Helping Skills

Helping Skills Overview

  • Course Code: PY 250

Agenda

  • Overview of helping model, video presentations

  • Stages of Change

  • Practicing techniques together, either today or the next session

  • Overview of helping skills

  • Note: Not all items are in sequential order.

The Helping Model (Hill)

  • Stages:

    • Exploration

    • Insight

    • Action

  • Each stage plays a critical role in the helping process.

Exploration Stage

Goals

  • Establish rapport with the client.

  • Develop a therapeutic relationship.

  • Encourage the client to share their story.

  • Explore thoughts and feelings of the client.

  • Facilitate the arousal of emotions.

  • Gain comprehensive knowledge about the client.

  • Importance of allowing the client to explore independently, rather than guiding them.

Skills

  • Nonverbal Behaviors: Body language, eye contact, etc.

  • Minimal Verbal Behaviors: Encouragement with low verbal input.

  • Restatements: Rephrasing what the client has said for clarity.

  • Open Questions/Probes for thoughts and feelings: Both types of questions help deepen the exploration.

Insight Stage

Goals

  • Help the client gain self-awareness regarding their thoughts and feelings.

  • Foster insight into the roots of their problems.

Skills

  • Challenge the client towards self-awareness.

  • Facilitate the process of insight through:

    • Open questions

    • Interpretation of client actions and feelings

    • Disclosure of insights enabling relationship dynamics to shift.

    • Employ immediacy when beneficial.

Key Characteristics

  • Clients often struggle to see the interconnectedness of their experiences.

  • The role of the therapist is to introduce new perspectives and insights.

  • The therapist acts as an external observer, capable of seeing patterns the client may not.

  • The relationship itself can be a catalyst for self-discovery.

Recognizing Readiness for Insight

  • Example: Roger and Mark have discussed feelings of depression in retirement contextualized with changes at home.

  • Trust has been established, fostering a conducive environment for insight exploration.

Considerations During Insight Phase

  • Assess for contradictions in a client's feelings or thoughts.

  • Explore barriers preventing change.

  • Reflect on personal emotions within the therapeutic relationship.

  • Questions to consider may include:

    • "What might be causing the client’s current behavior?"

    • "What keeps the client from changing at this moment?"

Example Dialogue for Insight

  • Roger (helper): Engages Mark in exploring connections between his emotions and current relationships.

  • Mark (client): Reflects on a connection between his feelings of depression and dynamics with his husband.

  • Roger: Provokes deeper reflection, demonstrating probing techniques for insight.

Interpretation in Insight

  • Involves sharing educated guesses about underlying issues the client hasn't explicitly recognized.

  • Examples:

    • Making connections between seemingly isolated events.

    • Identifying themes and patterns in client behavior and interpreting them.

    • Challenging longstanding beliefs derived from past experiences.

Action Stage

Goals

  • Collaborate with the client to identify and implement changes.

  • Questions to consider include:

    • What change is desired?

    • What is the significance of this change?

    • Pros and cons of the change and needed resources.

Skills

  • Open questions tailored for action planning.

  • Provide informed advice and disclose strategies as appropriate.

Overview of Stages

  • Exploration: Establishes the groundwork for insight.

  • Insight: Clarifies understanding of issues and evaluates change necessity.

  • Action: Offers support in applying changes and measuring their outcomes.

Key Points on Change

  • Change comes from feeling empowered and hopeful about insights gained.

  • Trust and engagement from exploration facilitate the shift towards actionable change.

  • Progress is often non-linear, with clients moving back and forth through stages.

Effective Helping/Therapy Attitudes

  • Empathy: Establishing a psychological connection with the client.

  • Compassion: An intrinsic desire to promote client wellbeing.

  • Collaboration: Recognizing the reciprocity in the helping relationship.

Quotes on Empathy

  • "Empathy is seeing with the eyes of another..." — Alfred Adler

  • "To my mind, empathy is in itself a healing agent..." — Carl Rogers

The Power of Empathy

  • Develops genuine care and acceptance of the client.

  • Anticipating client reactions aids in communication and understanding.

  • Sensitively reflecting back facilitates a safe space for clients to express themselves.

Inviting Clients to Share

  • Understand that clients may hesitate to be open due to fears.

  • Create a supportive environment that encourages disclosure and validate their feelings of vulnerability.

  • Maintaining respect and care for the therapeutic relationship is crucial.

The Stages of Change Model (Transtheoretical)

  • Stages:

    • Precontemplation

    • Contemplation

    • Preparation

    • Action

    • Maintenance

Understanding the 5 Stages

  • Precontemplation: Unawareness of the issues.

  • Contemplation: Recognizing the issues and considering options.

  • Preparation: Identifying steps toward change.

  • Action: Actively making changes.

  • Maintenance: Sustaining changes and preventing relapse.

Applying the Stages

  • Individuals can cycle through these stages multiple times.

  • Counseling strategies should align with the client’s present stage.

Transference

  • The client's redirection of feelings toward the therapist based on past experiences.

  • Examples: Viewing therapist as a parental figure, experiencing intense emotions.

  • Important for recognizing relational dynamics.

Countertransference

  • The therapist's emotional reactions influenced by their own past.

  • Must be managed carefully to maintain professional boundaries.

  • Regular reflection and supervision are vital for effective practice.

Looking Ahead

  • Future sessions will dive deeper into specific helping skills and practice them.

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