Basic Need Satisfaction Through Communication

Transcription

1 Positive Psychology Practitioner s Toolkit Basic Need Satisfaction Through Communication Communication Exercise 40 min. Group No Many clients entering coaching or therapy will hold conflicting motivations. On the one hand, they have good reasons to change their current behaviours but on the other hand the costs associated with change prevent them from taking action (see also the tool Costs and Benefits of Unhelpful Behaviour ). This decisional conflict can cause clients to get stuck and not take actions that will help them to increase their wellbeing. According to Self-determination Theory (Ryan & Deci, 2000), the motivation to change behaviour is strongly influenced by the degree to which the three basic psychological needs, autonomy, competence and relatedness, are met. When the client s three basic needs are sufficiently met, selfmotivation and effective functioning are expected to increase. In contrast, thwarted satisfaction of the needs will undermine self-motivation and have maladaptive consequences (Baard, 1994; Ryan et al., 1996; Sheldon, Ryan, & Reis, 1996). An important question remains how communication styles can positively contribute to the satisfaction of the three basic needs, so that the client s motivation to change is facilitated. Motivational interviewing is a technique that offers a possible answer to this question. The techniques and style used in motivational interviewing can increase self-motivated behaviour because they promote basic need satisfaction (Markland, Ryan, Tobin & Rollnick, 2005). For instance, the need for autonomy is promoted by avoiding confrontation and coercion and by exploring behavioural options. This tool allows participants to experience how communication can promote basic need satisfaction and may facilitate behavioural change. Author This tool was developed by Hugo Alberts (Ph.D). Goal The goal of this exercise is to train participants in using communication styles that promote basic need satisfaction and may facilitate behavioural change. Advice This exercise can be very effective for people working in a context or role in which they have to lead other people, like for instance leaders or managers. Given the fact that they are often expected to motivate their co-workers to adjust their behaviour or to take on new challenges, the techniques presented here can help them to do so in a way that is likely to promote both well-being and the desired results at the same time. [1]

2 Positive Psychology Practitioner s Toolkit A common pitfall for many practitioners is trying to persuade a client to change his behaviour. Although the motives behind the practitioner s persuasion are often clear (e.g. the practitioner is convinced that need for change is urgent), attempting to directly persuade a client to change can be ineffective because it undermines the client s level of autonomy. Moreover, persuasion requires that the practitioner chooses one side of the client s internal conflict and pushes that agenda. Consequently, the client may adopt the opposite stance, arguing against the need for change, thereby resulting in increased resistance and a reduction in the likelihood of change (Miller & Rollnick, 1991; Miller, Benefield & Tonigan, 1993). The principles outlined in this tool may be helpful for practitioners who rely heavily on persuasion and may help them to perceive the client s behaviour from the angle of need satisfaction rather than from necessity of change. In this exercise, a scenario in a coaching context is chosen. Depending on the background of the audience, the scenario can be changed to make it more relevant for the participants context. Instead of using a fabricated scenario, participants may also choose a real situation, either current or past. Suggested Readings Markland, D., Ryan, R. M., Tobin, V. J., & Rollnick, S. (2005). Motivational interviewing and self determination theory. Journal of social and clinical psychology, 24, Miller, W.R., Benefield, R.G., & Tonigan, J.S. (1993). Enhancing motivation for change in problem drinking: A controlled comparison of two therapist styles. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 61, Miller, W.R., & Rollnick, S. (1991). Motivational interviewing: Preparing people to change addictive behavior. New York: Guilford Press. Miller, W.R., & Rollnick, S. (2002). Motivational interviewing: Preparing people for change (2nd ed.). New York: Guilford Press. Baard, P. P. (1994). A motivational model for consulting with not-for-profit organizations: A study of church growth and participation. Consulting Psychology Journal, 46, Ryan, R. M., Sheldon, K. M., Kasser, T., & Deci, E. L. (I 996). All goals were not created equal: An organismic perspective on the nature of goals and their regulation. In P. M. Gollwitzer & J. A. Bargh (Eds.), The psychology of action: Linking motivation and cognition to behavior (pp. 7-26). New York, NY: Guilford. Sheldon, K. M., Ryan, R. M., & Reis, H. T. (1996). What makes for a good day? Competence and autonomy in the day and in the person. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 22, [2]

3 Tool Description Preparation Before participants engage in this exercise, it is recommended to educate them about basic need satisfaction. In any case, participants should know what autonomy, competence, and relatedness mean, and that thwarting of one or more of these needs leads to suboptimal performance and decreased well-being. Instructions Step 1: Explain the goal of the exercise Inform participants that the goal of this exercise is to practice communicating in a way that will facilitate behavioural change. More specifically, in this exercise, participants will learn how to properly motivate another person to make the desired changes. Step 2: Make groups of three Create groups of three. Inform participants that every group member will have a different role: Person A: This person takes the role of the client Person B: This personal takes the role of the practitioner Person C: This person does not participate in the conversation, but silently observes the conversation. He takes notes and pays attention to what extent the practitioner is taking into consideration one of the basic needs of the client through his way of communicating. Every 10 minutes, participants switch roles so that every group member has played each of the three roles at the end of the exercise. Step 3: Clarifying the different roles The participant who plays the role of a client represents a person who is overweight, and drinks about 6 beers a night. Both blood pressure and cholesterol are elevated. Although the person is very concerned about his weight and health, he also enjoys drinking and smoking because it offers a relief from stress. Moreover, the person believes he is not really able to change his behaviour. The participant who plays the role of the practitioner tries to focus on meeting one of the client s specific basic needs during the conversation. Note that every practitioner addresses a different basic need. In other words, all three basic needs are addressed after completing the exercise, but each need is addressed by a different practitioner. Step 4: Hand out the scenario s and observer rating forms In the appendixes, one client scenario, three different practitioner instructions and three different observer rating forms are included. Print these forms and hand them to the groups. [3]

4 In the first round, the practitioner should focus on building relatedness with the client. In the second and third round, autonomy and competence respectively. For every round, a different instruction should be used by the practitioner with the accompanying observer rating form. For instance, during the first round, relatedness is addressed. Thus, the practitioner should use the relatedness instructions and the observer should use the relatedness rating form. Step 5: Start with the conversations Ask participants to start having the conversations. After every 10 minutes, the conversation ends and group members evaluate their experiences and observations for another 5 minutes: How was it for the client to be talking to the practitioner? What did he/she experience? To what extent did the client s feel his need for relatedness/autonomy/competence were met during the conversation? How was it for the practitioner to guide this conversation? What was easy /difficult? What were the observations of the observer? To what extent did the observer believe the practitioner was able to meet the client s specific basic need? Important note: the instructor should clearly indicate when conversation time and evaluation time are over (e.g. by playing a sound) in order to keep the duration and pace of the exercise similar for all groups. Step 6: Plenary evaluation After all groups have completed the exercise, evaluate and discuss the exercise with the whole group. In this way, participants can learn from observations and processes in other groups as well. [4]

5 Appendix A: Client Scenario The Situation. You lead a busy life, and have a spouse (who also works) and two children. You don t have much in the way of recreation, besides going out for a meal and some drinks with friends on Saturday nights. Lately, you have been drinking more than usual, about a 6-pack of beer most nights. Although you believe it offers you relief from stress, you also noticed that since you increased your drinking, you have been experiencing some serious complains, including restlessness and memory loss. Moreover, a health test at your work revealed that both your blood pressure and cholesterol are elevated. These results made you realize that you probably should reduce your drinking. However, at the same time you don t want to do anything about it because you fear it will take away your way of relaxing. Also, you are not sure whether you have what it takes to change your behaviour. After a lot of hesitation, you finally decided to consult a coach to help you with your problem. Though you re not looking forward to the session with your coach, you don t plan to be rude to the coach. [5]

6 Appendix B: Practitioner Instructions Practitioner Instructions Version 1: Relatedness The Client. This person is overweight and drinks about 6 beers a night. Both blood pressure and cholesterol are elevated, and you are very concerned about this person s diet and weight. The employee is married, has 3 children, and has been working with the firm for 15 years. Your Task. It s not your job to coerce or convince the client, but to increase the client s experienced level of relatedness, so that your client is more likely to trust you and feel heard. Thus, focus on building an empathic connection with your client in this conversation. In order to maximize the client s level of experienced relatedness, during the conversation try to: express empathy explore the client s concerns demonstrate understanding of the client s position avoid judgment or blame Practitioner Instructions version 2: Autonomy The Client. This person is overweight and drinks about 6 beers a night. Both blood pressure and cholesterol are elevated, and you are very concerned about this person s diet and weight. The employee is married, has 3 children, and has been working with the firm for 15 years. Your Task. It s not your job to coerce or convince the client, but to increase the client s experienced level of autonomy, so that the client experiences the need to address this issue himself and is more likely to take action. Thus, focus on building autonomy in this conversation. In order to maximize the client s level of experienced autonomy, during the conversation try to: avoid coercion roll with resistance explore options encourage change talk let the client make decisions about what and how to change Practitioner Instructions version 3: Competence The Client. This person is overweight and drinks about 6 beers a night. Both blood pressure and cholesterol are elevated, and you are very concerned about this person s diet and weight. The employee is married, has 3 children, and has been working with the firm for 15 years. Your Task. It s not your job to coerce or convince the client, but to increase the client s experienced level of competence, so that he is more likely to believe that he has what it takes to make the desired changes in the near future. Thus, focus on building competence in this conversation. In order to maximize the client s level of experienced competence, during the conversation try to: present clear and neutral information about behavior and outcomes help the client develop appropriate goals provide positive feedback support self-efficacy [6]

7 Appendix C: Observer rating forms Observer rating form for Practitioner in Scenario 1: Relatedness Please indicate to which extent the practitioner managed to: not at all slightly somewhat very extremely express empathy explore the clients concerns demonstrate understanding of the client s position avoid judgment or blame Notes: [7]

8 Observer rating form for Practitioner in Scenario 2: Autonomy Please indicate to which extent the practitioner managed to: not at all slightly somewhat very extremely express empathy explore the clients concerns demonstrate understanding of the client s position avoid judgment or blame Notes: [8]

9 Observer rating form for Practitioner in Scenario 3: Competence Please indicate to which extent the practitioner managed to: not at all slightly somewhat very extremely express empathy explore the clients concerns demonstrate understanding of the client s position avoid judgment or blame Notes: [9]