Richard C. Schwartz, earned his PhD in Marriage and Family Therapy from Purdue University, and coauthored with Michael Nichols Family Therapy: Concepts and Methods, the most widely used family therapy text in the United States. Dr. Schwartz developed Internal Family Systems in response to clients' descriptions of experiencing various parts--many extreme--within themselves.

He noticed that when these parts felt safe and had their concerns addressed, they were less disruptive and would accede to the wise leadership of what Dr. Schwartz came to call the "Self." Because IFS locates the source of healing within the client, the therapist is freed to focus on guiding the client's access to their true Self. This approach makes IFS a non-pathologizing, hopeful framework within which to practice psychotherapy. It provides an alternative understanding of psychic functioning and healing that allows for innovative techniques in relieving clients' symptoms and suffering.

In 2000, Dr. Schwartz founded The Center for Self Leadership in Oak Park, Illinois, offering IFS training for professionals and the general public. He is a featured speaker for many national psychotherapy organizations and a fellow of the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy, and he serves on the editorial boards of four professional journals. He has published four books and over fifty articles about IFS, including Internal Family Systems Therapy, The Mosaic Mind (with Regina Goulding), and You Are The One You've Been Waiting For.