Narrative Therapies Flashcards
Narrative Therapy
was developed by Michael White and David Epston in the 1970’s and 1980’s. Narrative therapy focuses on helping the client reauthor or retell their story which is believed to help the client externalize their problems. The externalization process is believed to help the client identify and renegotiate their relationship with the problem which has led to the quote, “the person is not the problem, the problem is the problem.”
Human Nature
A. Both SFBT and Narrative hold the social constructivist influenced view that the client has within themselves, the ability, resources, tools, and skills to solve their own problems. Overall, they hold a positive view of human nature in which individuals can make choices to improve their lives.
B. Both approaches focus on a non-pathologizing approach in their work with clients. The focus is not on the problem, the history of the problem, or what others think of the problem. The focus is on the client’s experience with the problem, and how they would like that relationship to be different.
C. The counselor is expected to accept and be in the client’s worldview, without critique or evaluation, which is often referred to as “acting as if”. This allows the client to experience being heard which will help the client identify either:
1. What is working (SFBT)
2. Their story (Narrative)
Foundation
operates from the belief that the client’s experience is subjective and culturally infused. Narrative therapy is language-based, as clients develop their vocabulary based on the role of the environment and/or culture in which they grew up. For an example, think about what you notice about regional dialects and someone from the East coast of the US versus someone from the Midwest or South. There are unique influences on dialects alone, so consider the greater influence culture has on a client’s story.
Interventions
- Narrative therapy relies on the client TELLING THEIR STORY which allows for externalization or separation from the problem, which leads to opportunities for change within that relationship.
a. Narrative therapy states that clients experience problems when the story of their lives do not represent their hopes, beliefs, expectations, and desires.
b. The telling of their story is designed to help begin the integration of “what is” with “what the client wants”. - Narrative therapists focus on being skilled in asking QUESTIONS to the client in a consultative role, encouraging the client to become the primary author of their life story.
a. The questions center on helping to illuminate client views, preferences, desires, hopes, dreams, and purposes (Morgan, 2002) - Narrative therapists also reflect their feelings or observations in relation to experiencing the client’s story or participating in the shared therapeutic conversation.
a. This practice is known as TAKING-IT-BACK.
Social-Constructivist View
questions the era in which it developed
Truth
Individual’s interpretive stories are treated by the therapist as truth
Focus
- collaborative approach; special interest in listening respectfully to clients’ stories
- recognize when clients were resourceful
- use questions to facilitate exploration
- avoid diagnosis or labeling
- map influence a problem hs on client’s life
- assist client in separating themselves from dominant stories they have internalized so that space can be opend for alternative stores
role of stories
- problems manufactured in social, cultural, political contexts.
- we live lives according to stories we tell about ourselves and others
- stories shape reality
- change occurs by exploring how language is used to create and maintain problems
listening w/ open mind
- affirming and valuing. no judgment or blame
- deconstructcs normalizing judgment
- avoid totalizing language
- separate person from problem (double listening)
- language shapes reality
therapeutic process
- collaborate to find mutually acceptable name for problem
- personify problem and attribute oppressive intentions and tactics to it
- investigate how problem has been disruptive, dominating, or discouraging
- invite client to see story from diff perspective by inquiring into alternative meanings for events
- discover moments when client wasn’t dominated or discouraged by problem by searching for exceptions to the problem
- find historical evidence to bolster a new view of client as competent enough to have stood up to, defeated, or escaped from problem’s dominance
- ask client to imagine what kind of future they could have w/ strong, competent person who is emerging
- find or create audience for perceiving and supporting new story
Winslade & Monk: steps of narrative convo
-move problem stories toward externalized description of problems
-map effects of problem on individual
-invite individual to evaluate problem and effects
-listen to signs of strength and competence
build new story of competence; document achievements
goals
-invite client to describe experience in new and fresh language; opening new posibilities and meanings. foster awareness
therapist function
- active facilitator
- not-knowing position
- main task to help clients construct preferred story
- separate problem from person
- client is expert
therapeutic relationship
-collaborative
technique: questions… and more questions
- questions seek to empower
- questions generate experience
- aim of questions is to discover or construct experience towards a sense of preferred direction
