Type of Verbal and Non-Verbal Behaviors
Order Number |
636738393092 |
Type of Project |
ESSAY |
Writer Level |
PHD VERIFIED |
Format |
APA |
Academic Sources |
10 |
Page Count |
3-12 PAGES |
Type of Verbal and Non-Verbal Behaviors
Respond to the following in a minimum of 175 words each question, post must be substantive responses:
As a follow up, please provide an example of what you will look for in the realm of non verbal behaviors and your client’s comfort level.
Respond to classmates in a minimum of 175 words each person, post must be substantive responses:
S.C
Non-verbal behavior can be very important to any relationship, especially that of a counseling relationship. The therapist must listen with their ears, there eyes and their body language. They should keep eye contact with the client and not be staring off into space. Eye contact should also be dependent on the client. Some cultures will tend to use more eye contact, whereas other will prefer it to be broken up. Their tone of voice should also remain calm, especially if the client is agitated or “hyped” up. By the counseling using a calm voice, this can calm the client down. However the calmness shouldn’t be so calm, monotone, as too put the client to sleep or come off as lack of caring. Body language should be neutral, relaxed but not falling asleep, not making any distracting movements and mirroring the client. Mirroring is important to allow the client to feel heard and understood even in an indirect manner. Although the issue IK will definitely have is distracting movements. I am a huge fidgetier and tend to shake my leg automatically if I’m sitting and not even notice it. However, during sessions we must not only pay close attention to our clients body language but ours as well.
Sommers-Flannagan, J., & Sommers-Flannagan, R. (2014). Clinical Interviewing (5th Ed.). Hoboken, NJ: John Wiley & Sons Inc.
C.G.
The first session is the most important because it will be the first contact between counselor and client. During this session, it is crucial the counselor speak in a soft, calming and welcoming voice along with a smile and warm greeting. The counselor, by being gentle, will set the tone for not only the first session but the future sessions, too.
The nonverbal gestures that can help make a new client open and feel comfortable is a soft smile , eye contact ,facial expressions and body gestures because a client can pick up your nonverbal behaviors and the outcome will either be opening up or shutting down. The client can perceive them any way they feel at the time of the assessment. So calming , interesting facial expression and body posture are better then slouching and twisting in your chair or yawning. The verbal communication would be a nice greeting in a soft voice, followed with questions that can bring the client closer to trusting you with their vulnerability. “What brings you in today?” instead of “you only have 45 minutes to tell me what you are here for! using a monotone voice. By being gentle, the counselor can show that he/she is concerned and non-judgmental about the client’s reason for the consult. Also not every client will present a positive attitude about why they have come to the session, and that makes it even more important for the counselor to maintain their composure. Our book points out that, “…sometimes clients show up for therapy with little motivation. They may have been cajoled or coerced into scheduling an appointment” (Summers-Flanagan & Summers-Flanagan, 2014, p. 25). This means that the client has arrived unwillingly and must be presented a gentle disposition. Additionally, the authors comment that, “The therapist needs to be sensitive to the isolation and perhaps vulnerability of the client who expresses goals for the first time” (Summers-Flanagan & Summers-Flanagan, 2014, p.26). It may, in fact, be the first time that this client has ever be seen by a counselor, or even if it is not, it is the initial visit this respective counselor. These are the more reasons for the counselor to show the client that their only purpose is to help them. The client should be meant to fell at ease in the counselor’s presence there for opening up to the counselor. As a counselor we want our clients to come back.
Summers-Flanagan, J. & Summers-Flanagan, R. (2014). Clinical Interviewing (5th ed.)
John Wiley & Sons, Inc: Hoboken, NJ