Help Needed

Comments that invite clients to elaborate on their experiences without asking questions are important to client engagement and to client self-disclosure.

Respond to the following in a minimum of 175 words:

What kinds of counselor responses do you think would invite communication?

Respond to classmates in a minimum of 175 words

E.K.

The kinds of counselor responses that invite communication include counseling skills which include things such as open ended questions, restatement's, asking for clarification, providing information, as well as encouraging response. The reason that asking an open ended question invites communication as there are many ways that the client would be able to answer and they are not constrained by the kind of answer that a closed question would bring. Restatement would also invite communication as the client is encouraged to try and clarify whether or not that their meaning was understood. Providing information on a certain topic or maybe on some problem that they are having might invite some communication by giving them some missing insight as well as encouraging them to respond which would encourage feedback or other kinds of communication with the client and the counselor. These would be the best ways to try and invite some kind of communication with the client while keeping things positive with them.

Reference

Hackney, H. L., & Bernard, J. M. (2016). Professional counselor, the: A process guide to helping, 8/e (8th ed.). Pearson Education.

D.B

In previous courses, the concept of open-ended questions has been discussed extensively. Open-ended questions in my opinion are responses or tactics counselor’s use as an invitation to further communication being received. From the article The Art of Asking Open-Ended Questions, it mentions how open-ended questions provide insight for all parties (Cates, 2020). Open-ended questions avoid allowing clients to answer in yes or no responses. This in return makes the client “work” for their voice and poses as an invitation to further express the meaning behind their answers.

Other responses from counselors may involve the language used. By this I mean, when spitting out professional and diagnostic lingo to an individual who doesn’t comprehend such terminology, it only decreases rapport shared between client and professional. But, by responding to clients in a form they comprehend and understand (getting on their level) helps eliminate difference regardless of the level of education between the two.

Active listening is another tool that invites communication. There may be times when a counselor must assess what the client is needing. They may just need a listening ear. If this is the case, this is when active listening (empathetic responding) comes in handy. Taking this initiative allows the client to continually speak as the professional stands as a sounding board. I can think of several instances when someone has engaged in conversation, only needing an ear to listen. It took some trial and error, but after a minute I was able to understand they just needed to talk/ not receive my opinion or feedback. Have any other classmates found themselves in this situation? If so, how did you recognize it? How long before you recognized, and how did you react?

Reference

Cates, B. (2020, April). The Art of Asking Open-Ended Questions. Retrieved from https://blog.hubspot.com/sales/the-art-of-asking-open-ended-questions