Core Counseling Attributes and Skills

Flashcards covering core counseling attributes, Rogers' and Yalom's theories, LGBTQ+ terminology, the RESPECTFUL model, and basic counseling skills like empathy and attending.

The ability to be authentic in the helping relationship, behaving as one feels as opposed to playing a role, and being real as opposed to artificial.

Genuineness (Congruence)

The ability to help clients clarify vague issues, focus on specific topics, and identify distortions to view situations in a more realistic fashion.

Concreteness

A counseling attribute encompassing "here-and-now" statements used to point out a dynamic between the therapist and the client.

Immediacy

Congruence, unconditional positive regard (UPR), and accurate empathic understanding.

Rogers' Three Core Attributes

The therapist's deep and genuine caring for the client, accepting them as they are without necessarily approving of all their actions.

Unconditional Positive Regard (UPR)

The therapist's ability to understand sensitively and accurately the client's experience and feelings in the here-and-now without becoming lost in them.

Accurate Empathic Understanding

When a person decides to reveal an important part of who they are, such as their sexual orientation or gender identity, with someone in their life.

Coming Out

A person’s biological status typically categorized as male, female, or intersex based on chromosomes, gonads, and genitalia.

Sex

A person’s romantic, emotional, and/or sexual attraction to other people, such as identifying as gay, lesbian, bisexual, or pansexual.

Sexual Orientation

A person who has the capacity for emotional, romantic, and/or physical attraction to more than one gender.

Bisexual

A person who is attracted to people regardless of their gender identity.

Pansexual

A person who does not experience sexual attraction but may experience other forms of attraction, such as intellectual or emotional.

Asexual

How an individual identifies based on their internal understanding of their gender, such as male, female, agender, or transgender.

Gender Identity

Refers to a person whose gender identity is aligned with the sex they were assigned at birth.

Cisgender

A term for a person whose gender identity is neither male nor female, is between or beyond genders, or is a combination.

Genderqueer

A continuum or spectrum of gender identities and expressions that is outside of the binary categories of man and woman.

Non-binary

The label (male, female, or intersex) the medical community gives a person at birth based on external genitalia.

Sex Assigned at Birth

Refers to a person whose gender identity is not aligned with the sex they were assigned at birth.

Transgender

An umbrella term for sexual orientation or gender identity for individuals who do not conform to dominant societal norms.

Queer

The ability to stay balanced and focused in conflict situations by managing and relieving stress in the moment.

Quick Stress Relief

The consciousness of one’s moment-to-moment emotional experience and the ability to manage all feelings appropriately.

Emotional Awareness

A level of empathic attunement where the therapist notices the client's affect, vicariously feels the emotion, and communicates a response.

Affective Attunement

A level of empathic attunement where the therapist attempts to understand the client's perspective, thinking, and meanings.

Cognitive Attunement

A level of empathic attunement where the therapist attends to a client's "Child's" needs, particularly in regressed states.

Developmental Attunement

A level of empathic attunement where the therapist responds to the client’s habitual way of being, such as matching a slow thinking pace.

Rhythmic Attunement

A stage characterized by orientation, hesitant participation, search for meaning, dependency, and members sizing up the group.

Yalom's Initial Stage of Group Dynamics

A stage characterized by conflict, dominance, and rebellion as members attempt to establish initiative and power.

Yalom's Second Stage of Group Dynamics

A stage characterized by the development of cohesiveness, balance, resonance, safety, and concerns about intimacy.

Yalom's Third Stage of Group Dynamics

A ten-factor model for multicultural counseling: Religious-Spiritual Identity, Economic Class, Sexual Identity, Psychological Maturity, Ethnic-Cultural-Racial Identity, Chronological Challenges, Trauma, Family History, Unique Physical Characteristics, and Location/Language.

The RESPECTFUL Model

Racism apparent in statistics and institutional practices, such as police profiling or disparities in the justice system, rather than just individual bias.

Systemic Racism

Discrimination against people with disabilities, involving giving those without disabilities greater access and opportunities.

Ableism

Orienting oneself physically to indicate the client has one's full, undivided attention, using eye contact, nods, and mirroring.

Attending

Selective focusing on the cognitive part of a message and communicating key ideas back in a rephrased, shortened form.

Paraphrasing

A brief question like "It sounds like…" or "Let me see if I understand" that allows the client to verify the accuracy of a paraphrase.

Perception Check

A statement that goes beyond what the client has said to provide new meaning or explanation for behaviors and patterns.

Interpretation

Focusing on facts or events to summarize what happened without interpreting or labeling emotion.

Reflection of Content

Capturing the significance of an event to the client's self-concept, values, or deeper worldview.

Reflection of Meaning