THE

COUNSELLING
PROCESS
Presented by the Group 1
LEARNING
OUTCOMES:
At the end of the lesson, the students will be able to
understand the basics of the counselling process and its
stages.

Apply basic techniques and strategies of counselling in

conducting an interview with the client.
VIEW-POINTS AND DEFINITIONS OF
COUNSELLING:
I. It is the process of helping the individuals to help themselves.

II. It is the continuous process as it is needed at the different stages of life

viz, childhood, adolescence, adulthood and even in old age.

III. The process involves a sequence of stages and steps which are
followed by the trained professionals in order to help the client.
9 Steps in th Counselling Process:
• Establish a safe, trusting environment

2. Clarify: Help the person put their concern into words.

3. Active listening: find out the client`s agenda

a) paraphrase, summarize, reflect, interpret
b) focus on feelings, not events

4. Transform problem statements into goal statements.

5. Explore possible approaches to goal.

6. Help person choose one way towards goal

Develop a plan (may involve several steps)
9 Steps in th Counselling Process:

7. Make a contract to fulfill the plan (or to take the next step)

2. Summarize what has occured, clarify and get verification.

Evaluate progress

9. Get feedback and confirmation.

 STAGES IN
COUNSELLING PROCESS
01 PREPARATORY STAGE 04 PLANNING STAGE

02 EXPLORATORY STAGE
05 ACTION STAGE

EXPLORATORY STAGE
03
PREPARATORY STAGE
- the stage prior to the actual counselling process
where the client and the counsellor approach each
other and try to understand the possibilities of
working out an agreement between them.
OBJECTIVES OF 1. For the client to get 2. For the counsellors to
PREPARATORY to know the counsellor know the client better
STAGE: better
WHAT BRIEFING
- the counsellor has to inform the

TO DO counselee regarding the process and

the service needed to be done

DISCUSSION
- the counselee have to open-up their
thoughts on the problems/issues
they are facing
 1. Is the counsellor interested in me?

COMMON 2. Is he/she willing to give me time and listen

carefully?

QUESTIONS 3. Can I share my intimate thoughts and feelings with him?

FROM
COUNSELEE 4. Does the counsellor has anything I can use?

S 5. Would he be successful in my world?

6. Can he help me?

 SOCIAL SKILSS

- include greeting skills

2 BASIC
SKILLS OF ATTENDING
SKILLS:
PHYSICALLY

- consist of the counsellor’s

ability to give his/her full
attention to the counselee and to
communicate his/her interest
through nonverbal messages
EXPLORATORY
STAGE
In this stage the client and the counsellor meet
in the counselling room. The exploratory stage
is meant for the entering into the counselee’s
frame of reference in order to accurately
understand how s/he experiences the world.
 1. The problem, and its effect on the client
and his environment.

THE AREAS OF 2. Probable factors that create and maintain

ENQUIRY FOR these problems.
GETTING
INFORMATION 3. Probable factors that may relieve these
problems.
INCLUDE THE
FOLLOWING: 4. The clients understanding about the
problem and efforts to tackle the problem.
 1. The client’s adjustment at home, at work,
with friends, with persons of the opposite
INFORMATION IS sex, and with society in general.
ALSO OBTAINED 2. The client’s strengths and weaknesses,
good and bad habits, likes and dislikes; and
ABOUT THE 3. How the client spends his time or runs his
CLIENT’S life. During the initial interviews, at this
PERSONALITY stage, the client and the counsellor get into a

AND LIFE WHICH formal or informal agreement.

agreement is a sort of contract which is
This

INCLUDE: essential.
THE CLIENT WILL COOPERATE TO IN
THE BEST POSSIBLE MANNER:
• Self – revelation
At this stage, the counselors use the skill to label correctly the counselee’s feeling, the reason
• Truthfulness
for the feeling and to communicate this understanding to the counselee.
• Adherence to the counselor’s
This trust in the counsellor together with the counselor’s attitudes of empathy, genuineness and
suggestion Necessary practical respect will prepare the counselee to go deeper into self-exploration.
arrangements for counselling:
• Duration
• Timing
• The frequency sessions
• Payment schedule (if charged).
PLANNING
STAGE
-also called as personalising the problem
and the goal.

•Through the process of self-exploration

the counselor helps the counselee to
understand where s/he is with respect to
where s/he wants or needs to be.
THE COUNSELOR MUST;
*ensure the client's readiness; otherwise the process will
not be helpful.

*Continues to assess the client's psychological

framework and problem situation,

*Guides the client's in setting specific goals such as:

√specific emotional
√behavioral changes
AT THIS STAGE THE COUNSELOR USES THE SKILL OF
PERSONALISING AND THE PROBLEM AND THE GOAL
TOGETHER. THIS MAKES THE CLIENT TO TAKE
RESPONSIBILITY AND ACCEPT THEIR CONTRIBUTION TO
THE PROBLEM SITUATION.

What do the counselors do in this stage?

1) analyses the client's feelings and behavior,

2) provides constant feedback, and;
3) support and guidance to plan behavioral change.
 The counselor in this stage
uses skills like: 2. IMMEDIACY

• CONFRONTATION - is dealing with the feeling between the counselee and

counselor in which the counselor used the observed
- is an action which is initiated by the discrepancy in the counselee to interpret the here and
counselor based on his/her understanding of now relationship with the counselee.
the counselee.

THE PURPOSE OF CONFRONTATION:

-is to reduce the ambiguity and incongruities in

the counselee's experience and his/her
communication to the counselor,
-aims at motivating personal growth..
ACTION
STAGE
• This stage is also called by Fuster, as
Initiating stage.

• The focus of this stage is to motivate the

client to act in order to solve his/her
problem
 • The counselor helps the client
develop strategies for action
and encourages him or her to
implement plans and achieve
goals.

ROLE OF THE • The counselor helps the

COUNSELOR: client by identifying
appropriate and systematic
steps suitable to his/her need
and resources.
SOME COUNSELING SOME COUNSELING
MODEL USED: TECHNIQUE USED:
• RATIONAL EMOTIVE
THERAPY (RET) • SUPPORTIVE AND
• TRANSACTIONAL BEHAVIORAL
ANALYSIS (TA)
• GESTALT • COGNITIVE AND
PSYCHOTHERAPY PSYCHOANALYTICAL
(GT)
• LEARNING • PROBLEM SOLVING AND
THEORIES (LT), ECT... OTHER.
The therapeutic gains during the action stage
include:

• Resolution of emotional crisis;

• Resolution of problem behaviours;
• Improved self-confidence and self-esteem;
• Improved self-control and frustration tolerance;
• Improved reality orientation and appraisal of
threats;
• Improved reality communication and problem-
solving skills; and
• Improved overall adjustments, judgment, and
emotional stability.
THE SKILLS USES BY THE PLAN OF ACTION TO THE
THE COUNSELOR IN: GOAL IS ON VARIOUS LEVELS;

1) Physical,
1) Presenting a goal relevant to the client’s need
2) Emotiona
2) Devising practical and concrete steps
3) Intellectual
3) Helping the client in taking the first step
4) Interpersonal
4) Devised the programme of action
5) Spiritual
Interpersonal
6) Spiritual
EVALUATION AND
TERMINATION STAGE
Evaluation is an important part of the counselling
process. It is essential that the counsellor
undertakes evaluation before the termination of the
process.

Evaluating means to review how the counselee has

taken the action in order to achieve the goal and in
view of the plans how far the client is progressing.
Assessment or evaluation of client's progress is an
ongoing process which begins right in the first stage.
However, it is done at this stage with the purpose of
terminating the process. Counselling should never be
abruptly terminated.

The termination of counselling is

systematically done after following a series of
steps.
 THE COUNSELLOR DURING THE
EVALUATION AND TERMINATION
STAGE ENSURES THE FOLLOWINGS:

1. Evaluating readiness for termination of counselling process

2. Letting the client know in advance about the termination of counselling
3. Discuss with client the readiness for termination
4. Review the course of action plan
5. Emphasis the client's role in effecting change
6. Warning against the danger of fight into health
7. Giving instructions for the maintenance of adaptive functioning
8. Discussion of follow up sessions; and
9. Assuring the availability of counsellor in case of relapse into dysfunction.
CONCLUSION
After going through this chapter, one gets an At each stage, we have also discussed the skils
understanding about the basics of counselling process. used by counsellor. Now you will be able to
Now we must have become aware about where and how explain the process, describe each stage through
to begin, what to do and when, etc. This chapter was which counselling passes and appreciate the
intended to help us know about the counselling process skills counselors has to use in each stage and the
and various stages in the counselling process from sequence of stages s/he has to follow.
beginning to end. As discussed in this chapter an
attempt is being made to understand ithe counselling
process and the stages given by deiiferent scholars. We
have tried to discuss the process in five stages viz,
preparatory stage, exploratory stage, planning stage,
action stage and evaluation and termination stage.