Basic Skills

Question 1

When is it appropriate to offer advice to a client?

Answer 1

It is typically inappropriate to offer advice to a client. The only time it is appropriate is in life threatening situations (suicide, homicide, etc)

Question 2

What are the five ways of responding to a client?

Answer 2

Advice, analysis, sympathy/reassurance, interrogation, and reflection.

Question 3

What is the issue with analysis?

Answer 3

Similar to advice, the analysis focus on the WORKER not the CLIENT. Best to stay away from the comments.

Question 4

What are the times in which analysis is appropriate?

Answer 4

Sparingly - it is appropriate to use analysis to provide a rationale for a recommendation (e.g. treatment plan ideas, intervention, etc).

Question 5

Sympathy; is it okay?

Answer 5

If the relationship does not involve you regularly revealing your personal thoughts and emotions, then sympathy probably is inappropriate.

Question 6

Reassurance; is that appropriate?

Answer 6

Depends on the worth of its guarantee. There is no value in false reassurance. Its guarantee is worthless.

Question 7

Is there such a thing as too many questions?

Answer 7

YES! Workers view those types of interactions are shallow, and clients feel as if they are unpleasant.

Question 8

Open Probes and Questions…

Answer 8

Typically start with “What”s and “Hows”. Engages client more efficiently and individuals engage in higher levels of self-disclosure, provide info that is more accurate and perceive the worker as more empathetic.

Question 9

Closed probes and questions…

Answer 9

Can be answered with a small bit of information or a simple “yes” or “no”. Only beneficial if you are looking for specific information that is sufficiently answered with yes or no.

Question 10

Leading questions…

Answer 10

Avoid these. These seek agreement rather than an actual answer.

Question 11

Multiple questions..

Answer 11

Another flawed system. This not only overwhelms the client but confuses the worker once the client responds to the questions.

Question 12

Why questions..

Answer 12

These questions can be perceived as accusations. Clients tend to respond defensively to these if they feel as if they are being attacked.

Question 13

Reflection

Answer 13

This technique uses fresh words to summarize important thoughts and feelings about what a client just expressed.

Question 14

Types of reflections

Answer 14

factual reflections; surface feeling reflections; underlying feeling reflections.

Question 15

Factual Reflections

Answer 15

Describe conditions without any reference to emotions. This allows for rapid movement through topics.

Question 16

Surface Feeling Reflections

Answer 16

Recognize obvious emotions being expressed. By matching and even exceeding intensity of emotions, encourage the client to consider issues being discussed. Difficult to go wrong with these

Question 17

Underlying feeling reflections

Answer 17

Suggests emotions that have not been explicitly stated or expressed by the client. This can be productive however if the client is not ready to discuss these feelings or they or false can be very counterproductive.

Question 18

Funnel sequences

Answer 18

Begin with a broad probe or question, continue with reflection and possibly some open interrogation, then end with closed interrogation to fill in any gaps

Question 19

Inverted funnel sequence

Answer 19

Begin with easily answered closed questions then move to broader responses such as reflection and open interrogation. Best approach for reluctant clients

Question 20

What characteristics are clients likely to want in their workers?

Answer 20

Kindness, understanding, and honesty

Question 21

What are the three interpersonal skills that help workers build relationships with their clients?

Answer 21

Empathy, Positive Regard, and Genuineness

Question 22

To convey empathy, we typically

Answer 22

reflect. A lot.

Question 23

A “warm” worker is one who..

Answer 23

is going to be non-judgmental as well as caring and respectful to the client.

Question 24

Define genuiness

Answer 24

Being honest - meaning what you say.

Question 25

Typical endeavors that are engaged in by genuine workers are..

Answer 25

not making promises one cannot keep, being natural (yet polite) with a client, and clarifying client comments when you are unsure what they have said.

Question 26

Stages of Problem Solving

Answer 26

Exploring thoughts and feelings; considering alternatives; and developing a plan

Question 27

Exploration Phase:

Answer 27

A time to let a client vent. Focus on distressing emotions as well as gathering information about the client and the problem the are conveying.

Question 28

Skilled workers during the exploration phase..

Answer 28

tries to discover issues that clients are personally motivated to address and for which they accurately perceive some responsibility. Those are the areas in which change can be facilitated.

Question 29

Considering alternatives phase

Answer 29

Goal is to consider in detail two or three promising options.

Question 30

Questions to considering during alternative phase:

Answer 30

“What have you tried?” “What have you thought about trying” “Right now as we are talking, what other possibilities have come to mind?”

Question 31

What are additional methods that can encourage a client to engage in generating problem-solving possibilities?

Answer 31

Brainstorming

Thinking of what others have done in a similar situation

Question 32

What are the four elements of a good plan?

Answer 32

1. Negotiated
2. Focused in the present
3. Specific
4. Realistic

Question 33

What are some ways to help a client think through a possible alternative?

Answer 33

Asking “what would need to be true in order for this possibility to be a good idea”
Role Playing

Question 34

When a person blames circumstances and other people for his or her problems, what do you need to encourage in the client

Answer 34

recognizing their role and ownership of the problem

Question 35

How can us as workers, make sure a plan is clear to the client?

Answer 35

Have the client describe the plan and implementation of it

Question 36

How can we help the client to make a more specific plan?

Answer 36

Encourage the client to consider the logistics of plan - the when, wheres, and hows

Question 37

What are the problems with starting an interaction by saying “How may I help you?”

Answer 37

Puts the focus on you and implies your role is to solve the problem

Question 38

If you come to believe that it is necessary to make a suggestion at what point in the problem solving process should you offer it?

Answer 38

At the end of the alternatives phase after having pulled options from the client

Question 39

When first discussing a topic, what is wrong with referring to the circumstance with a word such as “situation”, “stuff” or “this”?

Answer 39

These phrases are very vague and will not help build understanding between you and the client

Question 40

What is the disadvantage of relying on feeling terms such as “upset” “concerned” or “bothered”

Answer 40

Almost all clients are upset. This says nothing unique about the client

Question 41

When should you use qualifiers such as “kind of” “a little” or “sort of”

Answer 41

When you want to decrease the impact of your comment

Question 42

What are you implying when you say that something “makes you feel” or “must have been”?

Answer 42

imply that it is impossible to change the way the client responds to the circumstance.