Counselling: The Importance Of Active Listening

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People need counselling in order to deal with certain problems being encountered. Counselling is a professional relationship between a counsellor and a client with the aim to help clients understand the way they live as well as providing help on how to achieve the objectives previously set (Burks & Stefflre, 1979). However, counselling should not be mistaken for advice giving, or an attempt to solve people’s problems. Counsellors are expected to be professional, while at the same time possessing qualities essential in creating an atmosphere of mutual trust and confidentiality with the client. A satisfactory counsellor, client relationship, ensures that the therapy is successful. A client’s will to change, increases when the comfort provided …show more content…

On the contrary, clients should feel unlimited support in effort to find themselves. Research shows that the relationship between a client and the therapist play a key role in the outcome of a session (Lapworth & Sills, 2010). The partnership represents a deep bond and shared participation created between the client and the counsellor (Wolfe & Goldfield, 1998). This essay will assess the importance of counsellor qualities, including the showing of empathy, being genuine, showing unconditional positive regard, the importance of active listening and how these factors contribute to a successful therapy session. Furthermore, criticism of these qualities and the extent to which positive changes in a client occurs due to them will be …show more content…

Counsellors should therefore recognize the client as a person, allowed to have their own specific feelings (Rogers, 1996). The moment a client feel the warmth during a session, they experience a rise in self-esteem and believe in the ability to deal with problems (Hough, 2014). Unconditional Positive Regard has the strong ability to help the client rediscover self-worth. In 1959 Barrett-Lennard carried out a research based on Rogers’ hypothesis that the core conditions, UPR included are important and contribute to changes in personalities. His aim was to find out to which extent the conditions were made available during sessions, so that Rogers’ theory could be tested. He came to the conclusion that while the conditions are not long lasting in the sense that they become part of the counsellor’s personality, they do however form part of a relationship that happens over time in a counselling setting. According to Lietaer (1984), agreement and acceptance work hand in hand. First of all, being completely open to themselves and showing unconditional acceptance towards somebody else, allows a counsellor to better understand a client (Lietaer, 1984). It is recommended that counsellors possess good qualities to be able to hold back and set aside personal prejudices in case a client says something not mutually shared (Liataer, 1984). When it comes to UPR it is recommended that counsellors do not attempt to

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