case Formulation:
This tool is highly effective during the intake or early assessment phase to understand the client’s “world-design.” It helps the clinician see the philosophical framework through which the client interprets their suffering and their potential for change.

Interpersonal Conflict Resolution:
Clients use the worksheet to clarify their relational boundaries. By defining how they “want to treat others” and “be treated,” they can use these values as a benchmark for evaluating their current relationships and communication styles.

Benefits of the Existential Therapy Considering Your Values Worksheet

• Facilitates deep reflection on the fundamental nature of human existence and personal meaning.
• Identifies core values that serve as the foundation for an “Authentic Life.”
• Distinguishes between internal truths and “introjected” societal or familial expectations.
• Provides clear guidelines for interpersonal conduct and the establishment of healthy boundaries.
• Reduces existential anxiety by providing a structured framework for defining one’s own purpose.
• Supports the “Will to Meaning” by highlighting what the client truly cares about most.

Integrating This Tool into Clinical Work

Integrating the Existential Therapy Considering Your Values Worksheet is most effective when clinicians emphasize that “there are no wrong answers.” Clinicians should guide clients to approach the prompt regarding “human existence” as an invitation to share their personal philosophy, whether it is rooted in spirituality, humanism, or pragmatism. In the sections on “Interpersonal Treatment,” the clinician can help the client link these values to specific recent interactions, asking, “How did your behavior in that moment align with this value?”. When a client identifies what they “care about most,” the therapist should explore how they can prioritize that care in their current schedule. By consistently referring back to these stated values, the clinician reinforces the idea that the client has the freedom and responsibility to build a life that feels genuinely meaningful, leading to a more stable and integrated sense of self.

References

• Frankl, V. E. (1959). Man’s Search for Meaning. Beacon Press. (The foundational text for identifying personal values and purpose).
• Yalom, I. D. (1980). Existential Psychotherapy. Basic Books. (Focusing on the importance of values in managing existential dread).
• May, R. (1981). Freedom and Destiny. Norton. (Providing context on the relationship between personal values and personal freedom).
• Bugental, J. F. T. (1987). The Art of the Psychotherapist. Norton. (Highlighting the clinician’s role in facilitating value discovery).