Helping Relationship
Psychology 478/578

Course Overview
Instructor
Syllabus
Texts
Resources
Topics

 

Overview: Positive counseling outcomes depend in large part on the quality of the counselor-client relationship - the therapeutic alliance.  A constructive therapeutic relationship is collaborative in nature, grounded in trust and respect, and based on the belief that the client has the capacity for personal growth and change.  Trust is established as the counselor exhibits:

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Accurate empathy - accurately sensing the client's world and communicating that understanding

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Genuineness - self-awareness, honesty and openness with, being real (not phony)

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Unconditional positive regard - accepting and valuing the client as a unique and worthwhile person, being nonjudgmental.

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Collaboration is established through the co-creation of and mutual agreement upon goals and tasks.

Goal: Learn about the constructive therapeutic alliance as key to positive counseling outcomes.

Outcomes:

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Describe the helping relationship.

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Explain the addiction professional's obligation to adhere to ethical and behavioral standards of conduct in the helping profession.

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Explain the confidentiality rights of clients, program procedures that safeguard them and exceptions imposed by statute.

Objectives:

  1. Readings from course and supplemental texts.

  2. Exploration of relevant web sites.

  3. Interviews with local professionals.

  4. Class discussions.

Tasks:

  1. Complete the assigned text readings.

  2. Participate in class discussions.

  3. Complete two of the following exercises:

  1. Explore a minimum of four web sites that provide information on the helping relationship.  Write a 3-page paper on what you learned about the helping relationship, including brief descriptions of the sites you visited as well as your reactions to, and your opinions about, the usefulness of the information provided at each site.

  2. Interview professionals who provide counseling services in the local community. These might include mental health professionals, alcohol/drug counselors, licensed psychologists, licensed professional counselors, social workers and/or school counselors.  Write a 3-page paper reporting on your findings, including 1) the roles of the professionals you interviewed, 2) the types of problems they typically encounter, 3) their counseling style and philosophy, 4) their view of the helping relationship, and 5) the helping skills and techniques they have found to be most useful in their work.

  3. Attend a minimum of two meetings of a local Coalition (or Alliance or Task Force) working to assist a needy, underserved population in the local community. Better yet, become involved.  Write a 3-page paper reporting on your findings and describing the meetings and your reactions to them.  Describe in some detail the extent of the problems the group is dealing with and the strategies they are implementing to address these problems.  What local community constituencies are represented?  What positive outcomes are they anticipating from their efforts, and how are they measuring them?  In your opinion, is the Coalition being effective?  Why or why not?  What would you do to improve it?  How does what you have learned about the helping relationship fit with/relate to the work of the Coalition?