Couc 505 Power Point Notes
Week 9: Assessment and Goal Setting
I. Introduction
Overview of the importance of assessment and goal setting in the
helping process.
II. Why Assessment?
1. Helps determine client's readiness for treatment.
2. Provides crucial information for goal planning.
3. Assists clients in discovering relevant events related to their issues.
4. Helps understand the psychological impact of the client’s environment.
5. Recognizes the uniqueness of the individual.
6. Uncovers potential for violence.
III. Methods of Assessment
Informal Methods:
Observation
Questioning
Formal Assessment:
Involves questionnaires, structured interviews, and tests.
IV. Conducting an Intake Interview
Affective/Behavioral/Cognitive (ABC) assessment:
1. Emotional state
2. Behavioral challenges and strengths
3. Cognitive abilities and deficits
Key areas to assess:
Developmental issues
Family history
Cultural, religious, spiritual background
Physical challenges and disabilities
Sources of information: family, friends, client, medical history,
agencies, legal system.
V. Categorizing Clients and Their Problems
Diagnosis and organization of information.
Identification and prioritization of issues.
Collaborative goal setting.
VI. Goal-Setting Skills
Importance and benefits of goal setting.
Characteristics of constructive goals:
Specific, clear, positively stated, simple, and concrete.
Types of goals: behavioral and non-behavioral.
Importance of client-centered and realistic goals.
VII. Using Questions to Identify and Refine Goals
Techniques for making goals specific and meaningful:
Questions to clarify goals.
Turning problems into actionable goals.
Determining the importance of goals.
Enhancing collaboration in goal setting.
VIII. Boiling Down the Problem
Selecting a focal issue:
1. Summarizing and enumerating identified issues.
2. Prioritizing problems through closed questions.
3. Transforming problems into goals.
4. Ensuring clarity and agreement between client and helper.
IX. Learning Objectives
Key learning objectives for the chapter.
X. Conclusion
Recap of the importance of assessment and goal setting in the helping
process.
