File Edit Format View ALFRED ANTHONY D.

ARANDIA, RPM

EDUC263.1 - Counseling Techniques B I U

Constructionist
Approach
We are what we think. All that we are arises with our
thoughts. With our thoughts, we make the world.
—Buddha (quoted in Boldt, 1999, p. 91)

 Page 3 DEFINITION

SOCIAL CONSTRUCTIONISM

Clients are viewed as experts

about their lives.
It is a psychological expression
of this postmodern world-view.
It values the client's reality
without disputing whether it is
accurate or irrational.
Page 4 COUNSELING GOALS

SOCIAL CONSTRUCTIONISM THERAPY GOALS

Generate new meaning in the lives
of the clients.
Co-develop with clients, solutions
that are unique to the situation.
Enhance awareness of the impact of
various aspects of the dominant
culture on the individuals.
Help people develope alternative
ways of being, acting, knowing,
and living.
Page 5 PROPONENT & BASIC PHILOSOPHY

INSOO KIM BERG She was a renowned Korean-American lecturer,

(1935-2007) author, and therapist. The primary co-
founder of solution-focused brief therapy
(SFBT), she also made significant
contributions to the fields of family
therapy, counseling, coaching, social work,
and research.

She recognized that, when people first seek

help, a lot of time, energy and other
resources are often spent with examining and
thinking about the issues they are seeking
treatment for while they continue to be
affected by these concerns.
 Page 6 PROPONENT & BASIC PHILOSOPHY

STEVEN DE SHAZER He was a 20th century therapist who was

(1940-2005) active in the fields of family therapy,
social work, and research. He pioneered the
practice of solution-focused brief therapy
(SFBT); a form of talk therapy based on the
principles of social constructionism. Social
constructionism places a strong focus on the
way social context affects reality,
including emotions and relationships.

This form of therapy targets the solution—

what the person seeking treatment is striving
to achieve through therapy—rather than the
situation, event, or obstacle that brought
that person to treatment. The therapist works
to direct attention toward the present and
future, not the past, and the person in
therapy begins the journey of fulfillment by
first envisioning what a desired future looks
like and then taking small steps toward
achieving that outcome.
Page 7

SOLUTION-FOCUSED BRIEF
THERAPY (SFBT)
is a future-focused, goal-oriented
therapeutic approach to brief therapy.
it emphasizes strengths and resiliencies of
the people by focusing on exceptions to
their problems and their conceptualized
solution.
an approach based on the assumption that
clients have the ability to change quickly
and create a problem-free language as they
strive for new reality.
Page 8 KEY CONCEPTS

UNIQUE FOCUS OF SFBT

Solution-focused brief therapy differs from traditional
therapies by eschewing the past in favor of both the present
and the future (Franklin, Trepper, Gingerich, & McCollum,
2012).
Therapists focus on what is possible, and they have little or
no interest in gaining an understanding of how the problem
emerged.
In solution-focused brief therapy, clients choose the goals
they wish to accomplish, little attention is given to
diagnosis, history taking or exploring the emergence of the
problem (O'Hanlon & Weiner-Davis, 2003).
Page 9 KEY CONCEPTS

POSITIVE ORIENTATION
Solution-focused brief therapy is grounded on the
optimistic assumption that people are healthy and competent
and have the ability to construct solutions that can
enhance their lives.
The therapist's role is to help clients recognize the
competencies they already possess and apply them toward
solutions. The essence of therapy involves building on
clients' hope and optimism by creating positive
expectations that change is possible.
By emphasizing positive dimensions, clients quickly become
involved in resolving their problems, which makes this a
very empowering approach.
 Page 10 KEY CONCEPTS

LOOKING FOR WHAT IS WORKING

Solution-focused brief therapists assist clients in paying

attention to the exceptions to their problem patterns, or
their instances of success.
Identifying what is working and encouraging clients to
replicate these patterns is extremely important (Murphy,
2015).
A key theme of SFBT is, when you know what is working, do
more of it. If something is not working, try something
different (Hoyt, 2015).
 Page 11 NATURE OF COUNSELING RELATIONSHIP

BASIC ASSUMPTIONS GUIDING PRACTICE

1. Individuals who come to

therapy do have the capacity of 4. Clients often present only
behaving effectively, even one side of themsevles.
though this effectiveness may 5. No problem is constant and
be temporary blocked by change is inevitable
cognitions. 6. Clients are doing their best
2. There are advantages to a to make change happen.
positive focus on solutions and 7. Clients can be entrusted in
on the future their intention to solve their
3. There are exceptions to every problems.
problem, or times when the
problem was absent.
 Page 12 NATURE OF COUNSELING RELATIONSHIP

CHARACTERISTICS OF BREIF THERAPY

The average length of therapy is three
Expectation that change is possible
to eight sessions, with the most
and realistic and that improvement
common length being only one session
can occur in the immediate future.
(Hoyt, 2015).
Here-and-now orientation with a
Rapid working alliance between
primary focus on current
therapist and client
functioning in thinking, feeling,
Clear specification of achievable
and behaving.
treatment goals
Specific, integrated, pragmatic,
Clear division of responsibilities
and eclectic techniques.
between client and therapist, with
Periodic assessment of progress
active client participation and a
toward goals and outcomes
high level of therapist activity.
Time sensitive, including making
Emphasis on client's strengths,
the most of each session and ending
competencies, and adaptive
therapy as soon as possible.
capacities.
Page 13 NATURE OF COUNSELING RELATIONSHIP

THERAPEUTIC PROCESS

1. Clients are given an opportunity to describe their problems.

2. The therapist works with clients in developing well-formed goals
as soon as possible.
3. The therapist asks clients about those times when their problems
were not present or when the problems were less severe.
4. At the end of each solution-building conversation, the therapist
offers clients summary feedback, provides encouragement, and
suggests what clients might observe or do before the next session
to further solve their problems.
5. The therapist and clients evaluate the progress being made in
reaching satisfactory solutions by using a rating scale.
 Page 14 COUNSELING GOALS

SFBT GOALS
The solution-focused therapist Murphy (2015) emphasizes the
believes people have the ability importance of assisting clients in
to define meaningful personal creating well- defined goals that are
goals and that they have the 1. stated positively in the client's
resources required to solve their language;
problems. 2. are action-oriented;
Solution-focused therapists 3. are structured in the here and now;
concentrate on small, realistic, 4. are attainable, concrete, specific,
achievable changes chat can lead and measurable; and
to additional positive outcomes. 5. are controlled by the client"
The therapist looks for ways to Counselors should not too rigidly
amplify the client's movement in impose an agenda of getting precise
the desired direction as quickly goals before clients have a chance
as possible (Hoyt, 2015). to express their concerns.
 Page 15 COUNSELING TECHNIQUES & APPLICATIONS

THERAPIST'S FUNCTION AND ROLE

Clients are much more likely to get involved in the therapeutic
process if they believe they are determining the direction and
purpose of the conversation.
Consistent with the postmodern and social constructionist
perspectives, solution-focused brief therapists adopt a not-
knowing position to put clients in the position of being experts
about their own lives.
The therapist’s task is to point clients in the direction of
change without dictating what to change (George et.al., 2015;
Gutermaan, 2013).
A key therapeutic task consists of helping clients imagine how
they would like life to be different and what would it take to
make this transformation happen.
 Page 16 COUNSELING TECHNIQUES & APPLICATIONS

THE THERAPEUTIC RELATIONSHIP

1. Customer: the client and therapist jointly identify a problem and
a solution to work toward. The client realizes that to attain his
or her goals, personal effort will be required.
2. Complainant: the client describes a problem but is not able or
willing to assume a role in constructing a solution, believing
that a solution is dependent on someone else's actions. In this
situation, the client generally expects the therapist to change
the other person to whom the client attributes the problem.
3. Visitor: the client comes to therapy because someone else (a
spouse, parent, teacher, or probation officer) thinks the client
has a problem and may be unable to identify anything to explore
in therapy.
 Page 17 COUNSELING TECHNIQUES & APPLICATIONS

THERAPEUTIC TECHNIQUES AND PROCEDURES

Pretherapy Change
During the initial therapy session, it is common for solution-
focused therapists to ask, "What have you done since you called for
the appointment that has made a difference in your problem?" (de
Shazer; 1985, 1988).
Exception Questions
SFBT is based on the notion that there were times in clients' lives
when the problems they identify were not problematic.
The Miracle Question
The therapist asks, “if a miracle happened and the problem you have
was solved overnight, how would you know it was solved, and what
would be different?"
 Page 18 COUNSELING TECHNIQUES & APPLICATIONS

THERAPEUTIC TECHNIQUES AND PROCEDURES

Scaling Questions
Solution-focused therapists also use scaling questions when change
in human experiences are not easily observed, such as feelings,
moods, or communication, and to assist clients in noticing that they
are not completely defeated by their problem (de Shazer & Berg,
1988).
Formula First Session Task
The therapist might say: "Between now and the next time we meet, I
would like you to observe, so that you can describe to me next time,
what happens in your (family, life, marriage, relationship) that you
want to continue to have happen" (de Shazer, 1985, p. 137). At the
second session, clients can be asked what they observed and what
they would like to have happen in the future. This kind of
assignment offers clients hope that change is inevitable.
 Page 19 COUNSELING TECHNIQUES & APPLICATIONS

THERAPEUTIC TECHNIQUES AND PROCEDURES

Therapist Feedback to Clients
Solution-focused practitioners generally take a break of 5 to 10
minutes toward the end of each session to compose a summary message
for clients.
De Jong and Berg (2013) describe three basic parts to the structure
of the summary feedback: compliments, a bridge, and suggesting a
task.
Terminating
Guterman (2013) maintains that the ultimate goal of solution-focused
counseling is to end treatment. He adds, "If counselors are not
proactive in making their treatment brief by design, then in many
cases counseling will be brief by default"
 Page 20 COUNSELING TECHNIQUES & APPLICATIONS

APPLICATION TO GROUP COUNSELING

A facilitator might begin a new group by requesting, "I would like
each of you to introduce yourself: As you do, give us a brief idea
as to why you are here and tell us what you would like for us to
know about you."
Facilitators help members to keep the problem external in
conversations, which tends to be a relief because it gives members
an opportunity to see themselves as less problem-saturated. It is
the facilitator's role to create opportunities for the members to
view themselves as being resourceful.
 Page 21

POSTMODERN APPROACHES FROM A

MULTICULTURAL PERSPECTIVE

STRENGTHS LIMITATIONS
Culturally diverse clients
It is essential that therapists
often experience an expectation
are skilled in brief
that they should conform their
interventions.
lives to truths and reality of
Some solution-focused
the dominant society of which
practitioners now acknowledge
they are a part.
the problem of relying too much
SFBT tends to be brief even
on a few techniques.
among the time-limited
therapies.
Page 22

SELF-REFLECTION AND
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

1. What key concepts are you most drawn to in SFBT? What do you
find interesting in these key concepts?
2. SFBT consists of many techniques in helping clients create their
own solutions. Which of these techniques would you like to
become skilled at using?
3. How do the postmodern approaches differ from other theories
you've encountered so far?
Page 23

REFERENCES

Theory and Practices of Counseling and Psychotherapy (Gerald

Corey 10th edition)
https://www.goodtherapy.org/famous-psychologists/insoo-kim-
berg.html
https://www.goodtherapy.org/famous-psychologists/steve-de-
shazer.html
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