Assessment Instructions
All of the information that you need to complete your assessment tasks are included in your Study Guide and associated Readings. Before attempting to complete this Assessment Book you must read through all of the information supplied to you in the Study Guide and Readings for this unit. You are required to complete all assessment questions successfully in order to be deemed competent in this unit. This Assessment Book is designed to assess your knowledge. Copying sentences and blocks of text directly from your Study Guide, Readings, or other documents does not demonstrate your understanding of the topic. Neither does copying the work of another student. Such practices are regarded as plagiarism and will not be tolerated. (Please see your Student Handbook for further information regarding Plagiarism).
A guideline for the number of words required for a response is included to give you an idea of the depth of information that is required to successfully answer the question. If you are well under the number of words you may need to ask yourself whether you have been too superficial in your response. If you are well over the word limit, then you may need to ask yourself whether you have included irrelevant information or repeated yourself unnecessarily.
Section 1
An Introduction to Key Counselling Approaches: Historical Development of Counselling Approaches
1.1 Consider what you learned about the historical development of major counselling theories in relation to the diagram below.
Which of the following options correctly labels the above diagram?
a) A = Person-centred therapy; B = Behaviour therapy; C = Cognitive therapy; D =Cognitive behavioural therapy; E = Narrative therapy; F = Acceptance and commitment therapy; G = Solution focused therapy
b) A = Behaviour therapy; B = Person-centred therapy; C = Cognitive therapy; D = Solution focused Therapy; E = Cognitive behavioural Therapy; F = Narrative therapy; G = Acceptance and commitment therapy
c) A = Behaviour therapy; B = Cognitive therapy; C = Cognitive behavioural therapy;
D = Person-centred Therapy; E = Solution focused Therapy; F = Acceptance and commitment therapy; G = Narrative therapy
Cognitive Behavioural Approaches
1.2 Generally, cognitive behavioural approaches can be differentiated into three ‘waves’.
a) Briefly outline the differences between first, second and third waves of behavioural therapies.
b) Which of the following statement is NOT accurate about cognitive behavioural approaches?
i. Cognitive behavioural therapy came to prominence in the 1970s.
ii. Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) is considered to represent the ‘second wave’ of behaviour therapy.
iii. Acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) is an example of a ‘third wave’ approach of behavioural therapy.
iv. Acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) focuses on helping clients understand their childhood experiences and how these experiences impact their adult lives.
Humanistic Approaches
1.3 The person-centred approach is a prominent example of the humanistic approaches to counselling and therapy.
a) Humanistic approaches were developed in the 1950s as an alternative to which two
(2) popular perspectives of the time?
b) Identify one (1) feature of the humanistic approaches which was an alternative to these dominant perspectives you identified in question 1.3a.
1.4 Which of the following is NOT true about the underpinning concepts and principles of the person-centred approach to counselling?
a) It focuses on the unconscious mind and the impacts of childhood experiences on one’s behaviours.
b) It is based on the premise that humans are responsible for making decisions and choices in their lives.
c) There are three core conditions that counsellors can use to facilitate constructive changes in their clients: empathy, unconditional positive regard and congruence.
d) Person-centred counsellors believe in their client’s potential to grow and move toward self-actualisation.
Post-Modern Approaches
1.5 Briefly outline two (2) key differences between post-modern approaches and the mainstream counselling approaches of the earlier 20 th century.
1.6 Narrative therapy is also an influential postmodern approach to counselling.
a) Name two (2) therapists who are credited for the development of narrative therapy.
b) The core of narrative therapy is based upon the social constructionist philosophy. Which of the following statement best represents such philosophy?
i) People construct meaning of life through ‘stories’, which are built within their familial, social and cultural contexts.
ii) People tend to believe in stories they have heard from their social environment.
iii) Problems arise when people’s ‘stories’ of life were challenged and doubted by those in their social environment.
1.7 In Reading B, you learned about the therapeutic processes and techniques applied in narrative therapy. Answer the following questions based upon Reading B.
a) Whilst narrative therapy does not have a set formula, there are some steps that are commonly undertaken in a narrative therapeutic process. Which of the following is NOT one of the processes?
i) Generate a name for the problem together with client.
ii) Come up with personified attributions for the ‘problem’.
iii) Asking about how the ‘problem’ affected the client’s life.
iv) Inviting the client to consider alternative meanings of events.
v) Discover when the client’s life was fully dominated by the ‘problem’ and finding explanations for it.
vi) Finding evidence for when the client was competent to stand up to the ‘problem’.
vii) Help client to speculate a less problematic future.
viii) Support client to live the alternative story outside of session.
b) Briefly describe the role of counsellor and client in the context of narrative therapy.
c) Essentially, a narrative approach to counselling seeks to provide an environment that facilitates clients to deconstruct their problem-saturated stories and reauthor alternative life stories. Describe two (2) techniques that a counsellor may apply to support clients to do so.
d) Identify one (1) benefit and one (1) limitation of using a narrative approach when counselling culturally diverse clients.
Integrate Your Knowledge
The following question requires you to draw upon all of the knowledge and skills you have learned throughout this section of the Study Guide.
1.8 Complete the table below by correctly identifying which counselling approach each of the counsellors is working from.
| Counsellor | Approach |
| a) Brad is a counsellor who helps clients address their issues by challenging dysfunctional thoughts and making specific behavioural changes. | |
| b) Nigella is a counsellor who believes that each client has the inherent potential for growth and change and seeks to help them towards self-actualisation by offering a counselling environment focused on empathy, unconditional positive regard, and congruence. | |
| c) Paul is a counsellor who helps clients to externalise problematic stories that they tell about themselves and their lives, deconstruct them so that they can see how their problematic stories are being constructed and supported, and then works with them to re-author an alternative narrative that is more aligned with their preferred identify. |
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| d) Chrissy is a counsellor who helps clients achieve their goals by focusing on their strengths and previous successes to help them work towards their goals and preferred future. | |
| e) Mary is a counsellor who helps clients change their relationship to their problems by promoting an acceptance of here-and-now experiences and engaging in experiential exercises. |
Section 2
Theories and the Counselling Process: The Importance of Assessment
2.1 Before counsellors begin implementing specific techniques and interventions, they should conduct an assessment to determine if counselling is appropriate. Imagine that you are working as a generalist counsellor, list five (5) client issues that may indicate that referral to specialist or other services may be required. Hint: See page 20 of the Study Guide.
2.2 Imagine that you are a counsellor conducting an initial session with a new client, Dannielle. Dannielle is a 19-year-old university student who tells you that she has come to counselling at the urging of her mother who has grown concerned about Dannielle’s well-being. Dannielle tells you that she has mood swings – sometimes she feels energetic and focused and is able to study day-in-and-day-out for weeks at a time but then at other times she crashes hard for weeks and even months at a time. During these times Danielle says that she feels really hopeless and lost and struggles to get out of bed in the morning. Dannielle tells you that this pattern of behaviour has led to wild fluctuations in her academic results – some semesters she sets high results and other semesters she fails all of her subjects because she doesn’t submit assignments or sit for her exams. Danielle hopes that you can work with her to keep her mood up so that she can be a good student all of the time.
a) Consider your initial assessment of Dannielle’s need. What indications are there that Dannielle could benefit from a referral to another professional?
b) Imagine that you have discussed referral with Dannielle and she has agreed. In order to make a referral your organisation requires you to complete a referral form. Complete the blank fields in the referral form below to make a referral for Dannielle.
2.3 Imagine that you are a counsellor working in a small counselling organisation. You are conducting an initial session with a new client, 19-year-old Bree. Bree tells you that she thinks she has been having ‘panic attacks’ lately and that she has issues with bulimia. She tells you that she only eats one meal a day, and for the last six months, she generally forces herself to vomit after this meal. She says that she decided to seek help because she has fainted a few times over the last month and is concerned that she might injure herself. You notice that Bree appears to be very underweight and pale. When you ask Bree whether she has spoken to anyone else about her concerns she tells you that she has not.
What steps would you take in this case?
2.4 It is useful for counsellors to develop an understanding of common issues or concerns that clients may present to counselling with. In the following table, briefly describe how these issues can impact on clients.
| Issues/Concerns | Characteristic of the Issues |
| a) Anxiety | |
| b) Family issues | |
| c) Grief and loss | |
| d) Parenting | |
| e) Pregnancy | |
| f) Relationship | |
| g) Self-esteem | |
| h) Social isolation | |
| i) Stress management |
2.5 As counsellors become more experienced, they may practice from an eclectic or integrated approach.
a) Briefly explain what eclecticism and integration are in the counselling context.
b) Why might a counsellor practice eclecticism and/or integration in their work?
Briefly explain how the above statement may apply to your practice, particularly in relation to your skills and knowledge to use theoretical approaches and techniques in counselling.
2.7 Briefly describe how a counsellor could go about making sure that their clients’ human rights are respected and not being discriminated in the counselling process.
2.8 Briefly explain how a counsellor may take duty of care into when selecting and implementing counselling techniques from different approaches with clients.
2.9 The nature of counsellor-client relationship may vary depending on the counselling approach used. Does that mean only counsellors practicing from particular approaches need to maintain practitioner-client boundaries? Justify your reasoning.
2.9 The nature of counsellor-client relationship may vary depending on the counselling approach used. Does that mean only counsellors practicing from particular approaches need to maintain practitioner-client boundaries? Justify your reasoning.
2.10 Imagine that you are a solution-focused counsellor, and your client would like you to help them with mindfulness techniques used in the ACT approach. How would you use work-role boundaries considerations to guide your decisions and actions in this case?
2.11 Outline the rights and responsibilities of a counsellor when it comes to complying with work health and safety requirements in the provision of counselling.
2.12 Imagine that you are a counsellor who has been working with a client, Anita, for the last six weeks. Today, Anita comes into your office with bruises on her arms and a black eye. She tells you that her partner came home drunk the other night and beat her and their 5-year-old son. Anita tells you that this is the third time that it has happened since her partner lost his job six months ago. Anita says that she would like your help in learning how to cope with the abuse but that she doesn’t want to contact the police or leave her partner and asks you not to tell anyone else what has happened.
Complete the following table by briefly explaining how the following legal/ethical considerations apply to or influence your actions as Anita’s counsellor.
| Legal/ Ethical Considerations | How does this consideration influence your actions? |
| a) Privacy, confidentiality, and disclosure |
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| b) Duty of care | |
| c) Mandatory reporting | |
| d) Records management |
2.13 Meeting legal and ethical considerations in counselling is vital for the rights and wellbeing of workers, employers and clients. Complete the following table by identifying one (1) right and one (1) responsibility of these three roles in the counselling process.
| Roles | Rights | Responsibilities |
| a) Counsellor (worker) | ||
| b) Counselling organisation (employer) | ||
| c) Client |
Section 3
The Key Concepts and Techniques of Person-centred Therapy
What is Person-Centred Therapy?
3.1 There are three philosophical beliefs underpinning the person-centred approach: humanism, existentialism and phenomenology. Complete the following table by matching these three beliefs to the most relevant description.
| Description | Philosophical beliefs |
| a) Reality is constructed and different for every individual. There is no one single reality. | |
| b) People are born with potential to grow and develop. | |
| c) People have free will and able to make choices based on their experiences and beliefs. |
The Basic Principles of Person-Centred Therapy
3.2 Rogers proposed six (6) ‘necessary and sufficient’ conditions that are needed in order to establish effective counselling relationship for promoting client change.
a) List these six (6) conditions.
b) Three of these six conditions were commonly referred to as the “core conditions” in the person-centred approach. What are they?
The Key Concepts of Person-Centred Therapy
3.3 Complete the table below by correctly identifying which of the key concepts of person-centred therapy are being described.
| Description | Key concept |
| a) The conceptual construction one has of him or herself, including beliefs about who the person thinks they are and what they think they can do. |
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| b) Where fully functioning people are able to access their internal awareness and knowledge in the process of decision making resulting in congruent behaviour. |
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| c) When a person’s sense of worth has conditions placed upon it either by themselves or the people within their life, usually in the form of gaining approval and avoiding disapproval. |
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| d) When a person is open, creative, and responsible. | |
| e) The process of becoming the person one truly is. |
Person-Centred Therapy Practices
3.4 Demonstrating empathy is one of the core conditions of the person-centred approach to counselling. What is person-centred empathy and why is it important?
3.5 In the context of person-centred counselling, empathic understanding is only effective when it is effectively communicated to the client. Briefly outline how a counsellor can seek to clarify their understanding of a client’s experience and communicate this understanding to the client in order to demonstrate empathy.
3.6 Select whether the following statements are True or False.
a) Person-centred empathy involves the counsellor imposing their frame of reference on the client.
True ( ) False ( )
b) Person-centred counsellors typically use a combination of subjective empathy, interpersonal empathy and objective empathy to contribute to their empathetic understanding.
True ( ) False ( )
c) When making an empathic response, counsellors should check, test and verify the accuracy of their empathic understanding.
True ( ) False ( )
3.7 The second core condition of person-centred counselling is for the counsellor to be congruent in the therapeutic relationship. What does congruence entail within person-centred counselling and why is it important?
3.8 Person-centred congruence does not involve the counsellor sharing every thought that they have with the client. How do person-centred counsellors decide whether or not a particular thought is therapeutically useful to share?
3.9 Select whether the following statements are True or False.
a) The components of insight and transparency are both important to person-centred congruency. True ( ) False ( )
b) Person-centred congruency involves only sharing positive thoughts/feelings with the client. True ( ) False ( )
c) Person-centred counsellors believe that congruence increases the effectiveness of the counselling relationship and process.
True ( ) False ( )
3.10 The third core condition of person-centred counselling is unconditional positive regard. What is unconditional positive regard and why is it important?
3.11 List five (5) ways that a person-centred counsellor can express unconditional positive regard to their client.
3.12 Select whether the following statements are True or False.
a) Person-centred counsellors are only required to express unconditional positive regard to clients when they respect the client’s beliefs and actions. True ( ) False ( )
b) Unconditional positive regard is important because it helps diminish conditions of worth that have been placed on the client.
True ( ) False ( )
c) When a counsellor offers a client unconditional positive regard they are condoning the client’s thoughts/actions. True ( ) False ( )
d) Effective person-centred empathy involves the counsellor losing themselves in the experience of the client. True ( ) False ( )
The Role of the Counsellor and Client
3.13 Briefly outline the role of the counsellor and the client in a person-centred counselling process.
3.14 Select whether the following statements are True or False.
a) Person-centred counsellors should fulfil the client’s need to have an external authority figure tell them how to conduct their life.
b) In person-centred counselling, the client should determine the focus of the counselling conversation.
c) Effective person-centred counsellors seek to apply the core conditions of person- centred therapy even when using basic counselling microskills.
The Process of Person- Centred Therapy
3.15 Just like other forms of counselling, it is important for person-centred counsellors to monitor and evaluate the counselling process. Considering what you have learned about the person-centred approach, what type of monitoring and evaluation do you think is most important in person-centred counselling? Why?
The Benefits and Limitations of Person-Centred Counselling
3.16 Briefly outline one (1) benefit and one (1) limitation of using person-centred counselling with clients from diverse cultural backgrounds.
Integrating Your Knowledge
The following questions require you to draw upon all of the knowledge and skills you have learned throughout the Study Guide and Readings.
3.17 For each of the following clients, identify whether or not person-centred therapy would be an appropriate approach for the client. Justify your response. Hint: Consider the benefits and limitations of using the person-centred approach to address each client’s needs/issues/goals.
a) Paula is a 36-year-old woman who has just discovered that she is pregnant. Paula is married and already has two children, 12-year-old Sam and 8-year-old Bella. This pregnancy is unplanned, and Paula is not sure that she wants to take it to term. Paula considers her family to be ‘complete’ but she knows that her husband, Tim, will be thrilled because he always wanted a third child. Paula is confused and doesn’t want to talk to Tim until she has resolved her own feelings about the pregnancy – this is why she has sought out counselling. Do you think person-centred therapy would be appropriate for Paula? Why or why not?
b) Jim is a 62-year-old man who has sought out counselling to address feelings of guilt that he is currently having. Jim’s wife of forty years died last year, and Jim has recently started having romantic feelings for a new neighbor. Jim feels guilty at the thought of moving on and is concerned that he is not showing his wife’s memory enough respect.
Do you think person-centred therapy would be appropriate for Jim? Why/why not?
c) Alex is a 35-year-old electrician who has just started his own business. He is feeling very stressed and feels as though there are never enough hours in the day. Alex has sought out counselling in the hope of learning time management skills and techniques for better handling his stress.
Do you think that person-centred therapy would be appropriate for Alex? Why/why not?
3.18 Imagine that you are a person-centred counsellor working with a new client, 26-year- old Brooke. Brooke has sought out counselling because she is struggling with the recent breakdown of her relationship with her fiancé, Peter. Brooke broke up with Peter three weeks ago after Brooke discovered that Peter had been sending sexually explicit text messages to one of his co-workers. For the last three weeks Peter has
been pressuring Brooke to get back together with him. While Brooke still loves Peter, she is very hurt and doesn’t think that she will ever be able to trust him again. Brooke’s confusion has been further exacerbated by her mother, who is also pressuring Brooke to give Peter a second chance and continue with the wedding that was scheduled for next month. Brooke doesn’t know what to do – she feels as though she is being pulled in different directions.
a) Consider what you have learned about person-centred therapy throughout the Study Guide and Readings. What benefits would person-centred counselling have for Brooke?
b) Imagine that Brooke asks you to tell her what to do in regard to her relationship with Peter. In the space below, write what you would say to Brooke to explain the person-centred approach and why you will not tell her what to do.
c) Imagine that, during the session, Brooke says, “I just feel so lost. My friends are telling me that cheaters never change, my mum is telling me that I should take him back, and Peter is calling me every night telling me how sorry he is and how much he loves me. I miss Peter but I just don’t know what to do. I’m such a mess.”
In the space below, write what you would say to Brooke to demonstrate person-centred empathy.
d) Briefly outline two (2) methods that you would use to evaluate your counselling work with Brooke