Lecture 2

Question 1

6 basic counselling skills

Answer 1

Attending
Listening
Use of questions
Summarising
Empathy
Challenging

Question 2

The 5 key ingredients of therpy

Answer 2

Create a safe enviroment (boundaries, frame)
Develop therapeutic alliance
Client needs to be open and motivated to engage in therapy and make change
Explore and set goals collaboratively with client considering client’s characteristics
Be aware of your internal process and feelings as therapist towards the client

Question 3

What is attending?

Answer 3

Not “just be there” physically with the client
BUT “being present” mentally, pschologically and physically

Question 4

Questions regarding attending

Answer 4

“To what degree does my verbal/non-verbal behaior indicate a willingness to work with the client?”
“What attitudes am I expressing in my verbal/non-verbal behavior?”
“In what ways am I distracted from giving my full attention to this client?”

Question 5

What is active listening?

Answer 5

It is a proess which reflects back o the speaker the feelings they are expressing. The listener does not evaluate or judge the feelings but simply acts as a verbal mirror to check with the speaker that they understood accurately

Question 6

What do we listen and how?

Answer 6

Welisten with ears, eyes and mind! We listen not onl client’s content but also his context and his body

Question 7

What is the value of active listening?

Answer 7

It helps the client express their feelings and terefore helps them to deal with them.
It helps the client accept their feelings, including negative ones (bcs the listener is accepting them) - the msg is that feelings are okay!
It helps the client to accept and solve his probs and to begin to take responsibility.
It promotes trust between the therapist and the client bcs of the understanding between them.
The client becomes more willing to lsiten to the other pson if they feel understood.
The client retains responsibility for the problem and is encouraged towards greater independence.

Question 8

What are the 4 things involved in complete listening?

Answer 8

Observing and reading the client’s non-verbal behavior (posture, facial expressions, movement, tone of voice etc)
Listening to and understanding client’s verbal msgs
Listening to he whole person in the context of the social setting of their life
Tough-minded listening

Question 9

What is tough-minded lisetning?

Answer 9

The therapist gets into “client’s shoes” so he can really understands client’s context

Question 10

What are the obstacles to listening and understanding?

Answer 10

Inadequate listening
Evaluative listening
Filtered listening
Fact-centered rather than person centered listening
REhearsing

Question 11

What is inadequate listening?

Answer 11

Becoming preoccupied with oneself and one’s probs/needs

Question 12

What is evaluaive listening?

Answer 12

Judginf what the client is saying in terms of good/bad, right/wrong, acceptable/unacceptable

Question 13

What is filtered listening?

Answer 13

Impossible to listen in a completely unbiased way. Through socialization we develop a variety of filers through which we listen to ourselves, others and the world around us

Question 14

What is fact centered listening (rather than person centered)?

Answer 14

It is possile to collect facts but miss the person

Question 15

What is rehearsing?

Answer 15

When inexperienced helpers ask themselves “How am I to respond to what the client is saying?” They stop listening

Question 16

What is included in the active listening checklist?

Answer 16

You must want to hear what the other person is saying
You must have the time and energy to listen - congruence and authenticity
You must be able to accept the client’s feelings
You need to trust the client’s ability to handle their own feelings and probs

Question 17

Why do we use questions?

Answer 17

To aid understanding
To elicit info
Prob solving
To show interest
To fill in gaps
To allow session flow

Question 18

What is the use of Open Questions?

Answer 18

Seek clarification
Encourage exploration and elaboration
Establish client understanding
Establsh therapist understanding

Question 19

Which are the close questions?

Answer 19

Where?
What?
How?
Who?
Why?
When?

Question 20

What kind of open questions can we use for further elaboration and exploration?

Answer 20

“Could you please tell me a bit more about that?”
“Is there anything else?”
“Could you clarify?”

Question 21

What kind of open questions can we use for the client to be more specific?

Answer 21

“When you say he upsets you, what do you mean?”
“What exactly is it you don’t like about this?”

Question 22

What kind of open questions can we use for focusing/priotitising?

Answer 22

“How do you feel about that?”
“Which of these difficulties would you like to focus on first?”

Question 23

What are some things we should consider about timing?

Answer 23

Poor timing may interrupt a person when they are thinking, exploring something for themselves or expressing ther feelings

Question 24

What are some things we should consider about “why” questions?

Answer 24

They search for causes and reasons.
HOWEVER, they may be experienced judgmentally and invite intellectualisation.
Use minimal and cautiously.

Question 25

What are some things we should consider about closed questions?

Answer 25

They limit the answer to yes/no/don’t know

Question 26

What are some things we should consider about leading questions?

Answer 26

They put the answer into the other person’s mouth

Question 27

What are some of the alternatives to questions?

Answer 27

Observing the non-verbal cues
Use of “I” statements
An invitation to answer a question

Question 28

Instead of questions, we can observe the non-verbal cues. What do we mean by that?

Answer 28

Draw upon empathic understanding of what lies behind the client’s tone of voice or choice of words
e.g. Instead of “What’s upseting you?”
Use “You appear/seem to be upset.”

Question 29

Instead of questions, we can use “I” statements. What does this mean?

Answer 29

The therapist uses a modified form of self-disclosure in order to draw the client into explaining more about a situation
e.g. Instead of “Why didn’t you get angry with him”
Use “I wondered about anger as you old me that.”

Question 30

Instead of question, we can use an invitation to answer a question. What does this mean?

Answer 30

It is generally less threatening than asking even more questions.
e.g. Instead of “What about your father?”
Use “,,perhaps, you could tell me about..?”

Question 31

Why summarising is important?

Answer 31

It can be used to help clients explore their probs in a more focused way
It is a bridging response, linking and drawing together what the client has been talking about

Question 32

The 4 main goals of summarising

Answer 32

Warming up the client
Client feels to be listened and understood
Focusing scattered thoughts and feelings
Prompting the client to explore the theme more thoroughly

Question 33

What is important to do when summarising?

Answer 33

To use skills of reflecting back and not introduce your own words which may be seen as judgmental!
It should include positive feedback ofthe client’s resources (which client is aware of) to deal with any probs as well as the client’s negative self image. This helps the client develop a newframe of reference

Question 34

What is advanced empathy based on Rogers, 1980?

Answer 34

“It involves sensing meanings which the client is scarcely aware or the story behind the words”

Question 35

What do we mean by “making the implied explicit” in advanced empathy?

Answer 35

Helping clients give fuller expression to what they are implying

Question 36

What is an example of advanced empathy when “making the implied explicit”?

Answer 36

“You have been talking about how upset you are about this situation. I know you haven’t said this but perhaps you are also angry to find this happening to you again?”

Question 37

What do we mean by “helping clarify themes” in advanced empathy?

Answer 37

Thematic material may refer to feelings, such as themes of hurt, of depression, of anxiety

Question 38

What is an example of advanced empathy when “helping clarify themes”?

Answer 38

“You have mentioned in several ways that you are left feeling hurt by how people treat you”
(making explicit the theme of feeling hurt)

Question 39

What do we mean by “helping clients make connections” in advanced empathy?

Answer 39

Linking two areas the client has mentioned, followed by a question inviting them to explore this link

Question 40

What is an example of advanced empathy when “helping clients make connections”?

Answer 40

“You talk about how you are lacking in motivation at present. You also seem to have a lot of things happening, such as the upcoming events, getting married and your sick sister. I wonder if there is any connection between these things?”

Question 41

WHat do we mean by “helping clients to see what they may be over looking” in advanced empathy?

Answer 41

Basic empathy followed by you hunch as to what client is not seeing

Question 42

What is an example of advanced empathy when “helping clients see what they may be over looking”

Answer 42

“You say you have a goof sense of humor, but I wonder if some people take your humor personally and see it as sarcasm?”

Question 43

What do we mean by “helping client own their own experiences” in advanced empathy?

Answer 43

Basic empathy followed by your own sense as to what the client is really trying to say

Question 44

What is an example of advanced empathy when “helping clients own their own experiences”

Answer 44

“You say people should not rock the boat, but I wonder if you mean you should not speak out”

Question 45

What is challenging?

Answer 45

To question, dispute, stimulate

Question 46

What are the 5 goals of challenging?

Answer 46

Challenging clients to participate fully in the helping process
Helping clients become aware of their blind spots in thinking and acting and helping them develop new perspectives
Challenging clients to owwn their probs an unused potential
Inviting clients to explore the short and long term consequences of their behaviour
Helping clients move beyond discussion to action

Question 47

What are the skills of challenging?

Answer 47

Summarising
Information sharing
Advanced empathy
Therapist self-disclosure

Question 48

How can we use summarsing as a skill of challenging?

Answer 48

SUmmarising or inviting clients to summarise challenges to see central issues more clearly and to move toward action

Question 49

How can we use Information Sharing as a skill of challenging?

Answer 49

Giving clients needed information or helping them search for it helps them see problem situatns in a new light and provides a basis for action

Question 50

How can we use advanced empathy as a skill of challenging?

Answer 50

Sharing your impression with clients about their experiences

Question 51

How can we use a therapist self-disclosure as a skill for challenge?

Answer 51

Sharing your own exerience with clients as a way of modelling non-defensive self-disclosure

Question 52

What are the principles of effective challenging?

Answer 52

Keep the goals of challenging in mind
Invite clients to challenge themselves
Be open to challenge yourself
Earn the right to challenge the client
Being tactful and tentative without being apologetic
Challenging clients’ strenghts rather their weaknesses
Not asking client to do too much to quickly
Inviting clients to clarify and act on their own values NOT yours!