Study Counselling Techniques - learn about counselling theory and techniques in detail and how to use them in the counselling situation.

Enhance your skills and techniques and a counsellor.

If you want to improve your practice with your clients?

Then this course is suitable for you! The course is suitable for anyone wanting to learn more about counselling techniques and theories to use in the counselling and helping situation.

The course is suitable for counsellors, trainee counsellors, social workers, teachers, care workers, support workers, foster careers, volunteers, benefits workers, advice workers and anyone working in the helping environment.

Lesson Structure

There are 8 lessons in this course:

1. Psychoanalytic psychotherapy l - Freud, Erikson, Jung
   • Value and relevance of psychotherapy
   • Emergence of psychoanalytical theory
   • Principles of psychoanalytical theory
   • Elements of the personality
   • The notion of conscious and unconscious
   • Anxiety and psychoanalysis
   • Inbuilt psychological coping and damage repair mechanisms
   • Defence mechanisms
   • Freuds psychosexual theory and Erikson's psychosocial theory
   • Jung's perspective on personality
   • Archetypes
   • Recent developments in psychoanalytical theory
   • Goals of psychoanalytical approach
   • Psychoanalytic techniques
   • Analytic framework
   • Free associations
   • Interpretation
   • Dream analysis
   • Resistance
   • Transference
   • Psychoanalytic approach and counselling
   • Personality disorders
   • Critique for psychoanalytic theory
2. Psychoanalytical psychotherapy ll - Adler
   • Alfred Adler
   • Adler's key concepts
   • Inferiority vs superiority
   • What makes people self interested
   • Social interest and community feeling
   • Individual psychology
   • Psychological types: ruling type, leaning type, avoiding type
   • Sibling relationships
   • Only child
   • First child, second child, youngest child
   • Use of Adlerian theory
   • Applications to counselling
   • Freud and Adler
   • Critique
3. Humanistic/Existential approaches I - Gestalt Therapy; Fritz Perls
   • Introduction
   • Human nature
   • Holistic approach
   • Field theory
   • Figure-formation process
   • Organismic self regulation
   • Focus on the present
   • Resolving dilemmas
   • Personal maturity
   • The effect of contact
   • Effect of energy
   • The experiment
   • Confrontation
   • Gestalt techniques: Internal dialogue, reversal, rehearsal, exaggeration, dream work, etc
   • Critique
4. Humanistic/Existential approaches II - Person-Centred Counselling; Carl Rogers
   • Humanistic therapy
   • Principles of person centred approach
   • Personal attitude of the counsellor
   • Goals of therapy
   • Assessment techniques
   • Areas of application
   • Critique
5. Rational behavioural therapy - Albert Ellis
   • Rational emotive behaviour therapy (REBT)
   • Ellis's view of human nature
   • Personality theory
   • Goals and techniques of therapy
   • Therapeutic techniques
   • Cognitive techniques
   • Emotive techniques
   • Use of REBT
   • Critique
6. Cognitive behavioural therapy - Aaron Beck
   • Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) and REBT
   • Premises of CBT
   • Cognitive distortions
   • Use of cognitive therapy
   • Family therapy
   • Modifications to CBT
   • Stress innoculation training program (SIT)
   • Stages of SIT
   • Constructivist modification
7. Behavioural therapy
   • Contemporary behavioural therapy
   • Behavioural approach
   • Goals and techniques
   • Goals of therapy
   • Use of behaviour therapy
   • Basic ID
   • Critique
8. Solution-focused counselling
   • Introduction
   • Strategies in solution focussed counselling
   • Engaging the client
   • Constructing pathways for change
   • Generating creative solutions
   • Critique

Aims

• Understand psychoanalytical counselling theory; in particular, its origins and application, different techniques, and the work of Sigmund Freud, Albert Jung and Erik Erikson.
• Understand the principal differences between Adlerian and Freudian theory, the key concepts of Adlerian theory, and the 4 stages of the Adlerian counselling process.
• Understand the chief elements of the Gestalt approach, to discuss resolution of problems and to describe different effects and techniques of Gestalt therapy.
• Delineate the person-centred approach to counselling; to understand its principles, goals, assessment techniques and appropriate application
• Explain Albert Ellis’s views and the evolution of Rational Emotive Behaviour Therapy (REBT), the stages involved in developing a rational philosophy of life, and the different techniques used by REBT’s.
• Understand the differences between Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) and REBT, to define the main ‘cognitive distortions’, and to demonstrate an awareness of modifications to CBT
• Develop an appreciation of the characteristics of contemporary behavioural therapy and different problem-solving techniques adopted by behavioural therapists.
• Explain the role of solution-focused counselling in modern therapy and the strategies used to generate solutions.

What You Will Do

• Explain the concept of dream analysis.
• Differentiate between elements of traditional psychoanalytical theory in terms of its usefulness in modern day counselling.
• Describe the modification to traditional psychoanalytical theory as prescribed by Erikson.
• Explain an object-relations interpretation of the origin of ‘narcissistic’ and ‘borderline’ personality disorders.
• Explain the difference between Freudian and Adlerian theory.
• Define the key concepts of Adlerian theory including: personality, goals and lifestyle.
• Explain the concept of superiority v inferiority.
• Describe the 4 stages of the Adlerian counselling process, i.e: -developing the counselling relationship; -exploring the individual; -encouraging self-awareness; -re-education.
• Discuss the pros and cons of Adlerian therapy as applied to the counselling process.
• Define Gestalt therapy.
• Explain the importance of elements of human nature to the Gestalt approach.
• Discuss ways in which dilemmas can be resolved using the Gestalt approach.
• Explain the ‘effect of contact’ and the ‘effect of energy’.
• Discuss the use of confrontation.
• Describe different techniques of Gestalt therapy.
• Discuss the pros and cons of Gestalt therapy as applied to the counselling process.
• Define person-centred counselling.
• Outline the principles of the person-centred approach.
• Discuss how the impact of the counselling process is assessed.
• Discuss suitable areas of application.
• Discuss the pros and cons of the person-centred approach as applied to the counselling process.
• Define REBT.
• Explain Ellis’ views on ‘human nature’.
• Describe Ellis’ theory of personality.
• Discuss the stages involved in developing a rational philosophy of life.
• Describe different techniques used by REBT’s.
• Discuss the pros and cons of REBT as applied to the counselling process.
• Discuss the differences between CBT and REBT.
• Outline the main ‘cognitive distortions’ as set out in CBT.
• Discuss the goals of CBT.
• Describe modifications to CBT (known as CBM).
• Outline the 3 phases involved in CBT.
• Discuss the pros and cons of CBT as applied to the counselling process.
• Define the main characteristics of behavioural therapy.
• Describe different techniques of behavioural therapy including: -relaxation training; -systematic desensitisation; -exposure therapies; -assertion training.
• Discuss the pros and cons of behavioural therapy as applied to the counselling process.
• Define solution-focused counselling.
• Describe how to engage the client.
• Describe how questions are used to construct pathways for change.
• Discuss strategies used to generate creative solutions.
• Discuss the pros and cons of solution-focused therapy to the counselling process.

Sample Course Notes - Put Theory Into Practice

Study This Course To -

• Improve your use of counselling skills and counselling techniques.
• Improve your knowledge, theory and understanding of what makes an effective counsellor.
• Improve the outcomes for your clients.
• Understand in depth different approaches and therapies.
• Understand more about psychoanalytic psychotherapy, solution focused counselling and other forms of counselling.
• Look at other practical applications in the counselling role.
• Learn with highly experienced and well qualified tutors.

Any Questions?

Please click here to contact a tutor or Request a course handbook here.