༄༅།། གེ་སར་རྒྱལ་པོ་གསོ་རིག་གཙུག་ལག་སློབ་སྡེ།།

Khesar Gyalpo University of Medical Sciences of Bhutan

༄༅།། སྨན་གཡོག་དང་མི་མང་གསོ་བའི་སློབ་ཚོགས།།
Faculty of Nursing and Public Health

VIDEO INTERVIEW
WRITE UP: COMPARISON
AND COMMENTARY
(PART2)

Module: BIS 201

Module tutor: Mrs. Sangay C Namgyal
Submitted by: Thinley Dema
Registration number: 2100005
Submission date: 18/04/2023

VIDEO INTERVIEW WRITE UP: COMPARISON AND COMMENTARY (PART2)

 Video Interview Write-up| BIS201

A counseling interview is a conversation between a counselor and a client, in which the

counselor aims to help the client explore their thoughts, feelings, and behaviors in order to gain

insight into their problems and develop strategies for coping with them. Interviewing microskills

are the foundation of interviewing. The effective use of the microskills enables to listen

effectively and help clients change and grow. It also helps the counselor anticipate or predict how

clients will respond to the interviews (Ivey et al., 2010). Therefore, this writeup will describe the

skills I used in my interview session and compare them to the first part of my video interview

conducted in the first semester.

My client in the interview (BIS202 Video Part 2) I conducted was a graduate student who

pursued a Bachelor of Science in Microbiology. She had voluntarily participated in the interview

session and provided consent to record the video for the assignment. From the module on Basic

Interviewing Skills, I have obtained much knowledge about skills used in counseling interviews

through practice and role play. Taking everything into account, I came to realize that counseling

sessions are much more challenging than I thought they would be. However, it was rewarding to

have gained skills for the interview. This time I took on the role of counselor, and it was a very

new experience for me that helped me attain new perspectives and insights. I truly got the gist of

what counseling is.

First of all, rapport building is the primary component in the development of a

therapeutic relationship between the counselor and the client. It contributes to a client feeling

safe and respected so that therapy can succeed (Fritscher, 2022). In the current interview, I

remained unrushed and also prepared to be there for the client, putting my own issues and

problems out of the way for the duration of the session. In the beginning of the session, we

introduced ourselves. I also asked her how I should address her. Moreover, I asked her if she had

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 Video Interview Write-up| BIS201

been for counseling before, and when she said it was her first time, I empathized with her, saying

that she must have felt nervous, and assured her that there was nothing to worry about. I created

a safe and trusting environment for her. I asked her if she was comfortable and let her know that

she could take a break if she needed in the session. I also got permission to take notes. I also

briefed her about the session structure and timing.

Furthermore, I utilized my attending skills in the session to demonstrate my interest and

attentiveness to the client. Good attending will show the client that they are respected, listened

to, and taken seriously and will encourage them to talk about their thoughts and feelings. So,

keeping that in mind, I maintained good eye contact and nodded appropriately to show

understanding and engagement. I managed to use an appropriate vocal tone and speech rate. I

gave her my attention with full consciousness, using appropriate gestures and frequent verbal

tracking. Albert Mehrabian found that communication is 55% nonverbal. Therefore, using body

language as an attending skill is crucial.

Moreover, I have discussed with her confidentiality and its limitations, which is a

mandatory part of counseling sessions. Initially, I asked her if she knew what confidentiality was

in order to clarify her doubts. Then I explained to her the exceptions where confidentiality is

breached. I also assured her that her identity would remain confidential and that I would discuss

the issues with her if they ever arose. Confidentiality is important as it creates a space where the

client can explore sensitive subjects in the knowledge that the counselor will not repeat or misuse

the information discussed outside of the counseling room. For the counselor, maintaining

confidentiality within certain limitations is an ethical responsibility, and it is part of what makes

counseling different from other relationships (Counseling Tutor, 2021).

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I used the client’s name with the pronoun “You” when addressing her in order to establish

a more personal connection and to emphasize the client's individuality. For this session, I have

tried to incorporate almost all the skills I have learned in the BIS201 module. The counseling

session focused on my client's feelings of disappointment and failure after not passing her PE for

RCSE. She also expressed her feelings of hopelessness and uncertainty about her future career

prospects. As an eldest daughter, this setback had kept her from looking after her family.

I applied the active listening skills of encouraging, paraphrasing, and summarizing the

interview. Active listening is the practice of listening to a client while providing feedback,

indicating that the counselor both hears and understands what the client is saying. I had used

encouragers such as head nods, openhanded gestures, phrases such as “Mm-hmm," and simple

repetition of key words that the client had uttered. For example, when the client mentioned

feeling down about failing the PE exam, I responded with "Down?" and this elicited the client to

talk more about it. I used paraphrasing to convey to the client the essence of what was being said

and summarization at the end to clarify and distill what the client had said over a longer time

span.

I also used questioning skills such as open-ended and closed-ended to encourage the

client to explore their thoughts and feelings further. For example, when the client mentioned

feeling like a failure, I asked, "Can you tell me more about why you feel like a failure?" This

allowed the client to delve deeper into her emotions and express her concerns. I also used my

immediacy skills by addressing the client's feelings of guilt and her concern about disappointing

her family. By providing a safe and non-judgmental environment, I encouraged her to express

her thoughts and feelings honestly.

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 Video Interview Write-up| BIS201

Additionally, I reflected the client's feelings by stating, "It sounds like you're feeling

disappointed in yourself, is that it?" This has helped the client feel heard and understood. I

reflected her meaning by asking her what passing this exam meant for her. I provided a positive

perspective by saying that setbacks can be opportunities for growth and learning. This approach

helped the client think about ways to improve and learn from her experience. The technique I

used was reframing.

The next skills I applied were confrontation and influencing skills. Confrontation is often

used when the counselor observes mixed messages or inconsistencies in the client's words,

behaviors, feelings, or thoughts and helps them face them. In my case, my client felt the need to

try again, but she was also afraid of failing again. She was in a dilemma, so I used confrontation

to clarify her mixed feelings. Then, she came to accept that she needed to try again or look for

other alternatives.

For influencing skills, I have used self-disclosure and directives. The purpose of self-

disclosure is to convey empathy to clients and help them feel that they are not alone in their

struggles and that their emotions and experiences are being heard and validated. Therefore, when

my client was feeling like a failure, I disclosed to her that even I had failed in my lives too and

that she was not alone in the way she felt. I used directives such as assigning homework tailored

by the client to provide her specifics for actions. It helped her reflect and take concrete actions to

address her issues.

I was able to empathize with my client and used an empathic response such as ‘I can

understand'. Moreover, I focused on goal-setting with my clients. After I confronted her about

her discrepancies in doing PE and not doing PE, she came to the decision that she wanted to try

again, which now became her goal. She also thought of finding other alternatives for her job.

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Finally, I utilized hypothesis development and exploration to help the client understand

her experiences in a new light. By encouraging the client to explore alternative perspectives and

interpretations of their experiences, I helped the client identify patterns in her thoughts and

behaviors that may be contributing to her difficulties. Moreover, I even asked her about any self-

harm activities or disturbances in her eating or sleeping patterns to ensure her safety. At the end,

I appreciated her effort in sharing her concerns with me.

For the last semester’s video interview, my role was like a friend who was consoling

another friend who was stressed about time management and giving lots of advice, which is a

complete contrast from the current one. I could see that I have improved a lot in terms of skills

and confidence. My first video was scripted, and I seemed nervous. The seating arrangement was

face-to-face with a table in between. This acted like a barrier between me and my friend.

Whereas in the current video, the chairs are kept in the V-position, and there are no tables in

between. A slight angle is preferred to avoid a confrontational arrangement. The past video was

cut into different parts and lacked flow; however, the current video was done in one go and it

seemed natural and smooth.

As for the skills, in the past videos I lacked many skills of interviewing. I did use

empathy, but it was not up to par with the current one. I was using head nods as an encourager,

but I did not use the other parts of encouragers. I was seen making eye contact with my friend,

but it seemed excessive, and my rate of speech was fast and not paced in time. Comparing to the

past, I have improved a lot in maintaining appropriate eye contact, head nods, tone of speech,

empathy, and all the other interviewing skills properly. The current video seems more

professional and detailed than the previous one. I did normalize my friend’s feelings in the past

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and explore more about her concerns. However, compared to the current one, it lacked quality

and precision.

There are many modifications I could have made to my current video. I could notice

many flaws, and I feel that I could not utilize all the skills properly. Like every coin has two

sides, I could also see the strengths and weaknesses of my interview. As everyone had

experienced, the check-list for what to say next has been revolving in my head throughout the

session. I could not go in depth and explore my client’s concerns and feelings as I expected. I

wish I could have used more influencing skills such as logical consequences, feedback,

information, and psychoeducation in the session. I was not able to ask how the client’s concern

affected other aspects of her life. I was just able to focus on her career and family relationship.

The summary I did in the video was not smooth, and I stuttered a few times, as well as when I

was telling her the time of our next session. I feel like I should have explored more, as the video

was too short. I wish I could do it better. I feel like I have learned a lot through this experience.

So lastly, I want to thank my module leader for teaching us these wonderful interviewing

skills in an understanding way and training us to utilize the skills in role play and class. I want to

thank you, madam, for your guidance and support and for making me reflect more. I also want to

thank my two clients for their active participation and help.

Thank you

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 Video Interview Write-up| BIS201

REFERENCE

Counseling Skills and Techniques. (2022). CORP-MAC0 (OCP).

https://onlinecounselingprograms.com/become-a-counselor/resources/counseling-skills-

techniques/#:~:text=Attending%3A%20Attending%20is%20the%20ability,fact%2C

%20according%20to%20Kevin%20J.

Counsellor Tutor Ltd. (2021). Attending in Counselling • The skill of listening and giving your

full attention. Counselling Tutor.

https://counsellingtutor.com/basic-counselling-skills/the-meaning-of-attending/

Counsellor Tutor Ltd. (2021). Confidentiality in Counselling • Counselling Tutor. Counselling

Tutor. https://counsellingtutor.com/confidentiality-in-counselling/

Fritscher, L. (2022). What to Know About Therapeutic Rapport. Verywell Mind.

https://www.verywellmind.com/therapeutic-rapport-2671659

Zalaquett, C.P., Ivey, M.B., & Ivey. A.E. (2016). Intentional interviewing and counseling (9th

ed.). CENGAGE Learning Custom Publishing.