Summary of "Counselling Skills: Practice and Reflections"
Summary of Counselling Skills: Practice and Reflections
This video features Mick Cooper, a professor of counseling psychology and practicing psychotherapist, demonstrating core counseling skills through a simulated counseling session with an actor playing a client named Tara. It is aimed at beginners in counseling to provide insight into the counseling process, the therapist’s internal reflections, and the application of person-centered, relational, and existential therapeutic approaches.
Main Ideas and Concepts
Counseling Approach and Philosophy
- Mick Cooper’s approach is primarily person-centered but incorporates relational and existential elements.
- He emphasizes the “three R’s” framework in therapy:
- Reflecting: Helping clients explore and understand their experiences.
- Reevaluating: Encouraging clients to consider if their current ways of thinking or behaving serve them well.
- Redeciding: Supporting clients to decide on and try new ways of acting.
- The approach is collaborative, non-judgmental, and grounded in empathy and acceptance.
- Therapy is seen as a process of dialogue and exploration rather than quick fixes or prescriptive advice.
Demonstration of Counseling Skills
- Beginning sessions by inviting clients to identify topics they want to discuss.
- Active listening and creating space for clients to tell their story at their own pace.
- Using empathic understanding to connect with clients’ emotions (the “felt sense”).
- Avoiding rushing into solutions or techniques too early; focusing first on understanding the client’s lived experience.
- Balancing silence and space with gentle prompts to avoid uncomfortable or unproductive silences.
- Summarizing and clarifying to check understanding and deepen the conversation.
- Recognizing that counseling conversations often proceed in spirals, revisiting themes with increasing depth.
Handling Emotional Content
- Encouraging clients to express difficult or hidden feelings (e.g., exclusion, anxiety, hurt).
- Understanding that talking about painful feelings can relieve the burden of isolation and shame.
- Therapy provides a safe, neutral environment to discuss feelings clients might not share elsewhere.
- The importance of acknowledging and validating clients’ emotions to build trust and connection.
Therapeutic Challenges and Reflections
- Therapist’s self-awareness about moments of less effective responses (e.g., giving superficial reflections or inadvertently questioning client’s reality).
- Importance of repairing ruptures in the therapeutic relationship through acknowledgment and apology.
- Recognizing the power dynamics in therapy and being cautious about how clients might respond to therapist interventions.
- The therapist’s role as a catalyst or accelerator rather than a “savior.”
- Change is largely driven by client motivation and agency, not solely by therapist actions.
Exploring Client’s Context and Broader Issues
- Exploring social relationships and their impact on client wellbeing (e.g., Tara’s friendship group and its effect on her stress and study habits).
- Identifying “therapeutic leverage” points—areas where change might be most impactful (e.g., friendship dynamics, assumptions about university life).
- Challenging client assumptions gently and collaboratively (e.g., Tara’s belief that making friends at university will be difficult).
- Supporting clients in weighing options and possible actions without imposing solutions.
Practical Counseling Techniques Illustrated
- Inviting clients to talk about what’s on their mind.
- Empathic listening and reflecting feelings back.
- Summarizing client statements to confirm understanding.
- Encouraging exploration of feelings behind behaviors.
- Inviting clients to consider alternative perspectives and actions.
- Addressing client fears and ambivalence about change.
- Supporting client autonomy in deciding next steps.
Detailed Methodology / Instructions Demonstrated
Starting a Session
- Greet client warmly and invite them to share what they want to talk about.
- Use open-ended questions to encourage client-led topics.
Building Understanding
- Listen attentively without interrupting.
- Use empathic responses to connect emotionally.
- Ask clarifying questions to unpack the client’s story.
- Avoid rushing to problem-solving; focus on understanding feelings and experiences.
Handling Silence
- Allow space for clients to think and express.
- Avoid prolonged uncomfortable silences by gentle prompts.
Exploring Emotions
- Encourage clients to identify and express feelings, especially those hard to share.
- Reflect emotions to help clients feel heard and understood.
Dealing with Therapeutic Ruptures
- Acknowledge when a response may have been unhelpful.
- Apologize or clarify to repair trust and keep the dialogue open.
Encouraging Reevaluation and Redecision
- Help clients reflect on whether current behaviors or beliefs serve them.
- Invite clients to consider possible new ways of acting.
- Discuss potential risks and benefits of change.
- Support client autonomy in choosing next steps.
Therapeutic Leverage
- Identify key areas where change could improve client wellbeing.
- Explore client’s assumptions and beliefs that may limit options.
- Challenge unhelpful beliefs gently, grounded in client’s perspective.
Ending a Session
- Summarize main points discussed.
- Invite client to reflect on insights or next steps.
- Affirm the value of the client’s efforts and encourage ongoing reflection.
Speakers / Sources Featured
- Mick Cooper – Professor of Counseling Psychology, psychotherapist, and counselor demonstrating counseling skills and reflecting on the process.
- Tara – Actor playing the client in the simulated counseling session (not a real client).
This video offers a rich, reflective example of counseling in practice, highlighting the importance of empathy, understanding, client autonomy, and the complexities involved in therapeutic work. It emphasizes that counseling is a gradual process of exploration, expression, and change, supported by a strong therapeutic relationship.
Category
Educational
