This is what some readers had to say:
“This book offers a practical ‘how to’ for a strength-based approach
to working with clients. It provides a strong foundation to preparation
for the CCPC certification.” (A reference to the Canadian Council of Professional Certification:
www.ccpcglobal.com).
Simon TP Lee, CSFC,
BRIEF Academy, Singapore
“In the various ways in which I’ve introduced solution-focused
practice, the simple three-step (Tri-Phase) approach has been one of the most
powerful concepts: note-taking slows and
head-nodding continues. This powerful and effective approach is the basis of
Dr. Warner's Solution-Focused Interviewing book.”
Haesun Moon, CSFC, Coordinator,
Solution-Focused Coaching Certificate Program, University of Toronto
“Dr. Warner's book is a welcome addition to the solution-focused
community. His tri-phase model of interviewing makes the solution-focused
approach accessible for use in health care, education, and business.”
Patricia J. Baldwin,
Occupational Therapist, London, Ontario
“This book is an excellent resource, easy to read and with great case
examples. The Solution-Focused approach and Ron’s webcam courses and training visit here have
made a significant difference in our community and in my practice as a
counsellor.”
Bettina Schoen, Family
Counselor, Canadian Mental Health Association, Cariboo Chilcotin, BC
(Excerpt
from the book)
CHAPTER 2
FAST TRACK TO
BEGINNING PRACTICE
The Power of Questions
“Judge a man by his questions, rather than his
answers.”
Voltaire
Too often we offer explanations or observations when we
should be engaging in inquiry. It may be
gratifying to display knowledge and expertise, but our explanations and
observations rarely empower the people to whom we are speaking. Questions, on the other hand, have the power
and the potential to evoke and transform thought into an energized belief
system that can become life-altering. Questions can create new possibilities,
new hope and new inspiration that can lead to transformation and higher levels
of functioning and fulfillment.
Strength-based questions, when used in solution-focused
interviewing, are potent inquiries because they are grounded in our clients’
successes, capabilities, and aspirations. Such inquiries lead to an increased
experience of optimism and positive feelings. And most important, recent
research findings (see Chapter 3) demonstrate that positive emotions also
increase psychological well-being, future health, and longevity.
Solution-Focused Interviewing: Description
The solution-focused
interviewer learns the skills to conduct interviews and discussions in which
clients’ existing strengths and resources are utilized to help them define
their goals and develop solutions to their problems.[1]
This interviewing approach addresses solutions rather than problems by emphasizing
client strengths, competencies, and possibilities rather than weaknesses,
deficits, and limitations. The
solution-focused approach differs from the conventional
problem-based paradigm in that it de-emphasizes the connection between the
problem and its solution. It also
emphasizes the importance of client perceptions and de-emphasizes the role of
the practitioner as the expert who makes assessments and prescribes
interventions (De Jong & Berg, 2002).
Problem-Talk Compared to Solution-Talk: An Important
Distinction
All client
interactions, understandably, begin with a discussion of the problem or
difficult situation. However, questions directed at acquiring details to gain an
understanding of the problem promote problem discussion or, more simply,
“problem-talk.” One of the core skills
of the solution-focused approach is to ask questions early in the conversation
that facilitate the client making the transition from problem-talk – talk about
“what’s wrong” to solution-talk – talk about “what’s wanted.” All questions can be seen as promoting either
problem-talk or solution-talk. It is important to understand clearly the
differences between these two approaches.
Problem-Talk – “What’s Wrong” – The Traditional Helping Approach
Problem-talk is
facilitated by questions that encourage expansion on “what’s wrong,” including
questions about the nature, frequency, intensity, duration, and cause of the
problem. Exploration of the problem is crucial, according to this paradigm, so
that the client and professional can come to an understanding of the
difficulty. The underlying assumption here is that resolution to problems
develops solely out of insight or knowledge gained from problem
discussion. Some helping models (e.g.,
psychoanalysis) go further and maintain that it is of crucial importance to
uncover and explore the “root” cause of the problem. The importance of finding the cause of the
problem, for these models, is based on three presuppositions: that all
psychosocial problems have a specific cause, that the cause can be identified,
and that there is a connection between finding the cause and resolving the
problem (Walter & Peller, 1992).
Solution-Talk – “What’s Wanted” – A Paradigm Shift
In contrast to
exploring “what’s wrong,” the solution-focused approach explores what the
client wants to do about the specific problem. The interviewer listens
sympathetically to the client’s statement of the problem, but looks for
opportunities to ask questions about what’s wanted in order to begin
solution-talk. Solution-talk is promoted by interviewer questions that focus on
client successes, strengths, resources, and goals. The interviewer and client explore together a
more hopeful vision of a future in which the problem is resolved. In situations
where the client is dealing with irreparable loss, the questions explore a
future in which the client is coping as well as possible. Before solution-talk
can progress, the interviewer must first establish good rapport and be
perceived as understanding the client and the problem.
The
solution-building interview can also be differentiated from the conventional
problem-focused interview by the positive ambience of the discussion. Underlying all inquiries directed to the
client is the presupposition that clients possess what they need to resolve
their difficulties. Strength-based
questions – all inquiries that are directed at and emphasize positive attributes
– help clients become aware of their capabilities and create this positive
atmosphere.
Operational Components of
Solution-Focused Interviewing (SFI)
· We do not consider the
client’s or interviewer’s understanding of the problem a necessary condition for
the resolution of the difficulty.
· We identify the client’s
unique personal strengths and resources.
· We explore what the
client wants to be different in his or her life – the goal.
· We mobilize strengths
and clarify goals to provide the foundation for the interviewer and client to
co-construct a solution to the problem that initiated the interview.
Example: Michael’s Promotion
Interview
Michael:
Yesterday
I was told that I had made it to the second round of interviews next Tuesday,
but – here is what throws me – Mr Jacobs, the senior manager, will be chairing
the meeting! He has a reputation of being very critical and tough on employees,
and frankly, many of us are intimidated by him. Last night, I hardly slept at
all worrying about this – I even had a nightmare about losing it during the
interview!
The following are examples of
problem-focused questions that are likely to promote extended
problem-exploration and problem-talk.
Problem-Focused Questions: Examples
·
What
is it about Mr Jacobs that intimidates you?
·
Have
you personally had a run-in with him before?
·
Does
Mr Jacobs remind you of other people in your life who have been critical of
you?
·
What,
specifically, were you thinking about last night that kept you awake and caused
a nightmare?
Now,
let’s look at strength-based questions that promote solution-talk and would
help Michael to see the strengths and competencies he possesses that will
enable him to do well in the upcoming interview.
Solution-Building Questions:
Examples
·
So
you had a first interview that was successful! Can you tell me more about it?
·
What
do you think you said, or how did you handle yourself so that you convinced the
committee to give you another interview?
·
Based
on that interview and similar situations in which you have been successful,
what do you need to do to come across at your best in the upcoming interview?
·
If
Mr Jacobs asks you a tough question – one that you are not sure how to answer,
but you are at your best – how would you like to respond to him?
Any
of the above questions will likely begin the process of solution-building and
goal clarification. These questions will
not be very helpful to the client, however, until the “empathy phase” of the
interview has been effectively undertaken.
The phases of the solution-building interview are explained later in
this chapter. But first let’s examine the assumptions and principles of SFI.
Guiding Assumptions and Principles of Solution-Focused
Interviewing
Accentuate the Positive
This principle is the foundation of the model. It is at the core of all strategies and
questions. Focusing on the positive, what is wanted (rather than what is wrong),
and emphasizing strengths and resources results in client change and
empowerment. An important assumption here is that clients, regardless of their problems or situations,
already possess sufficient strengths and resources to build solutions to their
psychosocial problems. Problem analysis, exploring what
is wrong, is considered counterproductive in this strength-based approach. Our
capacity to change is connected to our ability to see things differently (De
Jong & Berg, 2002).
Construct Positive Goals
Goals,
what the client wants, provide direction for the solution-focused approach.
When goals are articulated by clients – goals that are based on what is most
important to them – there is enhanced hopefulness and motivation to change. Goals need to be expressed in small,
behavioural, and positive terms. Negative goals – stopping or not doing
something – are unproductive and need to be reframed. We do this by asking clients what they will
be doing when the unwanted behaviour is no longer an issue. As long as clients can be helped to identify
what they want, regardless of the nature of the problem or diagnosis, the
solution-focused approach can be helpful (Sklare, 2005).
Assume a Not-Knowing,
Non-Expert Posture
Clients
are considered to be experts on their lives – on what will “work” for them and
on what they want for their future. Adopting a not-knowing posture, a posture
of genuine curiosity toward clients’ successes, strengths, and aspirations
instills motivation to change, hope, and empowerment. All questions ought to be framed from this
not-knowing, non-expert perspective, a perspective that could be described as
one of complimentary curiosity.
Use a Solution-Building Process
The solution-focused
practitioner need not be an expert on client problems and their resolution, but
must have acquired expertise in the solution-building process. The interviewer
role in solution-building can be described as that of a coach asking questions
that identify strengths, clarify goals, and highlight values – things that are
most important to the client. The strength-based conversation instils hope in
clients that they can take responsibility for making the desired positive
changes in their lives. This
approach is consistent with the notion that all psychological treatment facilitates naturally occurring self-healing processes (Bohart &
Tallman, 1999).
The following
describes the phases of a solution-building process.
Tri-Phase Model of the
Solution-Building Process
Introduction
During my first decade of teaching
the solution-focused model, I emphasized the “drivers” – the five primary
intervention questions presented later in this chapter. I noted, however, that students and workshop
participants experienced two major difficulties when using these powerful
questions. First, there were often
difficulties related to the fact that the interviewer did not display adequate
understanding of the client’s situation – in other words, the interviewer was
not sufficiently empathic. The second
difficulty related to there being insufficient clarity about what the client
wanted – client-generated goals. As a result of these two difficulties, I began
teaching the model using a tri-phase approach that conceptualized the interview
as being composed of three discrete, but interactive, tasks or phases. I now
teach novices to address two pre-conditional phases – the empathy phase and the
goal phase – before they ask any of the five primary intervention questions
(now considered part of the third phase, the strategy phase). This
conceptualization provides a template for engaging the client in a more
systematic manner and its adoption has resulted in more rapid acquisition of
solution-building skills by novices.
Empathy Phase (1):
Establishing Rapport
The challenge of this
phase is to demonstrate an understanding of and respect for the client’s world
view in as brief a time as possible.
This is accomplished by employing active listening and reflecting
skills. It requires acknowledgment of the client’s circumstances and adequate
validation of the client’s story. The
interviewer identifies what and who is important to the client and pays close
attention to and compliments the client on perceived strengths, successes, and
resources. Note: Emotions and negative feelings are acknowledged and
validated, but not explored or expanded upon by the interviewer.
In
the case of Michael, who is worried about his job promotion interview, an
empathy-phase response could be as simple as “This promotion is important to you. I can see why you are concerned.” To
use another example – that of an open-heart surgery patient who expresses
apprehension about her upcoming surgery – an empathic response might be “It is perfectly understandable to be
apprehensive about major surgery.” Chapter
5 provides an in-depth discussion of the empathy phase of the interview. Once
the interviewer has given empathic responses and identified and commented on
client strengths or resources, it is time to make the transition to the next
phase.
Goal Phase (2): Providing Direction – “What’s Wanted”
In
this phase, the interviewer and client define a goal – what the client wants to
have happen. Goals are defined in small,
behavioural, and positive terms. As the discussion progresses, goals change
frequently and the interviewer needs to regularly check with the client to
clarify these changes. Asking clients what is it that “tells” them that they
can achieve their goals often uncovers strengths, resources, and values that
result in enhanced determination and confidence. When goals are explored from a
solution-building perspective by using the following three steps, clients often
find their motivation increases and the experience is frequently transformative
and empowering.
Forming Solution-Focused Goals
1. Ask “What’s Wanted”:
Examples:
“How can I help you?” “What would
you like to do (or change) about this?” “What is it that you want to have
happen here?” “How are you hoping I can help you with this?” With involuntary clients, relationship
questions can be very helpful. For example,
“What would (the judge, teacher, parent, etc.) say is the reason she sent you
to see me?” “What would she think it would be helpful for us to talk about
right now?”
2. Inquire
About the Impact of Obtaining the Goal:
Examples:
“What difference will reaching
that goal make in your life?” “How will
your relationship with your son be better when he improves his grades?”
3. Assess the Level of Motivation:
Examples:
“How important is that goal to you? On a
scale of 1 to 10, where 1 represents minimal importance (for now you can live
with the status quo) and 10 represents great importance (you need to make
significant progress toward achieving the goal now), what number would you assign that goal?” “How did you get to that number?” “Can you
think of anything that would increase your motivation to achieve that goal by
one-half-point on the scale?”
Strategy Phase (3): Determining How to Attain the Goal
The attainment of this phase is facilitated
by the groundwork undertaken in the two previous phases. It requires that the client begin to think
about the possibility that there are new and better ways to deal with the
situation, and to take responsibility for making changes that will turn his or
her vision of what’s wanted into reality. The strategy phase involves the
interviewer’s skilful use of the following primary intervention questions.
Using one or more of these questions challenges clients to begin thinking about
how they are going to build a solution to their problem.
The Primary Intervention
Questions
1) Exceptions – exceptions to the
problem:
Finding
exceptions shrinks problems, demonstrates abilities and strengths, and focuses on
what is possible. The interviewer inquires about the times when the client’s
problem or complaint is absent or minimal and what is different about those
times.
2) Outcomes – preferred future:
Here
we ask clients about their future when the problem is resolved, or when they
are coping with the situation as well as possible. The interviewer gathers as
many details as possible about how clients’ lives or situations will be
different when they are successful. The “miracle question,” the most powerful
of all the outcome techniques, asks clients to imagine that the problem they
are having is miraculously resolved while they are sleeping, and then asks them
how they would know in the morning that a miracle had happened.
3) Scaling – goal assessment:
We
ask clients about their progress toward achieving the goal or their motivation
to achieve the goal. We can employ a scale where 1 represents the worst things have been, and 10
represents when the goal is achieved, or where 1 represents very low motivation
to reach the goal and 10 represents maximum motivation to reach it. After
clients mention a number, we ask two further questions: “How did you get to that number?” and “What would have to happen for you to move up one-half-point on that
scale?”
4) Relationship – other opinions:
Here
we ask clients how someone else who knows them would answer a particular
question. For example, “What
would your partner say is different about you when you are handling stress
better at the office?”
5) Coping – survival skills:
Here we ask clients
about how they deal with setbacks. For
example, “How have you managed to cope
with this (problem or complaint) as well as you have?” or “What has helped you even a little to get
through the day?”
Overview
Empathy Phase (1):
Helping the Client to Feel Understood
Goal
Phase (2): Strategy
Phase (3):
Providing Direction Striving for Goal Attainment
Using our client
Michael, let’s see how a solution-focused interview progresses through the
three phases.
Michael:
Yesterday
I was told that I had made it to the second round of interviews next Tuesday,
but – here is what throws me – Mr Jacobs, the senior manager, will be chairing
the meeting! He has a reputation of being very critical and tough on employees,
and frankly, many of us are intimidated by him. Last night, I hardly slept at
all worrying about this – I even had a nightmare about losing it during the
interview!
Interviewer: Sounds like this job promotion is pretty important
to you and you’re nervous about it going well. (Empathy phase response)
Michael: Yes it is important.
I’ve been doing this job for five years now and really feel I’m ready to move
up. But I’m really afraid of blowing this interview – I’ve done that before!
Interviewer: I hear you (Empathy response), but I’m curious – you had a
first interview that was successful. Is that right? Can you tell me about that? (Empathy phase and highlighting a success)
Michael:
Yes,
that interview went very well. I just felt prepared and in control – it was the
best interview I ever had!
Interviewer:
So
is that what you want – your goal is to be really prepared and in control in
the next interview? (Important
transition to the goal phase)
Michael:
Oh
yes – I really want this job. I feel ready for the additional responsibilities,
and frankly, my family could use the additional income. (The client confirms the goal)
Interviewer:
Sounds
like you’re both ready and motivated to have this job. (Re-iterates the goal and Michael strongly nods
agreement) So what do you have to do to
prepare yourself for this interview? (Strategy phase question)
Michael:
Well,
last time I was able to keep myself really positive – well, most of the time –
and I wonder if that is why I was able to feel on top in the interview.
Interviewer: Sounds
right to me (Empathy response). So how were you able to do that – stay
positive? (Strategy phase question.)
Other questions might be “What would help you stay positive?” “What is it like for you when you
are in a positive mood?” “How did you learn to stay positive?” or “How would you like to handle the tough
questions that Mr Jacobs might ask?”
This completes our brief introduction to SFI. The remainder of the handbook may be read
sequentially, or readers may pick and choose from the following chapters
according to what is most relevant to their needs. Part Two of the handbook
provides detailed information about how to use the tri-phase model in solution-building
interviewing.
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K7M 1K1.
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