Chapter 8: The Five-Stage

Interview

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 Chapter Goals
Awareness and Knowledge
• Understand and become culturally competent in the five stages of the well-formed
session: empathic relationship—story and strengths—goals—restory—action.
• Learn the basics of decision counseling and how it relates to other theories of
helping.
• Have a good start on Rogerian person-centered counseling, as well as the
empathic relationship basics of most other theories of counseling and therapy,
through your awareness, knowledge, and skills with the basic listening sequence
and the five stages.

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 Chapter Goals
Skills and Action
• Ability to demonstrate further competence with the basic listening sequence (BLS)—the
foundation of effective interviewing, counseling, and psychotherapy.
• Ability to conduct a complete decision counseling session using only listening skills and the
five stages.
• Ability to evaluate your interviewing style and competence.
• Ability to complete a full five-stage interview using only the listening skills and be able to
take these skills to other theories of helping, such as client-centered therapy, cognitive
behavioral therapy, and crisis counseling.
• Empathic understanding and careful listening are valuable in all areas of human
communication.
• Teaching the social skills of listening has become a standard and common part of individual
counseling and psychotherapy.
• When you use the BLS, you can anticipate how others are likely to respond.
• The BLS rests on a foundation of ethics, multicultural competence, positive
psychology/wellness, therapeutic lifestyle changes, and neuroscience.

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 The Basic Listening Sequence (BLS)
Listening skills are the building blocks for establishing an empathic
relationship

Empathic understanding and careful listening are valuable in all

areas of human communication

BLS rests on the foundation of ethics, multiculturalism, social

justice competence, advocacy, positive psychology, therapeutic
lifestyle changes, and neuroscience

None of the BLS skills are effective or meaningful without

attending and observation skills
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 The Basic Listening Sequence (BLS)
BLS is based on attending and observation and consists of the
following microskills:
● Open and Closed Questions
● Encouraging
● Paraphrasing
● Reflecting feelings
● Summarizing

Anticipated client response:

● Discuss their stories, issues, or concerns
● Feel heard
● *Bonus! Will facilitate better interpersonal relationships for YOU
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 TABLE 8.1 Four Examples of the Basic Listening Sequence
Skill Counseling and Psychotherapy Management Medicine Interpersonal Communication (Listening
to Others, Friends, or Family)

Using open "Thomas, could you tell me what "Ajay, tell me what "Ms. Santiago, could we start "Kiara, how did the session with the
questions you'd like to talk to me happened when the with what you think is college loan officer go?"
about…?″ production line went happening with your
down." headache? Is this OK?"

Using closed "Did you graduate from high "Who was involved with the "Is the headache on the left "Were you able to get a loan that covers
questions school?" "What specific production line side or on the light?" "How what you need?" "What interest rate
careers have you looked at?" problem?″″Did you long have you had it?" are they using?"
check the main belt?"

Encouraging Repetition of key words and

restatement of longer phrases
Paraphrasing "So you're considering returning
to college.”
Reflecting ″You feel confident of your ability
feelings but worry about getting in."
"Sounds like you've "I hear you saying that the
consulted with almost headache may be worse
everyone." with red wine or too much
chocolate."
"I sense you're upset and ″You say that you've been
troubled by the feeling very anxious and
supervisor's reaction." tense lately."
"Wow, I can understand what you are
saying, Kiara, two loans are a lot."
"I sense you feel somewhat anxious and
worried when you think of paying it
back."

Summarizing In each case, the effective listener summarizes the cognitive/emotional story from the client's or other person's point of view before bringing in
the listener's own point of view or perhaps an influencing skill
 The Five Stage Model for
Structuring the Session
Carl Rodgers identified characteristics that make an ideal
relationships and working alliance:
● Participate completely in client’s communication
● Comments are in line with what client is trying to convey
● Client is viewed as a coworker on a common problem
● Client is treated as an equal
● Therapist understands the client’s feelings
● Therapist always follows the client’s line of thinking
● Therapists tone conveys an ability to share client’s feelings

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 The Five Stage Model for
Structuring the Session
1. Empathic Relationship: Develop rapport and structuring “Hello, what
brings you in today?” “What did you want to discuss today?”
2. Story and Strengths: Gather data. “Tell me more about…” “What positive
thing happened today?”
3. Goals. Set goals mutually. “What would you like to see happen?”
4. Restory. Explore alternatives and confront incongruities. “What is another
way to think about this?” “What are we going to do about that?”
5. Action. Generalizing to real life. “How will you do what we’ve talk about
this week?”

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 The Five Stage Model for
Structuring the Session
The 5 stages provides an organizing
framework for using the microskills with
multiple theories

Can be used as a checklist but there is no

specific order

Circle: symbol of egalitarian and

collaborative relationship

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 The Five Stage Model for
Structuring the Session
Anticipated response:
● Develop a positive relationship with the
therapist
● Clients will tell their story, set realistic
goals, and develop a new story or way of
viewing issues
● Clients will transfer new learning to daily
life

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 Decision Counseling and the Five
Stages
The five stages are also a structure for decision-making

Benjamin Franklin’s systematic decision-making model:

1. Identify the problem clearly
2. Generate alternative answers
3. Decide what action
*misses the importance of empathic relationship, the need
for goal setting, and ensuring that client takes action

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 Integrating Microskills with Stress
Management and Social Justice
Therapists need to be committed to stress management and
social justice!
• Toxic and long-term stress is damaging and changes the brain
• Oppression also changes the brain – produces significant stress

Clients should be informed about how social systems affect

their personal growth and individual development (the
problem is not them!), and then encourage action

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 Taking Notes in the Session

Intentionality requires accurate information

If note taking in session helps you retain

accurate information, then take notes!

Regardless, you will have to keep records of the

sessions

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