Key Terms

Question 1

advocacy

Answer 1

a role consultants take on when they believe a certain course of action should be taken.

Question 2

advocacy consultation

Answer 2

an expansion of the role of advocacy to a method of consultation entirely devoted to furthering some course of action.

Question 3

behavioral consultation

Answer 3

one of the three major types of consultation; it attempts to assist consultees and their client systems through a systematic, problem-solving approach based on
behavioral technology.

Question 4

client

Answer 4

in some approaches to mental health and behavioral consultation, the person with whom the consultee is having a work-related or caretaking-related problem; in this instance, the client constitutes the client system (see below). One of the goals of consultation is to improve the functioning of the client.

Question 5

client system

Answer 5

the person, group, organization, or community with whom the consultee is having a workrelated or caretaking-related problem. One of the goals of consultation is to improve the functioning of the client system.

Question 6

collaboration

Answer 6

a service provided by a professional in which there is a shared responsibility for the outcome of the problem-solving process, including participation in interventions. Collaboration often occurs in teams of professionals and stakeholders working toward the same ends. Collaboration is characterized by mutual, reciprocal consultation among the parties involved.

Question 7

collaborative consultation

Answer 7

the method of relating most consultants use when working with their consultees; it allows both parties to pool their strengths and resources in their efforts (however, the consultee typically carries out the plan developed in consultation). Any model of consultation can be implemented collaboratively.

Question 8

complementarity

Answer 8

the idea that both the consultant and the consultee each bring unique competencies to the consultation process that supplement each other.

Question 9

consultant

Answer 9

a person, typically a human service professional, who delivers direct service to another person (consultee) who has a work-related or caretaking-related problem with a person, group, organization, or community (client system).

Question 10

consultation

Answer 10

a type of helping relationship in which a human service professional (consultant) delivers assistance to another person (consultee) so as to solve a workrelated or caretaking-related problem the consultee has with a client system.

Question 11

consultee

Answer 11

the person, often a human service professional or a caretaker (e.g., a parent, teacher, or supervisor), to whom the consultant provides assistance with a work-related or caretaking-related problem. One of the goals of consultation is to improve the current and future functioning of the consultee.

Question 12

cross-cultural consultation

Answer 12

consultation in which the relationship consists of parties who are culturally different from one another.

Question 13

cultural competence

Answer 13

a set of knowledge, skills and attitudes in people and organizations that enable people and organizations to work effectively in cross-cultural contexts.

Question 14

diagnosis

Answer 14

the second of the four stages of the consultation process. In this stage, the problem to be solved in consultation is defined. Thus, in its simplest form, diagnosis is the equivalent of problem identification. In its more complex form, it is an ongoing process in which the target problem is continually redefined and worked on by gathering, analyzing, interpreting, and discussing data.

Question 15

direct service

Answer 15

the assistance a consultant provides a consultee or that a consultee provides a client system. When consultants work with consultees they are providing direct service to them. When consultees work with client systems, they provide direct service to them. This term is frequently contrasted with indirect service.

Question 16

disengagement

Answer 16

the last of the four stages in the consultation process; it involves the winding down of consultation, including evaluation of the consultation, postconsultation planning, reduced contact, follow-up, and termination.

Question 17

diversity

Answer 17

differences among groups based on characteristics such as race, gender, ethnicity.

Question 18

entry

Answer 18

the first of the four stages of the consultation process; it involves exploring the presenting problem, formulating a contract, and physically and psychologically entering the system in which consultation is to occur.

Question 19

external consultant

Answer 19

a consultant not permanently employed in the organization in which consultation is to occur.

Question 20

generic model of consultation

Answer 20

a model of consultation that contains those characteristics common to the various types of consultation and the approaches to these types. It is what distinguishes consultation as a unique helping relationship.

Question 21

human service organization

Answer 21

a broad term describing an organization that provides some form of contact with clients and aims to improve the well-being of those clients and, therefore, of society. Counseling centers, mental health centers, Head Start programs, homes for the mentally retarded, and social services departments are all examples of human service agencies.

Question 22

implementation

Answer 22

the third of the four stages of the consultation process; it is the stage in which action is taken on the problem. It begins with formulating and choosing a problem-solving plan and includes implementing and evaluating that plan.

Question 23

indirect service

Answer 23

the type of service provided to the client system by the consultant. The consultant affects the well-being of the client system by helping the consultee help the client system more effectively. It is one of the characteristics of consultation that differentiates it from other helping relationships.

Question 24

internal consultant

Answer 24

a consultant who is employed in the organization in which consultation is to occur.

Question 25

mental health consultation

Answer 25

one of the three major types of consultation; it attempts to focus on the psychological well-being of all the parties involved in consultation. Its ultimate goal is to create a more mentally healthy society.

Question 26

multicultural consultation

Answer 26

an approach to consultation that takes into account how cultural issues affect the consultation process.

Question 27

organization

Answer 27

a group of people put together for a common purpose. Almost all consultation, regardless of the type, occurs within some type of organization. It is one of the factors that influence the processes and outcomes of consultation.

Question 28

organization contact person

Answer 28

the person in the organization in which consultation is being considered who initially contacts (or is contacted by) the consultant. This person is often a mid-level administrator who may or may not become a consultee. This person usually paves the way for the consultant’s entry into the organization.

Question 29

organizational consultation

Answer 29

one of the three major types of consultation; its primary goal is the enhancement of an organization’s effectiveness. The organization itself is the client system, and the members of the organization involved in consultation are the consultees. Consultants frequently work together in teams when performing organizational consultation.

Question 30

outreach

Answer 30

extending or making known available services to a target population.

Question 31

parties-at-interest (stakeholders)

Answer 31

those people (who usually belong to the organization in which consultation occurs) who are not directly involved in consultation but are affected by the consultation process in some way. Parties-at-interest typically include contact persons and administrators. If the consultant belongs to an organization (for example, a mental health center), then those members of the consultant’s organization indirectly affected by the consultation are also parties-at-interest.

Question 32

tripartite

Answer 32

composed of three parts. With respect to consultation, it refers to the three parties involved: consultant, consultee, and client system.

Question 33

work-related problem

Answer 33

the kind of problem considered to be suitable for the primary focus in consultation. In the case of consultation with people such as parents, the term caretaking-related problem is sometimes used instead. This term is often contrasted with personal problems