South African College Of Applied Psychology (SACAP)
Fundamentals of a Helping Relationship
Essay
Micro-skills and effective techniques in the counseling context
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Course
Fundamentals of a Helping Relationship
Institution
South African College Of Applied Psychology (SACAP)
This assignment was graded 81% and involves a reflection on a counselling role-play looking at the strengths and weaknesses of certain micro-skills and counselling techniques and why they were or were not used effectively as well as the function that the use of these of these counselling skills ser...
Works Cited....................................................................................................................9
, FUNDAMENTALS OF A HELPING RELATIONSHIP 2
Introduction
“The curious paradox is that when I accept myself just as I am, then I can change.”
-Carl R. Rogers
One of the most innate needs in any relationship is the desire to connect with another
person and to be understood and accepted. Communication is the act of using words, sounds,
signs, or behaviours to express or exchange information. It can also be used to express ideas,
thoughts or feelings to someone else, making effective communication incremental in the
counselling process. Poor communication skills combined with ineffective listening
techniques present some of the biggest obstacles preventing people from sharing their
thoughts and concerns with another person, and ultimately feeling understood and connected
[ CITATION Kri04 \l 1033 ]. One of the most common reasons that clients seek therapy is to
improve their communication in their personal relationships in order to be less angry,
anxious, and depressed overall. Poor communication can increase the likelihood that a
person feels dissatisfied with his or her personal relationships [ CITATION Kri04 \l 1033 ].
With the correct and effective use of communicative tools in the counselling process, it is
more likely that a client will be able to form a comfortable connection with a counsellor. In
so doing, the main aims and goals of the counselling process can be achieved for both the
helper and helpee who will continue to nurture their trusting helping relationship.
, FUNDAMENTALS OF A HELPING RELATIONSHIP 3
Micro skills
Micro-skills are the “toolbox” for interviewing techniques. These tools serve as an
undeniable aid within the counselling process between a therapist and client as they create a
certain level of discourse which if used correctly, can resultantly encourage clients to be
forthcoming about their difficulties, promote productive collaboration and enhance a client’s
adaptive abilities [ CITATION Nai16 \l 1033 ]. These methods can be conveyed through
verbal and non-verbal messages in a variety of ways and are displayed in the video-recording
through the use of counselling techniques such as attending, active listening, paraphrasing,
reflection of content and feeling, self-disclosure, open and closed-ended questions, silence
and summarising [ CITATION Mid15 \l 1033 ].
Contracting
A counselling contract is a mutual agreement negotiated between the counsellor and
the client and specifies the rights and responsibilities of the counsellor towards clients, as
well as the rights and responsibilities of clients towards the counsellors [ CITATION Kat05 \l
1033 ]. The contract may include aspects of the therapeutic process such as confidentiality,
general and specific goals or the issues to be discussed [ CITATION Kat05 \l 1033 ].
Contracting provides the necessary space for legal intervention if the responsibilities of the
client or therapist are not met, ensuring that the counselling process is performed in a
productive, safe and helpful manner [ CITATION Kat05 \l 1033 ]. In the video recording, I
made effective use of contracting and fitted it to the need of my client who was about to
engage in his third therapy session, the middle phase of the counselling process. As this
session was to be more challenging for my client in comparison to his earlier sessions, it was
necessary that I made it clear to him that his wishes are respected and his comfort is my
priority. In addition, I reiterated my value for confidentiality. This was an effective technique
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