TYPES OF BASIC

COUNSELING
KRYSTELLE CHERRY G. MAGSAKAY

BSSW 2-1 UNITING

PROFESSOR: ROZELDA LUCIANO RSW, MSSW, LPT

COUNSELING

• A COLLABORATIVE EFFORT BETWEEN THE COUNSELOR AND CLIENT. PROFESSIONAL

COUNSELORS HELP CLIENTS IDENTIFY GOALS AND POTENTIAL SOLUTIONS TO
PROBLEMS WHICH CAUSE EMOTIONAL TURMOIL; SEEK TO IMPROVE COMMUNICATION
AND COPING SKILLS; STRENGTHEN SELF-ESTEEM; AND PROMOTE BEHAVIOR CHANGE
AND OPTIMAL MENTAL HEALTH.
9 TYPES OF BASIC COUNSELING

• LISTENING
• EMPATHY
• GENUINENESS
• UNCONDITIONAL POSITIVE REWARD
• CONCRETENESS
• OPEN QUESTIONS
• COUNSELOR SELF-DISCLOSURE
• INTERPRETATION
• INFORMATION GIVING AND REMOVING
OBSTACLES TO CHANGE
LISTENING

• IN COUNSELING, THIS IS CALLED

ATTENDING
• ATTENDING JUST MEANS TO POSITION
YOURSELF TO THE PATIENT IN A WAY
THAT LETS THE PATIENT KNOW THAT
YOU ARE AWARE OF THEM, THAT THEY
HAVE YOUR FULL UNDIVIDED
ATTENTION, AND THAT YOU CARE
ABOUT WHAT THEY HAVE TO SAY; AND,
IN GENERAL, THEM AS A PERSON
LISTENING

HOW TO MAKE SURE YOU ARE ATTENDING:

A. MAKE EYE CONTACT
B. REMOVE ANYTHING FROM THE ROOM THAT MAY DISTRACT YOU FROM FOCUSING ON YOUR
PATIENT
C. NOD YOUR HEAD AT APPROPRIATE TIMES TO CONFIRM THAT YOU ARE HEARING WHAT THEY ARE
SAYING, OR THAT YOU IDENTIFY WITH WHAT THEY ARE SAYING
D. TRY NOT TO MOVE AROUND A TON
E. MAKE ENCOURAGING VERBALIZATIONS
F. TRY EVEN TO MIRROR THEIR POSTURE, AND LANGUAGE; THIS CAN MAKE YOUR CLIENT FEEL MORE
COMFORTABLE, AND FREE
G. LEAN FORWARD. THIS SHOWS YOUR CLIENT THAT YOU ARE ENGAGED
EMPATHY

• EMPATHY DOES NOT MEAN THAT YOU

HAVE TO IDENTIFY WITH THE PATIENT OR
SHARE SIMILAR EXPERIENCES. YOU MAY NOT
ACTUALLY KNOW HOW THEY FEEL, BUT IT’S
IMPORTANT TO DEVELOP THE ABILITY TO
DISCERN ANOTHER’S EXPERIENCE AND
THEN TO COMMUNICATE THAT
PERCEPTION BACK TO THE INDIVIDUAL TO
CLARIFY WHAT THEY HAVE SAID
EMPATHY
HE MAIN SKILLS INVOLVED IN COMMUNICATING EMPATHY ARE:

A. NONVERBAL AND VERBAL ATTENDING

B. PARAPHRASING WHAT THE PATIENT HAS COMMUNICATED
C. REFLECTING ON HOW THE PATIENT FEELS, AND ALSO ON
IMPLIED MESSAGES
GENUINENESS
BE HONEST.
BE YOURSELF.
BE COMFORTABLE.
YOUR ACTIONS NEED TO REFLECT THE WORDS YOU ARE SAYING.
UNCONDITIONAL POSITIVE REWARD
AFFIRMING THE PATIENT
IN THEIR HURT,
HAPPINESS, OR
CONFUSION IS A GOOD
WAY TO CONVEY TO
YOUR PATIENT THAT IT IS
OKAY TO BE
EXPERIENCING THESE
EMOTIONS.
THEIR FEELINGS ARE
VALID.
CONCRETENESS

• IT IS IMPORTANT TO STAY
FOCUSED ON SPECIFIC AND
RELEVANT FACTS AND
FEELINGS; AND TO AVOID
GETTING OFF-TOPIC, MAKING
SWEEPING STATEMENTS, OR
TALKING ABOUT THE
COUNSELOR RATHER THAN THE
CLIENT.
CONCRETENESS

A. HELP THE CLIENT TO RECOGNIZE AND PURSUE

GROWTH IN ONE SPECIFIC AREA OF THE SEVERAL
PRESENTED.

B. REITERATE THE GOAL TO THE CLIENT, AND ALSO

THE INTENT AND STRUCTURE OF THAT SPECIFIC
SESSION.

C. PRESENT QUESTIONS AND PROPOSITIONS TO

HELP THE CLIENT CLARIFY FACTS, TERMS,
FEELINGS, AND GOALS. LIKE A PERCEPTION
CHECK!

D. ADAPT A HERE-AND-NOW FOCUS. THIS MEANS

THAT ADDRESSING THE MATERIAL THAT EMERGES
IN THE ROOM BECOMES THE FOCUS.
OPEN QUESTIONS
THIS IS A HELPFUL
QUESTIONING METHOD TO
GET YOUR CLIENT TO
CLARIFY OR EXPLORE
THOUGHTS, AND FEELINGS.
WHEN ASKING OPEN-ENDED
QUESTIONS, YOU DON’T
WANT TO REQUEST A
SPECIFIC BIT OF
INFORMATION OR LIMIT THE
QUESTION TO A BRIEF
ANSWER, OR YES OR NO.
OPEN QUESTIONS

A. THE GOAL IS TO GUIDE DEEP EXPLORATIVE THOUGHT. IF THE CLIENT IS

ALREADY DOING THIS, YOU WOULD NOT NEED TO ASSIST THEM WITH AN
OPEN QUESTION.
B. ASK INTENTIONAL, AND PURPOSEFUL QUESTIONS.
C. THE GOAL IS NOT TO DRILL THEM. YOU DON’T WANT THEM TO FEEL LIKE
THEY ARE BEING INTERROGATED, BUT TO HELP THEM WORK THROUGH THE
ISSUE.
D. YOU MAY WANT TO FOLLOW UP THE PATIENT’S RESPONSE WITH A
PARAPHRASE, WHICH MAY ENCOURAGE THE CLIENT TO SHARE MORE.
COUNSELOR SELF-DISCLOSURE
THIS IS WHEN THE
COUNSELOR SHARES
PERSONAL FEELINGS, LIFE
EXPERIENCES, OR
CERTAIN REACTIONS TO
THE CLIENT.
IT SHOULD ONLY
INCLUDE RELEVANT
CONTENT INTENDED TO
BUILD THEM UP.
INTERPRETATION

THIS IS ANY STATEMENT OUTSIDE

OF WHAT THE PATIENT HAS
ACTUALLY SAID OR MAY EVEN BE
AWARE OF.
WHEN INTERPRETING THE
COUNSELOR IS ABLE TO PROVIDE
A NEW PERSPECTIVE, PROVOKE
THOUGHTS OR FEELINGS, OR
PRESENT AN EXPLANATION FOR
BEHAVIORS.
INFORMATION GIVING AND REMOVING
OBSTACLES TO CHANGE
YOU WANT TO HUMBLY
PRESENT DATA, FACTS,
WISDOM, RESOURCES, OR
ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS.
TOGETHER, WITH YOUR
PATIENT, IDENTIFY POSSIBLE
PROBLEMS THAT MAY BE
HINDERING THEIR GROWTH
PROCESS, AND THINK
THROUGH POSSIBLE
SOLUTIONS AND
ALTERNATIVES.
PROBLEM SOLVING
STEPS IN PROBLEM SOLVING

1. IDENTIFY YOUR PROBLEMS

BEFORE YOU CAN SOLVE A PROBLEM, YOU HAVE TO

KNOW WHAT IT IS. WHAT ARE THE PROBLEMS FACING
YOU AT THE MOMENT?
STEPS IN PROBLEM SOLVING
2. PICK A PROBLEM

WHICH PROBLEM WOULD YOU

LIKE TO WORK ON FIRST?
STEPS IN PROBLEM SOLVING
3. CHOOSE ONE OF YOUR
SOLUTIONS
CHOOSE WHAT SEEMS TO BE
THE BEST ACTION
THE ONLY RULE IS THAT YOU
MUST CHOOSE ONE OF THE
ACTIONS SO THAT YOU CAN
BEGIN
IT SHOULD BE AN ACTION THAT
TAKES YOU AT LEAST PART WAY
TOWARDS SOLVING YOUR
PROBLEM
STEPS IN PROBLEM SOLVING

4. MAKE AN ACTION PLAN

THERE AREN'T VERY MANY PROBLEMS THAT YOU WILL SOLVE COMPLETELY
WITH JUST ONE ACTION.
THERE MIGHT BE MANY ACTIONS THAT WILL TAKE YOU PART OF THE WAY
TOWARDS A SOLUTION
JUST GATHERING THE PAPER WON'T SOLVE THE PROBLEM, BUT IT WILL TAKE
YOU CLOSER TO A SOLUTION THAN YOU WERE BEFORE.
THE IMPORTANT THING IS TO GET STARTED ON A SOLUTION.
STEPS IN PROBLEM SOLVING

4. MAKE AN ACTION PLAN

YOUR PLAN OF ACTION SHOULD FOLLOW FOUR RULES

THAT CAN BE ABBREVIATED AS M.A.S.T. IN OTHER WORDS:

∙ MANAGEABLE – YOU CAN HANDLE

∙ ACTION-ORIENTED – MAKE A PLAN FOR WHAT YOU

WILL DO, NOT HOW YOU WILL THINK OR FEEL
WHILE YOU ARE DOING IT

∙ SPECIFIC – WHAT YOU NEED TO DO SHOULD BE VERY

CLEAR

∙ TIME-LIMITED – YOUR PLAN SHOULD TAKE ONLY A

SHORT TIME TO CARRY OUT. DON'T PLAN TO
CHANGE YOUR LIFESTYLE FOREVER
STEPS IN PROBLEM SOLVING
5. THINK ABOUT HOW IT
WENT, THEN MOVE ON
THINK ABOUT HOW THE PLAN
WORKED OUT. WHAT
HAPPENED? WHAT WENT WELL?
WHAT WENT BADLY?

THREE MAIN OPTIONS:

∙ KEEP GOING
∙ REVISE YOUR GOAL AND TRY
AGAIN
∙ TAKE A NEW APPROACH
SOURCES

•https://www.mometrix.com/academy/basic-skills-of-a-co
unselor/
•https://www.pfcounselling.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2
012/12/Problem-Solving.pdf
 QUIZ NO. 3
1. IT IS A COLLABORATIVE EFFORT BETWEEN THE COUNSELOR AND CLIENT

2. THIS IS CALLED ATTENDING

3. THIS INVOLVES THE REFLECTION ON HOW THE PATIENT FEELS

4. THIS SHOWS BY BEING YOUR TRUE SELF AND BEING HONEST

5. IT IS IMPORTANT TO STAY FOCUSED ON SPECIFIC AND RELEVANT FACTS AND FEELINGS

6. A HELPFUL QUESTIONING METHOD TO GET YOUR CLIENT TO CLARIFY OR EXPLORE THOUGHTS, AND FEELINGS

7. THIS IS WHEN THE COUNSELOR SHARES PERSONAL FEELINGS, LIFE EXPERIENCES, OR CERTAIN REACTIONS TO THE CLIENT

8. ANY STATEMENT OUTSIDE OF WHAT THE PATIENT HAS ACTUALLY SAID OR MAY EVEN BE AWARE OF

9. PRESENT DATA, FACTS, WISDOM, RESOURCES, OR ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS

10. A WAY TO HELP YOU SOLVE YOUR PROBLEMS SUCCESSFULLY

 ANSWER KEY
1. COUNSELING
2. LISTENING
3. EMPATHY
4. GENUINENESS
5. CONCRETENESS
6. OPEN QUESTIONS
7. COUNSELOR SELF-DISCLOSURE
8. INTERPRETATION
9. INFORMATION GIVING AND REMOVING OBSTACLES TO CHANGE
10. PROBLEM SOLVING
THANK YOU!