Techniques, Therapies, and Theorists

Behavior Counseling: B.F. Skinner. Shaping: Incremental changes encouraged by positive reinforcement that increase the frequency of certain behaviors through operant conditioning (Thompson and Henderson, 2011, pp. 263-265). Example: A child is given a compliment as they gradually complete tasks to accomplish a goal. Modeling: A person demonstrates behaviors to be emulated. Example: A teen performs behaviors that are positively reinforced for a child to emulate. Category: Behavioral

Brief Counseling: de Shazer and Glasser (Thompson and Henderson, 2011, pp. 325-326). Scaling: To rate something on a scale of 1-10. Example: A young person is asked to rate how angry they are on a scale of 1-10. Miracle Question: A hypothetical visualization exercise. Example: Asking a young adult how their life may look if a problem, such as an abuser, were no longer in their life. Category: Behavioral

Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy: Aaron Beck. Problem-Solving: Identifying problems and establishing steps to fix them (Thompson and Henderson, 2011, p. 422). Example: A young person identifies smoking pot as a problem and discontinues associating with friends who smoke pot. Cognitive Restructuring: Techniques to change the way people think (Thompson and Henderson, 2011, p. 422). Example: A child who doesn’t like school is asked to think about going to school and having a good time. Category: Cognitive

Transactional Analysis Therapy: Eric Berne. Strokes: Acknowledges the positive and negative aspects of physical contact (Thompson and Henderson, 2011, p. 456). Example: A child is corporally punished for a transgression, which creates a negative connotation for this action, with the child calling it abuse. Games and Rackets: The way in which a person was influenced by their childhood and the way this is used continually justify those past feelings/experiences (Thompson and Henderson, 2011, p. 462). Example: An adolescent girl engages in risky sexual conduct after being molested as a child to justify a lack of sexual control. Category: Cognitive

Person-Centered Therapy: Carl Rogers. Active Listening: Process of repeating information back to the client as they say it to promote a reflective and responsive environment (Thompson and Henderson, 2011, p. 199). Example: A counselor repeats the angry words an adolescent says to show they are attentive and encourage self-reflection. Summarization: Repeating an overview of the client’s discussion (Thompson and Henderson, 2011, p. 199). Example: The counselor rehashes a child’s explanation, focusing on main points and simplicity to encourage reflection. Category: Affective

Beck’s cognitive distortions and Freud’s defense mechanisms share many similarities, as is seen in Beck’s concept of filtering and Freud’s idea of delusional projection. In filtering, a client is removing information that challenges their schema in order for it to better fit their worldview. With delusional projection, a client is imposing their worldview or schema in order for the experience to conform to their belief system.

As a therapist, the techniques which rely on tried and true, empirical evidence are more reliable than techniques that are riskier in nature. Techniques that have a sound, observable history of addressing specific problems of children and adolescents can be used confidently and with respect to the client’s safety and care.

Reference

Thompson, C. L., & Henderson, D. A. (2011). Counseling Children (8th ed.). Belmont: Cengage Learning.