748 Postmodern Approaches Flashcards
Social Constructionism
The client, not the therapist, is the expert
Social Constructionism
Dialogue is used to elicit perspective, resources, and unique client experiences
Social Constructionism
Questions empower clients to speak and to express their diverse positions
Social Constructionism
The therapist supplies optimism and the process
Social ConstructionismTherapy Goals
Generate new meaning in the lives of clients
Social ConstructionismTherapy Goals
Co-develop, with clients, solutions that are unique to the situation
Social ConstructionismTherapy Goals
Enhance awareness of the impact of various aspects of the dominant culture on the individual
Social ConstructionismTherapy Goals
Help people develop alternative ways of being, acting, knowing, and living
Social Constructionism: Key Concepts
Postmodernists assume there are multiple truths
Social Constructionism: Key Concepts
Reality is subjective and is based on the use of language
Social Constructionism: Key Concepts
Postmodernists strive for a collaborative and consultative stance
Social Constructionism: Key Concepts
Postmodern thought has an impact on the development of many theories
Solution-Focused Brief Therapy
Therapy grounded on a positive orientation—people are healthy and competent
Solution-Focused Brief Therapy
SFBT shares similarities with positive psychology
Solution-Focused Brief Therapy
Past is downplayed, while present and future are highlighted
Solution-Focused Brief Therapy
Therapy is concerned with looking for what is working
Solution-Focused Brief Therapy
Therapists assist clients in finding exceptions to their problems
Solution-Focused Brief Therapy
There is a shift from “problem-orientation” to “solution-focus”
Solution-Focused Brief Therapy
Emphasis is on constructing solutions rather than problem solving
Basic Assumptions of SFBT
The problem itself may not be relevant to finding effective solutions
Basic Assumptions of SFBT
People can create their own solutions
Basic Assumptions of SFBT
Small changes lead to large changes
Basic Assumptions of SFBT
The client is the expert on his or her own life
Basic Assumptions of SFBT
The best therapy involves a collaborative partnership
Basic Assumptions of SFBT
A therapist’s “not knowing” affords the client an opportunity to construct a solution
Questions in SFBT
Skillful questions allow people to utilize their resources
Questions in SFBT
Asking “how questions” that imply change can be useful
Questions in SFBT
Effective questions focus attention on solutions
Questions in SFBT
Questions can get clients to notice when things were better
Questions in SFBT
Useful questions assist people in paying attention to what they are doing and can open up possibilities for them to do something different
Types of Relationships in SFBT
Customer-type relationship: Client and therapist jointly identify a problem and a solution to work toward
Types of Relationships in SFBT
Complainant relationship: A client describes a problem, but is not able or willing to take an active role in constructing a solution
Types of Relationships in SFBT
Visitors: Clients come to therapy because someone else thinks they have a problem
Techniques Used in SFBT
Pre-therapy change: Therapists ask, “What have you done since you made the appointment that has made a difference in your problem?”
Techniques Used in SFBT
Formula first session task: Homework a therapist gives clients between their first and second sessions that offers hope that change is inevitable
Techniques Used in SFBT
Exception questions: Therapists direct clients to times in their lives when the problem did not exist
Techniques Used in SFBT
Miracle question: Therapists ask, “If a miracle happened and the problem you have was solved while you were asleep, what would be different in your life?”
Techniques Used in SFBT
Scaling questions: Therapists ask, “On a scale of zero to 10, where are you with respect to __________?”
Techniques Used in SFBT
Therapist feedback to clients: Therapists take a short break during each session to write a summary for clients
Techniques Used in SFBT
Terminating: Termination begins at the first session
Application to Group Counseling
Group is focused on solutions and the members’ ability to find solutions in their own lives
Application to Group Counseling
Leader shifts focus from the problem by providing members the opportunity to view themselves as resourceful and competent
Application to Group Counseling
Group members provide a supportive audience to observe one another being confident and competent
Application to Group Counseling
Group members can offer input and point out exceptions to problematic situations in each others’ lives
Application to Group Counseling
Questioning is used to facilitate client’s establishing goals early in the group process
Application to Group Counseling
Goals for therapy are small, realistic, and achievable
Narrative Therapy, therapists:
Listen to clients with an open mind
Narrative Therapy, therapists:
Encourage clients to share their stories
Narrative Therapy, therapists:
Listen to a problem-saturated story of a client without getting stuck
Narrative Therapy, therapists:
Demonstrate respectful curiosity and persistence
Narrative Therapy, therapists:
Believe the person is not the problem, but the problem is the problem
The Therapeutic Process in Narrative Therapy
Collaborate with the client in identifying (naming) the problem
The Therapeutic Process in Narrative Therapy
Separate the person from his or her problem
The Therapeutic Process in Narrative Therapy
Investigate how the problem has been disrupting or dominating the person
The Therapeutic Process in Narrative Therapy
Search for exceptions to the problem
The Therapeutic Process in Narrative Therapy
Ask clients to speculate about what kind of future they could expect from the competent person that is emerging
The Therapeutic Process in Narrative Therapy
Create an audience to support the new story
Functions of the Narrative Therapist
To become active facilitators
Functions of the Narrative Therapist
To demonstrate care, interest, respectful curiosity, openness, empathy, contact, and fascination
Functions of the Narrative Therapist
To believe in the client’s abilities, talents, and positive intentions
Functions of the Narrative Therapist
To adopt a not-knowing position that allows being guided by the client’s story
Functions of the Narrative Therapist
To help clients construct a preferred story line
Functions of the Narrative Therapist
To create a collaborative relationship—with the client being the senior partner
Questions in Narrative Therapy
Used to generate experience rather than to gather information
Questions in Narrative Therapy
Always asked from a position of respect, curiosity, and openness, and from a not-knowing stance
Questions in Narrative Therapy
Are used to assist clients in exploring dimensions of their life situations
Questions in Narrative Therapy
Can lead to taking apart problem-saturated stories
Externalization
is a process of separating the person from identifying with the problem
Externalizing conversations help people
To free themselves from being identified with the problem
To identify times when they have dealt successfully with the problem
Deconstruction and Creating Alternative Stories
Problem-saturated stories are deconstructed before new stories are co-created
Deconstruction and Creating Alternative Stories
The assumption is that people can continually and actively re-author their lives
Deconstruction and Creating Alternative Stories
Unique possibility questions enable clients to focus on their future
Deconstruction and Creating Alternative Stories
An appreciative audience helps new stories to take root
Application to Group Counseling
Narrative therapy has been used for group work in school settings
Application to Group Counseling
Group work provides an appreciative audience with which a client can discuss the new developments of his or her life
Application to Group Counseling
New identities can be rehearsed in the group setting
Application to Group Counseling: Wide range of uses for group-based narrative therapy in schools including:
Anger management
Application to Group Counseling: Wide range of uses for group-based narrative therapy in schools including:
Grief counseling
Application to Group Counseling: Wide range of uses for group-based narrative therapy in schools including:
Academic management
Application to Group Counseling: Wide range of uses for group-based narrative therapy in schools including:
An adventure-based program
Strengths from a Diversity Perspective
Social constructionism is congruent with the philosophy of multiculturalism
Strengths from a Diversity Perspective
Clients are encouraged to explore how their realities are being constructed out of cultural discourse and the consequences that follow from such constructions
Strengths from a Diversity Perspective
Narrative therapy is grounded in a sociocultural context
Limitations from a Diversity Perspective
Adopting a “not knowing” stance may lead clients from some cultures to lose confidence in the therapist
Limitations from a Diversity Perspective
Postmodern-oriented therapists must convey to clients that they have expertise in the therapeutic process but clients are the experts in knowing what they want in life
Contributions of the Postmodern Approaches
Due to the optimistic orientation of these approaches, clients can make significant progress in building more satisfying lives in a short time
Contributions of the Postmodern Approaches
The postmodern approaches remind us that people cannot be reduced to a specific problem
Contributions of the Postmodern Approaches
Practitioners adopt a nonpathologizing stance
Contributions of the Postmodern Approaches
A major strength of SFBT and narrative therapy is the use of questioning, the centerpiece of both approaches
Contributions of the Postmodern Approaches
Brief therapy has been shown to be effective for a wide range of clinical problems
Limitations of thePostmodern Approaches
Therapists must be skilled in implementing brief interventions
Limitations of thePostmodern Approaches
Therapists may employ techniques in a mechanistic fashion
Limitations of thePostmodern Approaches
Reliance on techniques may detract from building a therapeutic relationship
Limitations of thePostmodern Approaches
Narrative therapists must be careful to approach client’s stories without imposing a preconceived notion of the client’s experiences
Limitations of thePostmodern Approaches
For some clients, the therapist’s “not knowing stance” may compromise their confidence in the therapist as an expert
Limitations of thePostmodern Approaches
More empirical research is needed
