COUNSELLING- COUNSELLING PROCESS-HITHA

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COUNSELLING PROCESS AND METHODS

• ATHIRA SREEKUMAR
• I MSc CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGY

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COUNSELING

• DEFINITION
• Rogers (1952)
• The process by which the structure
  of the self is relaxed in the safety of the
  clients relationship with the therapist and
  previously denied experiences are perceived and
  then integrated into an altered self.
• Patterson (1959)
• The process involving
  interpersonal relationships between a therapist
  and one or more clients by which the former
  employs

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• psychological methods based on systematic
  knowledge of the human personality in attempting
  to improve the mental health of the latter.

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COUNSELING AS HYGIOLOGY

• Hygiology is the study of the problems of normal
  people and the prevention of the incidence of
  serious emotional difficulties.
• Counseling could be more appropriately concerned
  with hygiology than with psycho-pathology of
  behavior.

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COUNSELING PROCESS
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ESTABLISHING A RELATIONSHIP

• Rapport refers to the psychological climate that
  emerges from the interpersonal contact between
  counselor and client.
• Rapport will be affected by a number of factors
  including the counselors personal and
  professional qualities and the clients
  interpersonal history and anxiety state.
• First impressions plays an important role in
  building rapport state.
• Transference occurs when the client associates
  certain fictional qualities with the mother.

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• Transference can be either positive (favorable
  comparison) or negative (unfavorable comparison).
• The relationship is a evolving and mature
  process.
• The skillful counselor develop a self congruent
  style for meeting the clients.
• Counselor should have adequate social skills.
• Attending or active listening is crucial.
• The relationship is not established in a single
  contact.
• Reflection is crucial.

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ASSESSING THE PROBLEM

• It involves the collection and classification of
  information related to the clients reason for
  seeking help.
• Actually problem definition process.
• Assessment can be in 2 ways
• 1. Depends on the counselors
  theoretical and philosophical view of human
  problems.
• 2. Depends on the conditions
  present in the clients situation and the
  counselors understanding of those conditions.

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• Clients problems may be conceptualized as
• Needs
• Stressors
• Misinterpretations
• Maladaptive interpersonal patterns
• Combination of all these
• Corsiniin 1984 classified all above as
  affective behavioral or cognitive in origin.
• While assessing the problem the constraints of
  personal bias or theoretical blind spots must be
  avoided.

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In short
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GOAL SETTING

• The act of setting goal involves making a
  commitment to a set of conditions a course of
  action or an outcome.
• The goal has to be set in order to encertain the
  progress of sessions.
• Skills in goal setting
• Counselors inferential skills.
• Differentiation between ultimategoalsintermediate
  goals and immediate goals.
• Teaching clients to think realistically in
  intermediate and immediate goals.
• Goals an be changed through sessions.

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INTIATING INTERVENTIONS

• The whole object of counseling is to initiate and
  facilitate desirable change.
• Skills
• Competency
• Knowledge of appropriate uses
• Knowledge of typical responses
• Observational skills

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TERMINATION FOLLOW UP

• The ultimate criterion is the successful
  termination of client.
• There will be tendency to set new goals create
  new activity and continue the process.
• Termination by degree.
• Denial as a part of recovery process.
• In order to ensure the secure feeling a follow
  up appointment of 6 weeks3 months or even 6
  months can be offered.

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COUNSELLING METHODS

• DIRECTIVE METHODS
• NON-DIRECTIVE METHODS
• ECLECTIC COUNSELING

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DIRECTIVE METHODS

• In this method the therapist has major role and
  the client acts accord to the instructions to the
  therapist.
• Eg. Psychoanalytic techniques behavioral
  therapies cognitive therapy etc.
• Also known as prescriptive or counselor-centered
  counseling.
• Leading exponents are Sigmund Freud E G
  WilliamsonWatsonetc

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ASSUMPTIONS OF DIRECTIVE METHOD

• It is problem-centered and not paid-centered.
• According to the leading proponent
  of this school of thought E G Williamson
  following are assumptions.
• Focus on the problem of counselee.
• The counselor plays the active role than the
  client.
• In this method counseling is an intellectual
  process rather than emotional process.

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STEPS OF DIRECTIVE METHOD

• According to E G Williamson the
  steps are
• Analysis
• Synthesis
• Diagnosis
• Prognosis
• Treatment of counseling includes
• .Establishing rapport with the
  student
• .Interpreting the collected data to
  the student
• .Advising or planning a program of
  action
• with the client.
• .Assisting the client to carry out
  the plan.
• .Referring to counselors in order
  to diagnose.
• Follow-up

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ADVANTAGES OF DIRECTIVE METHOD

• Counseling is economical in time.
• It is problem centered. so the therapist will be
  more objective.
• Emphasis on intellectual intervention.
• Direct persuasive and explanatory techniques
  will be used.

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LIMITATINS OF DIRECTIVE COUNSELING

• Client does not gets an opportunity to self
  analyze and will not be capable in solving new
  problems of adjustment.
• It makes the client over dependent and it kills
  his initiative.
• Directive method is not suitable in solving
  problems regarding emotional maladjustment.
• Lack of information regarding counseling leads to
  ineffectiveness to the counseling.
• This method does not guarantee that the counselee
  will not make any mistakes in future.

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NON-DIRECTIVE METHODS

• In this method much importance is given to the
  client. It acts as the main advantage of the
  non-directive method of counseling.
• Eg. Humanistic approach (client centered or
  person centered therapy)
• It is also called as permissive counseling or
  client centered counseling.
• Chief exponent is Carl Roger.

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ASSUMPTIONS OF NON DIRECTIVE COUNSELLING

• More emphasis on client.
• Emotional aspects are more important than the
  intellectual ones.
• Creation of an atmosphere where the client can
  work out and elaborating his understanding.
• Clients voluntary choice of goals and conscious
  selection of course of action is possible.

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STEPS IN CLIENT CENTERED THERAPY

• Carl Roger suggested the following
  steps
• Help is sought and not given.
• The counselor defines the situation and creates
  congenital atmosphere.
• The attitude of the therapist is of
  sympathyfriendshipand affection. He shows
  interest and encourages free expression of
  feeling.
• The therapist accepts and recognizes the positive
  as well as negative feelings.

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• The therapist leads the client from negative
  feelings to positive self-feelings from emotional
  release to gradual insight.
• Helps to translate the insights into action.
• Positive steps are taken.
• Gradually a decreased need for help is felt and
  the client is the one who decides to end the
  contact.

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ADVANTAGES

• Slow but sure process to make the individual
  capable of making the adjustment.
• No tests are used and the laborious side is
  deleted.
• Removes the emotional block and helps the
  individual to bring the repressed thoughts on
  conscious level thereby reducing the tension.

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LIMITATIONS

• A time consuming process.
• Immaturity of the client will definitely question
  the quality of decision.
• The therapists passive attitude may irritate the
  client.

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DIRECTIVE VS. NON DIRECTIVE METHOD
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ECLECTIC COUNSELING

• It is the synthesis and combination of directive
  and non-directive counseling.
• Here the counselor will not be too active or too
  passive.
• Just follows the middle path between directive
  method and non directive method.
• Method of counseling decided on the basis of the
  personality and needs of the counselee.

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ASSUMPTIONS

• Passive methods should be used whenever possible.
• Active methods may used with specific indication.
• Enables the client to tell the story in order to
  get emotional release.
• Until simpler methods have failed complicated
  methods cannot be attempted.
• All counseling should be client centered.
• When the client is unable to make a decision
  then only active methods should be executed.

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STEPS

• Diagnose of the cause.
• Analysis of the problem.
• Preparation of a tentative plan for modifying
  factors.
• Securing effective conditions of counseling.
• Interviewing and stimulating the client to
  develop his own resources and to assume its
  responsibility for trying new modes of
  adjustment.
• Proper handling of any related problems which may
  contribute to adjustment.

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LIMITATIONS

• Not easily possible only proper merging gives
  effective results.
• It is vaguesuperfical and opportunistic.

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STRATEGIES FOR HELPING CLIENTS

• Matural interventions
• Written facilitation of free association
• Reflection of the unconscious
• Supportive intervention
• Supportive comments
• Supportive confrontation
• Devaluing the clients maladjusted resolution of
  conflicts by showing its excessive cost.

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CHARACTERSTICS OF AN EFFECTIVE COUNSELING
RELATIONSHIP

• Attentiveness Empathy
• Genuineness it involves
• 1. Congruence
• 2. Spontaneity Assertiveness
• Unconditional positive regard

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THANK YOU