Counselling Interventions:

Skills and Techniques

Module Code COU70704 (4 credits)

Saturday 9 am to 1pm
Location DS.02(XSM -35)
Shamini Nadarajan
 Sypnosis
• Skills and Techniques - as per the Board of Counsellors (LKM) requirements.

• Developing basic skills in managing a therapeutic relationship.

• Generically, on a humanistic theoretical base.

• Emphasis will be placed on learning, practicing and developing basic counselling

and influencing skills to facilitate constructive counselling.

• Focus will also be on managing an effective interview using these basic

intervention and influencing skills to help clients generate new ideas that lead to
action.
• Teaching and learning will be through the use of lectures, tutorials and case
studies, coupled with guided learning, self-directed learning and problem-based
learning.
• Attendance 80 %

• Assignments on time - will give you the specific dates for

each tasks

• Plagarism - 30 % - Actions will be taken

 Module Learning Outcomes
• MLO1 Analyse a therapy session critically and identify the applications
of basic interviewing/counselling skills 25 %

• MLO2 Supporting clients effectively by examining personal values,

perspectives and understandings 25%

• MLO3 Demonstrate intentional competence in applying skills and

techniques in client interaction 40%

• MLO4 Display e ective skills in managing online counselling sessions

10 %
 Assessment

Assessmen Weigh MLO TGC Due Maximum Mark Maximum Mark

t Task t Asses Asses Date (Task Level) (MLO Level)
sed sed
Individual 25% MLO2 4.0 7 25 25
Assessment
Group 25% MLO1 1.0 12 25 25
Report
Competency 40% MLO3 4.0 14 40 40
Evaluation
Presentation 10% MLO4 2.0 10 10 10

100%
Individual Assessment 25% Due date is Week 8

Supporting clients actively by examining personal values , perspectives and

understanding. Writing a self reflection on exploring their communication skills
and values. You will write 3-4 pages on self reflection on the skills learned as
a counsellor in this module . You will explore your own perspectives, feelings
and your thoughts on your journey as a counsellor . You will the present it in
week 10th
Group Work 25% Due Date is Week 12

Analyse a therapy session critically and identify the applications of

basic interviewing/counselling skills .In a small group , you will be
analyzing a counselling session to identify the counselling skills
and client’s responses to the skills .You will write a report . More
details will be shared in lecture .
Competency Evaluation 40% Due Date 14th week

Demonstrate intentional competence in applying skills and

techniques in client interaction Recording a video to show student's
skills development in application of the techniques taught in class
and report the analysis of their own video
• Presentation 10% Due Date 10th week

• NOT SURE ????????????????????

• Display effective skills in managing online counselling

sessions .
 Weekly Schedule
Week Guided Learning F2F (Lecture) Guided Learning F2F (Practical)

1 Introduction to Techniques and Skills in Therapy The counselling Process (The person Centred
approach)Roles and Responsibilities (change)Definition
Confidentiality Contracting-
2 Ingredients of an e effective helping relationship Role-playAttending Skills (Active Listening
Reflecting ,Paraphrasing , Time awareness

3 Managing emotions and the therapeutic alliance SOLER Encouraging Paraphrasing

SummarizingReflection of Feelings

4 Understanding non-verbal behaviours Empathathic Understanding QuestioningActive listening

5 Understanding non-verbal behaviors ConfrontingSelf DisclosureInformation giving

6 Conceptualizing and assessing clients problems, InterpretingStructuring Revision of Skills

concerns and contexts
7 Identifying, definingand evaluating outcome goals Getting to the problem -process of looking for
congruence
 Weekly Schedule
Week Guided Learning F2F (Lecture) Week
8 Influencing Skills Putting it together (person centred
approach
9 Re framing, Cognitive Modelling & Problem Solving Skill Integration

10 Change Management and cognitive restructuring Integration-Determining outcomes

strategies
11 Cyber-Counselling; skills and techniques 1 Setting up zoomSessionsDiscussions
Physical constraints
12 Cyber-Counselling; skills and techniques 2 Role play -using zoom app
13 Integrating the therapeutic Process Revision of integratingEnding skills

14 Practical Assessment
15
Total 56 0
 Resources
1 Richard Nelson-Jones 2015-11-12 Basic Counselling Skills

1 Allen E. Ivey 2019 Intentional Interviewing and Interviewing for Solutions

1 Gerard Egan; Robert J. 2018-02-27 Student Workbook Exercises for Egan's the Skilled
Reese Helper, 11th
her Additional Inf ormation

No Author Year of Title

Publication
1 Gerard Egan; Robert J. 2018-02-27 Student Workbook Exercises for Egan's the Skilled
Reese Helper, 11th
 Introduction
• LEARNING ABOUT COUNSELLING

• There are three key aspects of learning about

counselling. These are:
• Self-awareness
• Understanding the counselling process
• Practical experience
Person-Centered Therapy
Theory and Practice of Counseling

LESSON1-

Know the theory before

skills
I hour lecture -please
see notes provided
and youtube
 WHAT IS COUNSELLING?

• Counseling is NOT:
• -Simply telling people what to do
• -Advising
• -Solving people’s problems
• -Analyzing problem and giving interpretations
• -Giving a pep talk
• -Making people dependent on us
• -Just listening
• -Information giving although information may be given in counseling
• -Influencing attitudes, beliefs and behaviours by persuasion, compelling or
threatening
 INAPPROPRIATE RESPONSES IN COUNSELLING

• Judging: “You wouldn’t have these problems if you

hadn’t had sex without being married.”
• Attacking: “How could you be that irresponsible? Having
sex without using a condom!”
• Denial: “Don’t worry. I’m sure that it’s nothing important.
Just a little infection.”
• Pity: “Poor thing! How terrible that happened! I hope you
don’t have an STD!”
 Conducting Counselling Sessions

Copyright 2006 ©Brooks/Cole, a division of Thomson

Learning
 BASIC COUNSELING SKILLS

• Recognizing communication
patterns
• Managing counseling session
• Attending to client
• Listening skills
 Objectives
• To understand the counseling process
• To learn some basic counseling skills
• To apply the skills in my daily conversation
 Tell me, I forget
Show me, I remember
Involve me, I understand

Ancient Chinese Proverb

Length of Counselling

Copyright 2006 ©Brooks/Cole, a division of Thomson

Learning
 What is counselling ?

Counsellor Client
Therapy
process

sham
 What is counselling/

Copyright 2006 ©Brooks/Cole, a division of Thomson

Learning
 Starting a session

Greeting…..

What to say….

Explain counselling….
…………….
Explain
confidentiality…………

Sham
Greeting ????

Sham
The Skills of Physically Tuning In To Clients

SOLER
– S: Face the client Squarely
– O: Adopt an Open posture
– L: Remember that it is possible at times
to Lean toward the other
– E: Maintain good Eye contact
– R: Try to be relatively Relaxed, or natural
in these behaviors.
Sitting position

Sham
 Breakout

• You will be in a group of 3

• Name yourselves A or B/ C
• A- Counsellor
• B- Client
• C- 0bserver

• Take turns to practice What are you offering ?

• Explian counselling

Copyright 2006 ©Brooks/Cole, a division of Thomson

Learning
 CONFIDENTIALY

• Negotiating working alliance

• Negotiating Confidentiality
• An example of a written Counselling Contract

• Please note that counsellors are professionally and ethically bound not to
continue with therapy if it appears not to be beneficial to the client and reserve
the right to decline clients if the counsellor feels that a client's needs may be
best met elsewhere.

•
Copyright 2006 ©Brooks/Cole, a division of Thomson
Learning
 The contract
• The contract
The counselling contract outlines the confidentiality and
boundaries that a counsellor offers. Confidentiality is
absolute and whatever you disclose in a counselling
session is never revealed outside the session in
connection with the client’s name, neither is the identity of
the client ever revealed to anyone.

Copyright 2006 ©Brooks/Cole, a division of Thomson

Learning
 Sham

• This has certain legal exceptions ie if you threaten to seriously hurt

or kill others (if the counsellor feels you really mean it) or if you tell
the counsellor that you have seriously hurt someone, sexually
abused a child or killed someone already.
• Also, if you state that you intend to kill yourself and the counsellor
believes that you mean to do so, then the counsellor will need to
inform a doctor or emergency services that you are in danger. The
counsellor must inform the appropriate authorities in all these
exceptions to complete confidentiality and will tell you that he/she is
obliged to do so. This is to protect the counsellor, yourself and
others and is a legal requirement.
 Contract
• The contract also specifies that after the session, confidential notes may be
made by the counsellor about the content and process of the counselling
sessions but that you will not be identified in any way. he notes are to help the
counsellor follow the counselling process and identify patterns etc.
• Also, the counsellor will explain that he/she has supervision, either with one
supervisor or within a confidential peer group setting. Supervision is something
that every practising counsellor must have to maintain client and counsellor
safety during counselling. The supervisor will not be told anything which
identifies the client - it is the counselling issues that are transference or the
counsellor is having difficulty dealing with certain issues because they impinge
upon his/her own experiences.

sham
 What is confidentiality ?

Copyright 2006 ©Brooks/Cole, a division of Thomson

Learning
• Thank you