How to Conduct Motivational Interviewing
Motivational interviewing is a form of counseling that aims at igniting the desire to change in an individual. Therapy and counseling serves a variety of purposes, from weight loss to drug addiction. The goal of the motivational interviewer is focus on helping the client establish internal motivation to change a specific behavior. Therefore, rather than pressuring or demanding change, the interviewer guides the client toward her personal reason for wanting change. The following steps support the process of eliciting change with motivational interviewing. The motivational interviewer is also be referred to as "counselor" below.
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Instructions
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Raise awareness of the need for change. At the onset of therapy, many clients have not yet recognized the need for change. Therefore, they are in the precontemplation stage of change. The counselor must use this time to raise uncertainty in the behavior and help the client recognize the negative outcomes if the behavior continues.
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Increase the desire for the client to change. When the client moves into the contemplation stage, he is seriously considering change; however, he has not yet taken action. The interviewer should begin to incline the client toward that change. This may be done by highlighting the risks of not changing and supporting the benefits of changing.
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Assist the client in creating a strategy for change. The client has probably moved into the preparation stage at this time. Helping the client create a functional strategy to begin change is the interviewer’s role. Specific strategies with precise steps should be formed with the client. This strategy should be realistic for the client and effective in changing the problematic behavior.
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Support the progression of change. As a client moves into the action stage of change, he begins to enact the steps previously outlined by the counselor. The counselor should continue to support the client through these steps and overcome possible obstacles along the way. For instance, a client who suffers from alcohol abuse may be supported in avoiding events that involve alcohol.
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Help the client maintain his changes. From the action stage, the client transitions into the maintenance stage. He has taken the steps to change his problematic behavior, but now he needs assistance in sustaining it. The motivational interviewer should continue to reinforce the positive results of the change and point out potential patterns that might cause a relapse. The client may need continual reminders of how his decision to change transitions his behavior from negative or self-destructive to positive.
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Troubleshoot relapses. Despite the ability for the client to change, there exists a possibility of relapse. If a relapse occurs, the interviewer should help the client to reenact the previous cycle moving through each step from precontemplation to maintenance. The client may feel defeated due to his relapse; however, this is a natural part of the change process. Remind him that he has made the positive changes before and he can do it again.
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