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Kienhuis, J. (2010) Interviewing for Solutions, Chapter 6, 156-182, in Dollevoet T., Kienhuis, J.,
Lieshout, van N., Minenkova, I, Radygina, V., Schrurs, J. (2010) ‘I am an Adult Person - Development
   and Implementation of Occupational Therapy for Multi Handicapped Youth in Belarus, Matra
                          Program, Publisher NGO Belapdimi, Minsk, Belarus




                                    Interviewing for solutions
                                                Jos Kienhuis
                      Fontys University of Applied Sciences (Tilburg, the Netherlands)


  A solution-focused approach validates clients being the ‘experts of their own lives’ and having exclusive ideas
                                                 about where they want to go and how they want to get there
                                                                                               (de Shazer, 1994)

Introduction
The strengths and the joy one will meet when working with the clients who visit the social centers in Minsk
has been clearly observed in the passion and motivation of the trainees during the execution of the 2 year OT
Train the Trainer program in Minsk. The passion for their clients and their work is identified in their
communication, homework, questions, video tapes and collaboration during the workshops using their
cognitive and pragmatic intelligence, discussing and exchanging the best fitting solutions for their adults in the
social centers in a changing society. This chapter will start with the short history, the principles and main
assumptions definition of the solution focused approach (6.1). In paragraph 6.2 we will go into interviewing for
solutions and creating hope. The 8-step dance will be described in paragraph 6.3 and in 6.4 we address the art
of questioning. The final paragraphs 6.5 and 6.6 will be about enabling clients to have a voice and about
swarm intelligence & resilience.

6.1 Solution-focused approach: history and definition
The solution-focused approach derives from solution-focused brief therapy (SFBT) which was developed at the
Brief Family Therapy Center in Milwaukee by its co-founders Steve de Shazer, Insoo Kim Berg and colleagues
as a response to the question, “What works in counseling and therapy?” The co-developers of the model
worked in a therapy clinic with a team and other therapists observing clients behind a one-way mirror and
using qualitative, process research methods attempting to discover the most effective and efficient therapy
techniques for getting clients to change quickly (De Shazer et al., 1986). Through the years the solution-
focused brief therapy approach has become one of the leading schools of brief therapy throughout the world
as well as a major influence in such divergent fields as business, social policy and education.

              Figure 1: problem talk – solution talk         Solution-Focused Brief Therapy can be defined
                                                             as a short-term goal-focused therapeutic
     Problem Talk Solution Talk                              approach which helps clients change by
                                                             constructing solutions rather than dwelling on
 • Problem formulating       • Goal Formulation
                                                             problems (Figure 1). Elements of the desired
 • Analyzing causes          • Focus at progress
                                                             solution are often already present in the
 • Blaming explanations • Asking for exceptions              client's life, and become the basis for ongoing
 • Defensive attitude        • Empowerment                   change. The ability to articulate what the
                                                             changes will be like is often more important
                              • Good attitude, temper        than understanding what led to the problem.
    • Bad attitude, temper
    • No collaboration        • Collaboration                SFBT is based on the idea that, if our aim is to
    • No ideas                • Many ideas                   help clients change, we ought to use things
                                                             related to how change happens rather than
                                                             concentrating on how problems develop.
        No progression               Progression             Understanding the details and 'cause' of the
                                                             problem is often not necessary to finding a
                                                             solution. In the western world, we like to look
                                                             for causes to our problems. We think that it is
helpful to jump into anyone's problem box. It is more or less ingrained in our mindset; it is almost like our




Interviewing for Solutions – © 2010 Jos Kienhuis                                                                1
lifeblood. It is the way we see things. We feel that if we go into all the possible details of what may have
caused a problem, we will be able to solve it. Often we seem to believe that we cannot begin to build a
solution until we fully understand what has gone wrong before. Often by dwelling on the cause of problems
we can perpetuate and exaggerate them. Over-engaging in self-reflection and focusing on problems actually
makes us feel worse.
George, Iveson & Ratner (1999) suggest that we should start a conversation or session with a period of
problem-free talk. It is often a good beginning, especially if clients are unsure of what they want from the
session at the start. Just a few minutes talk (socializing – an important first step) about something that they
enjoy or a skill that they possess allows them to feel at ease and ready to focus on what they want, or what
direction is helpful for them. There will be sufficient time to set a baseline account of the problem too, which
will make it easier to assess progress. By looking for solutions we shift their focus from the past to the future.
The important issue here is how clients want things to be different and what it will take to make it happen.
Envisioning a clear and detailed picture, of how things will be when things are better, creates hope and
expectation and makes a solution possible. SFBT is future oriented and majors on the establishing and
elaboration of clear goals. Goals direct the therapy process and help it remain focused and brief (if we do not
know where we are going, we do not know when we have got there). SFBT also focuses on solution language
and the client strengths and resources to help clients recognize how to use their resources to bring about
changes (Kienhuis & Switek, 2007). An inquiring attitude is requested being a professional, listening attentive
and with professional curiosity to the clients ideas, perspectives, and goals.

Butter (2008) thinks that professionals ought to possess an open, communicative and reflexive attitude, an
attitude of continuous self research and reflection being aware of your conceptual models and to explicit and
structure them in your work also willing to let go of so-called ‘mindsets’. An open attitude toward another and
yourself is a characteristic that he embraces. Harinck & Meijer (2007), state that an open unprejudiced
attitude is of vital importance. An inquiring attitude goes beyond the individual person himself and includes a
variety in professional behavior on instrumental, communicative and normative level (Claasen. a.o., 2009).
Harinck and Meijer mention four aspects of an inquiring attitude; curiosity – the discovery that you do not
know something and that you are eager to know it; sensitivity for signals – being alert when things do and do
not work out fine and go for insights through reflection asking yourself and clients solution-focused questions;
putting question marks at your daily job. A professional reflects on the quality of his behavior, skills and
attitude in order to become a better one; good administration and observation are important characteristics
of an inquiring attitude too. Harinck en Meijer (2007) continue to say that an inquiring attitude is an approach
that cannot always be observed instantly. An inquiring attitude focuses on expanding insights in a certain area
of the professional activities. Harinck, Kienhuis and de Wit (2009) did research on the inquiring attitude of
students and teacher trainers in Higher Education and mention in this perspective that one has an inquiring
attitude when he is open for new things and ready for the unexpected.

The solution-focused model thus is a mental health model that offers specific skills and change strategies for
enabling and facilitating positive future behaviors. It is future-oriented, goal-directed, and offers a set of well-
defined and easy to learn intervention methods that focus on making changes in clients’ perceptions,
behaviours and social environment. Underlying these intervention-related aspects there are a number of
tenets that characterize and can be related to the effectiveness of the solution-focused approach. These
tenets serve as guidelines for therapists when co-constructing and communicating with clients. Some main
assumptions are mentioned here.

1. If it isn’t broken do not fix it.
All kind of theories, therapy, models, philosophies of interventions are irrelevant if an identified problem has
been solved already by the client. If there is no problem, there should be no therapy.
2. If it works do more of it
If a client is in the process of solving a problem, the primary role of the therapist should be to encourage the
client to do more of what is already working. SFBT therapists do not judge the quality of a client’s solutions,
only whether it is effective. As a result of identifying what works well, the client is able to repeat this success
and the solution further evolves.
3. Clients are seen as competent: there are always exceptions to the problem behaviour
This orientation on strength rather than weakness focuses the therapist on identifying the client’s resources,
enabling the person to solve their own problems. Solution-focused therapists elicit from the client personal
strategies and social situations that have helped them avoid the problem in the past. Clients always display
exceptions to their problems, even small ones, and these exceptions can be utilized to make small changes (de
Shazer, Dolan a.o. (2007)
4. The focus is on solutions



Interviewing for Solutions – © 2010 Jos Kienhuis                                                                  2
Focusing on the solution to the problem and not the problem itself is especially emphasised. By stepping
outside the problem (seeing problems as influences to be overcome) and ‘exception finding’ (identifying times
when problems are absent), those involved with the client are able to work together to defeat the problem.
5. Clients are experts on their own lives
In addition, solution-focused therapists see the client as the expert on their own problems and lives. Simply
put, solution-focused therapists define the problem as what the client says it is. For this reason, the therapist
takes a ‘not knowing position’. This does not mean that the therapist has no expertise, but rather that he or
she does not know as much about the client and his or her resources as the client does (De Jong & Berg, 2002).
6. The language for solution development is different from that needed to describe a problem.
The language of problems tends to be very different from that of solutions. (de Shazer, Dolan, a.o. 2007).
Problem talk is usually negative and past-history focused in order to describe the origins of a problem, and
often suggests the permanence of the problem. The language of solutions however is usually more positive,
hopeful, and future-focused, and suggests the transience of problems. In this perspective we listen to the
voice of Wittgenstein (1962) who stated that the world of the happy is quite another than that of the
unhappy. Röhrig (2005) asks us to scale ourselves on a scale from 1 to 10 in terms of ‘How good are you at
criticizing someone in such a way that he or she has accepted your criticism without being hurt or insulted’?
When giving constructive criticism a first step to take is to talk about what already is going well. That is
solution talk. A solution-focused question during an interview could be: ‘You have probably thought about this
situation and how to change it for the better. Tell me, what do you suggest? What could be a first small step to
achieve your goal?
7. Clients have the desire to succeed
Consistent with an optimistic view of the client, solution-focused therapists do not believe in the concept of
resistance and lack of desire to succeed. In contrary, it is assumed that all clients have the desire to change.
When clients say ‘no’ we see this as a healthy response of the client to tell us that we should not push further
than the client can bear. From this perspective it is not right to criticize clients on their courage to present a
clear opinion (Le Fevere de Ten Hove, 1996). Instead we should draw the conclusion that we did not receive
mandate from the client yet and n order to join with a client we have to adapt our therapeutic intervention.
The Korzybski Institute in Belgium has developed a flowchart for this matter which gives direction for the
therapist in a scheme of interventions (not a diagnosis), based on four possible levels of client-therapist
relationships: a visitor, a searcher, a buyer and a co-therapist relationship.
8. Future orientation
A solution-focused approach is future-oriented. There is not much investigation into the past except to inquire
about those times when the client has been able to develop solutions to the undesired behavior. Instead, the
solution-focused therapist helps the client develop and visualise behaviour that is more desirable or adaptive.
These assumptions can help to support or reframe our ‘present beliefs’ about co-construction and
communication with our clients when needed or useful. Constructing a different way of thinking can certainly
have an impact on our mental model leading us from a more problem-oriented stance towards a more
solution-focused one, making room for increasing empowerment of clients and encouraging them by focusing
on possibilities and strengths to create hope. Isebaert (2007), states, that it is the humanity of the therapist
(with his characteristics and background) who is able to create hope. From this perspective we draw the
question: ‘How do we know and how can we observe that our clients are hopeful, or becoming more hopeful?
What is it that we see, hear or experience when we are interviewing for solutions, using our (total)
communication skills with clients?’

6.2. Interviewing for Solutions – creating hope
An interesting quote about ‘Hope” can be found in the title of the music album ‘Anthem’ of Leonard Cohen:
‘There are cracks, cracks in everything. That’s how the light gets in.’
It is reframing a situation. In the perspective of interviewing for solutions Taylor and Fiske (2005) quote
Cooper, Darmody, and Dolan (2003) who say that working with clients are “hope-friendly” acts. Just entering
into therapeutic conversation, at any level, seems to us to be a statement of hopefulness—hopefulness that,
as Lance Taylor (2005) points out, is already there, available for “tapping into”. The ‘taps’ are questions that
help clients say:
• what they would prefer to be doing more of
• what are some examples of this happening already
• what do they do to help these things happen
• what benefits result from these efforts
• what are some next steps
Taylor (2005) continues to say that one thing we look for is simply the client’s response to being heard: the
head nodding as the therapist reflects an understanding of what has been said, the body shifting, perhaps
leaning slightly forward—what some would call early signs of rapport or positive relationship. Often these



Interviewing for Solutions – © 2010 Jos Kienhuis                                                                3
signs are accompanied or followed by a language shift, from problem description to a statement about
wanting change, a first “invitation” to solution talk. When clients talk about what gives them hope, they often
refer to those moments: you listened, you understood, that gave me hope. The basic skills of reflective
listening are the heart of helping. Listening mindfully and open to the client’s views, free from mental
“chatter”, is an attitude and a daily challenge in working with clients. As stated by Isebaert, (2007) creating
hope, concerns different aspects that reflect the humanity of the therapist. These aspects are appreciation,
authenticity, empathy, care and interest that are described more detailed now.
1. Appreciation: the therapist appreciates by respecting the client and the members of the client system, his
beliefs, existential decisions, and the choices made in an active manner.
2. Authenticity: the therapist will in collaboration with the client construct a new therapeutic reality and the
therapist will show those emotions that are authentic and helpful for building future perspectives for the
client.
3. Empathy: a therapist is also able to use his sensibility and intuition to crawl under the skin of another
person and to verbally and non-verbally express with empathy what the client has experienced.
4. Care: Care for a patient does not only mean being concerned, it also means loving attention. Care is a
pedagogical aspect of the therapeutic relationship and the therapist stimulates the self-motivation of the
client.
5. Interest: a therapist takes interest in the aspects that are of importance of the client. He will be an active
listener and be asking respectful and curious questions for concrete details. In the next paragraph you will
read about the communication of strengths and hope by using the 8-step dance.

These five aspects represent an important way of expressing ethical commitment. The occupational therapist’
personal moral qualities are of the utmost importance to clients. Many of the personal qualities considered
important in the provision of services have an ethical or moral component and are therefore considered as
virtues or good personal qualities. It would be inappropriate to prescribe that all occupational therapists
should possess these qualities, since it is fundamental that these personal qualities are deeply rooted in the
person concerned and developed out of personal commitment rather than the requirement of an external
authority. In the BACP (British Association for Counseling and Psychotherapy) we read that personal qualities,
to which occupational psychotherapists are strongly encouraged to aspire, include:
Empathy:       the ability to communicate understanding of another person’s experience from that person’s
               perspective
Sincerity:     a personal commitment to consistency between what is professed and what is done.
Integrity:     commitment to being moral in dealings with others, personal straightforwardness, honesty and
               coherence.
Resilience: the capacity to work with the client’s concerns without being personally diminished.
Respect:        showing appropriate esteem to others and their understanding of themselves.
Humility:       the ability to assess accurately and acknowledge one’s own strengths and weaknesses.
Competence: the effective deployment of the skills and knowledge needed to do what is required.
Fairness:       the consistent application of appropriate criteria to inform decisions and actions.
Wisdom:         possession of sound judgment that informs practice.
Courage:         the capacity to act in spite of known fears, risks and uncertainty.

Fundamental values of counseling for occupational therapist include a commitment to respecting human
rights and dignity of the client, and ensuring the integrity of the therapist-client relationships which was so
well to be seen on the video tapes made by the trainees in the OT Train the Trainer Program. It is a value to
enhance the quality of professional knowledge of personnel for the future and its application and to alleviate
personal distress and suffering of the client. Values inform principles. They represent an important way of
expressing a general ethical commitment that becomes more precisely defined and action-orientated when
expressed as a principle for instance like the principle autonomy. Autonomy means to have respect for the
client’s right to be self-governing. This principle emphasizes the importance of the client’s commitment to
participate in and relate to activities on a voluntary basis. The principle of autonomy opposes the
manipulation of clients against their will, even for beneficial social ends.

6.3 The 8-step dance
Clients and occupational therapists find themselves in a varied panorama of everyday activities and learning
situations, which demands a lot of flexibility. They are constantly challenged to come up with different
solutions. Adopting the metaphor of Cauffman (2001), we see solution-focused communication as a dance
between therapist(s) and client(s). Many dancing steps are possible and can be combined. The solution-
focused 8-step dance, therefore, is not a rigid dance. This dance allows therapists to do a ‘tango’ or even a
‘waltz’ or ‘quick-step’, which is quite different from doing a ‘quick-trick’. Sometimes a therapist uses only one



Interviewing for Solutions – © 2010 Jos Kienhuis                                                               4
of the steps in a conversation with a client, other times an occupational therapist might use more steps or use
them all. The most elegant dance is the dance that is most effective for a client. When you want to dance you
have to start one way or another. Carrying out step number one ‘making contact’ is, therefore, the best step
for an occupational therapist is to start the dance.
When we compare the assumptions and contents of solution-focused communication, carried out through the
8-step dance with the starting points for enabling clients to have a voice (§ 6.5), we see that there is a great
deal of consensus. They both are focused on building relationships and assuming an inquiring attitude on the
part of the occupational therapist in order to co-construct solutions for ‘educational issues’ with clients. They
place the highest emphasis on respect for clients and their competencies, strengths, and resources to reach
joint goals.
This brings us to the question how we enable our clients to have a voice, since doing so involves joining with
the client, which in fact naturally leads us to use a shared language – a solution language (see also figure 1).
In chapter 4 about occupational therapy and chapter 5 about video interaction guidance we already have read
about the value of total communication with clients, having an observing eye for clients’ language and
gestures, using verbal and non-verbal language to voice them, embracing the tenets and assumptions of the
solution focused approach.
Littrell and Peterson (2005) examined how language shapes the way we understand the world. They stated
that language is a way of structuring the world, giving meaning to it. Perhaps for most people language is
“invisible”, simply woven into the fabric of our lives and not seen as a separate strand in itself. Because we are
so immersed in language, we are not aware of how we use it and how language affects us. A technique that
involves consciousness about our use of language is called ‘reframing’. When we are reframing the problem
situation we look at a ‘problem’ from another perspective. Reframing is about changing the meaning we give
to events, not necessarily changing the events themselves. When a client is quite self-centered you could
reframe this in: “Iwan, I see that you are taking good care of yourself, could you be so kind to pass the bread
for me?’. Or, ‘They call you stubborn? Then you must have a strong will?’ We like to add that solution focused
language shapes the world for clients in a ‘strengths based perspective’. The 8-step dance, as described and
illustrated in figure 2, appears to be a useful tool for doing so (Kienhuis, 2007).

Figure 2: 8-step dance (Cauffman, 2001)
                                                                   1. Making contact: the engine of change runs by
                                                                   building a strong relationship with clients, parents and
              scaling                                              professionals
                                      1. making
                                         contact                   Contextualize: every situation finds itself in a specific
                                                                   context
                                                                   Goals: useful goals (the client’s goals) are signs that
future                                             contextualize   show us the shortest way to solutions
orientation             compliments                                Resources: every client, parent, professional has
                                                                   resources
                                                                   Exceptions: there are exceptions to any problem
                                                                   Compliments: to compliment is a verb – a do word
       exceptions
                                            goalsetting            Future orientation: solutions are realistic by using
                                                                   imagination
                          resources                                Scaling: using the scaling-technique can help to
                                                                   determine differentiation


We will go into the different steps now adding per step solution-focused questions (SF Questions).

1. Making contact
The engine of change runs by building a strong relationship with clients, parents and professionals. One could
ask for the recipe of creating a powerful relationship with the clients in the social centers. It is our first step!
The following hints will get you started (Cauffman, 2006).
     •    It is your job to develop a positive and respectful relationship with your clients and to collaboratively
          create the right cooperative mindset.
     •    Stay focused on their way of thinking and speaking; adjust to the language of your client. Speak the
          same language, verbally and nonverbally.
     •    Go slow and go with the flow. Organize room and quality time to build up cooperation in the
          working relationships at your center
     •    Kiss – principle: keep it smart and simple – do not make things complex neither for your clients nor
          for your colleagues. Develop the goals with each client in RUMBA – formulated terms.



Interviewing for Solutions – © 2010 Jos Kienhuis                                                                           5
•    Stay away of the fantasy of being the savior of your client. “If we can abandon our missionary zeal
          we have less chance of being eaten by cannibals” as Carl Whitaker (1983) puts it.
     •    Cooperate like a flock of birds. Don’t bump into each other. Stay connected as a group and fly at the
          same speed. Work together as a TEAM – Together Everybody Achieves More!
    SF Questions: assume competence and create the future
Hi Sasha, what needs to come out of this meeting that will tell you this has been a worthwhile visit for you?
What made you decide to come to see me? I hear you say that you do not agree with the situation? So you
must know what you prefer instead? How will you know Elena that at the end of the day this workshop has
been useful for you? What will be different for you in your work? What will your clients notice?

Contextualize: every situation finds itself in a specific context
Everything that we encounter in life or at work, we encounter in a specific context. Questions about the
context show the client that you are more interested in him as a person than in his issues or problems. Your
client is assured by your approach that his voice will be heard with the highest respect and appreciation.
Asking context questions will result to discover collaboratively the pieces of information that will lead the
client in the direction of a solution. Like: ‘I hear you had a wonderful evening at home. Could you tell me
something more about it?’
    SF Questions: contextualize
When you are happier, what are you doing then? At what times you are happier? When you are happier, what
will Valentina or Lena notice? In which situations are you less happy? With whom are you happy, in what
place? How did you manage to finish your work on Wednesday?

Goals: useful goals (the client’s goals) are signs that show us the shortest way to solutions
Without a goal of your client you cannot score. Useful goals are fun to carry out. They are realistic, concrete
and achievable and preferably from small goals – small steps - to big ones. Take one step at the time. Useful
goals are the goals where the client is motivated for. Unclear goals will make you feel dissatisfied. You will
soon become insecure, since you will not notice any progress. In table 1 you see an adapted interview model
that can be used as a guideline for a solution-focused motivation interview. The model derives from Furman.
He used it during a Conference presentation at Fontys University in 2007. Goals can help you in your work
perhaps alongside the use of scales, to help you and your client to identify progress, and to notice when you
have reached!

Table 1: Solution-focused motivation interview about having a job

 What do you think are benefits for yourself of
 having a job? What else could be a benefit?
 What may be the benefits for others? What else
 could be a benefit?
 Where would you say you are now on realizing a               1      2      3      4     5      6      7      8      9      10
 job on the scale from 1 to 10?                           |-----------------------------------------------------------------------|
    ______________☺
 What have you already done to get that far? What
 else have you done?
 Who has helped you? In what way? Who else have
 helped you to get this far already?
 How will you know that you have moved up one                 1      2      3      4     5      6      7      8      9      10
 little step on the scale?                                |-----------------------------------------------------------------------|
    ______________☺
 How will you know that you have moved up two                 1      2      3      4     5      6      7      8      9      10
 steps on the scale?                                      |-----------------------------------------------------------------------|
    ______________☺
 To whom will you report about your progress?
 How will you do this?
 Who do you acknowledge when you have reached
 your goal, finding a job? For what part? Who else?


 How will you celebrate Inna, when finding a job?




Interviewing for Solutions – © 2010 Jos Kienhuis                                                                             6
Goals in solution-focused therapy, based partly on De Shazer (1991) will usually have different qualities. Goals
at the first place should be important to the client, and seen by them as involving their hard work. Goals
should be small rather than large and be described in specific, concrete, behavioral terms who will be doing
what, where, when, how. They should be described as the start of something and not as the end of something:
what the first steps will be, not the end point. The description of a goal should be framed in positive terms and
include the presence of new behaviors rather than the absence or cessation of existing behaviors. Goals
should be clear about what the client will do. Since it is not helpful to describe what a client will not do!
Therefore we have to construct goals in achievable steps within the practical constraints of clients' lives. Goals
are therefore interactional - who is going to notice your changes and how? What will the changes mean to
your friends or colleagues at the job, your family? Establishing realistic and concrete goals is not an easy task,
yet experience shows that the more we can help a client clarify his or her 'problem-free' future the more likely
it is to happen.
Solutions can often be different to goals. They often show up as original and unexpected ideas and actions
from your client or from others around them. Clarity about goals and purpose can help you and clients a great
deal and you need to have your ears wide open for the unique, new things they will bring to your meetings.

Resources: every client, parent, professional has resources
The solution-focused approach assumes that every human system, individually or as a team, has resources at
its disposal at all times, even in times of trouble. Most of the times clients or teams have momentarily lost
confidence in their own solution-focused possibilities. Cauffman (2006) says in this perspective, that clients
have (temporarily) lost their personal manual on how to use their resources. Therefore it is our job as an
occupational therapist to help (re) discover these ‘forgotten’ resources and/or to give clients new tools for
building fitting solutions. The essence of resource orientation with your clients is that you turn your attention
and the attention of the staff to everything that goes well in spite of the problems you are facing. The focus is
on what still works and on the resources that are available. It is in fact stepping out of the viscious circle of a
counterproductive problem stance. Instead you boost your possibilities for finding fitting solutions. Sharry,
Madden & Darmody (2001) advise us to become solution detectives, making us aware of the possibilities. This
means that we intent to discover the solution and credit the client with his achievement.
     SF Questions: goals
What is your dream Tatiyana? What is it that you are motivated for? What would you like to achieve this
morning? Suppose you can do three wishes, what is it that you wish for? What would be a good result for you?
When are you feeling at your best? How does that look like? What do you want instead of your problem? How
will you mother know that things are going better? How do you know that this problem can be solved? What
will be the first sign that things are going better? Tell me Yuliya, what is going to be your next step? What can
we do today to make our meeting useful? What needs to happen today that tells us that we did a good job?

Exceptions: there are exceptions to any problem
No single problem is present all the time and with the same intensity. Each exception contains the beginning
of a solution. There are always exceptions to the problem. Exceptions can be identified in moments and under
circumstances when the problem occurs to a lesser degree or even not at all. No client is bad tempered,
depressed, hyper at the same degree during a day. In these exceptions we are able to find and to address the
partial solutions. Exceptions can be identified by asking ‘who, how, what, when and where’ questions. Steve
de Shazer has said on many occasions that why-questions should be avoided since it leads to speculative and
general answers that do not usually clarify goals or behavior. How come is a good alternative, since it is more
likely to lead to a behavioral description (Macdonald, 2007). It may be helpful for all of us to daily wipe our
looking glasses to have clear sight and notice resources in order to voice our clients. In developing a healthy
resource appetite, you will create a productive atmosphere which is a motivator for success.
     SF Questions: exceptions
When does your problem happen less? How do you manage to cope with fear when you have to go to the
dentist? Can you make this happen again at home too? In what other situations do you feel proud? At what
times the problem is less present? Do I hear you well Veronika, you feel good when you go shopping? Can you
tell me more about that? What days at the center do work out fine for you? How do you manage to be in time
on Tuesdays?

Compliments: to compliment is a verb – a do word – and should be used daily
Compliments must be appropriate to the situation and based on reality. They must be genuine, authentic and
sincere. You should not exaggerate your compliments. Complimenting is much more that just trying to be
friendly. It is an attitude in order to join with your clients and to develop a working relationship and is
therefore strongly connected with the first step ‘making contact’ or socializing. Complimenting tells your client



Interviewing for Solutions – © 2010 Jos Kienhuis                                                                 7
that you observed that they are on the right track and that they show useful behavior. Sharing your authentic
appreciation helps your client to do more of what works. The efficiency of complimenting is not dependent on
culture it is dependent on how your compliment is.
    SF Questions: compliments
Wow Danuta! How did you manage to do that? How did you know doing that was important? Where did you
get that idea from? Unbelievable Yuri, how did you know how to get there?

Future orientation: solutions are realistic by using imagination
The past is a limitation. Nor our clients neither we can change it. It would be a waste of time and energy to try
to do so. The problems of us and our clients also belong to the past. Solutions though belong to the future. For
instance when you have a problem at this moment, we can conclude that your solution for it by definition
belongs to the future. If you had a solution for this problem it would not be a problem anymore.
By looking to the future, we ask our clients to bring the desired future into the realm of today. Envisioning is a
strategy to move people into a desired future state. It allows individuals to shift their thinking into the future,
releasing them from their current state. To make this possible we ask our clients future oriented questions.
    SF Questions: future orientation
Suppose you could change your life by one snap of your finger? How would your life look like Nataliya?
Suppose your Belarusian was fluently Maria, how would that make a difference to you?
The miracle question is a special future-oriented question and goes something like this. Suppose you woke up
tomorrow morning and a miracle has occurred while you were sleeping and the problems had disappeared
and the solution was present. How would you know that the solution was present Elena? What would be
different? How would you feel? What would you notice first? How would other people know? If I asked you
Olga to make a video about your life, what would be your main strengths and what other topics need to be
presented?

Scaling: using the scaling-technique can help to determine differentiation
The solution focused approach is about constructing possibilities. At one end of the scale we are looking for
miracles, at the other end we are looking for mere possibilities.There are different types of scales to identify
differentiation and progress and we can use scales in different creative ways like using smiley’s, ladders,
drawings, etc. In fact you can scale everything. You can scale for feelings, progress, motivation, success,
collaboration, presentation, usefulness, etc. Scaling helps us to stay away from the tendency to think and talk
in black and white terms. How often do we hear ourselves and hear our clients use phrases like ‘it is always
like that!’ or ‘he never is on time!’ In this context the next question may be useful. Where are you now? When
    or 1 is ‘no motivation at all’ and ☺ or 10 stands for, ‘very motivated to go to work’. We suggest to talk and
to think in differentiation about the situations and the problems we meet in life. Although we all have our
share of problems, we know that in a way we share and we collect happy and sunny times too. This
differentiated modus - this mindset - allows us to have more freedom in thinking and acting which will also
influence the way we speak and use words. We can choose to speak in differentiated shades of gray (or more
accurately in colour) or in black and white tones. The latter often leads to frustration, since things simply
aren’t black and white.
     SF Questions: scaling
When 1 is ‘I cannot live independently’ and 10 is ‘I live in my apartment’ where are you now on the scale of
independence? Tell me Svetlana, what makes you smile already on this scale? How are you managing to stay
on track on the scale? How come you did not slide backwards? What will be your next step on the scale?

6.4 The art of questioning
The solution focused approach very well permits the discussion of problems. In fact, in solution focused
interviewing, therapists will create space for ‘honoring’ the problem or the issue, which is vital for the therapy
if clients are to feel that the therapist understands their predicament and is interesting in helping. Talking
about what clients want to be different will almost always be talking about the problems since clients will be
describing or pointing out the difference between the problem and what they want. Solution focused
therapists will devote their energy to eliciting a rich description of the clients’ solution, rather than to produce
a very detailed description of the problem (de Shazer, a.o. 2006). They give two reasons for this.
At first when clients develop a detailed description of a solution, it is very likely that they will find avenues to
make their goal come true. When clients are voiced and encouraged to develop their own path, the
motivation to walk it is built.
Secondly problem descriptions often become routinized. They live their own lives, not being helpful and not
focusing on the exceptions and use of the resources of the client during a certain period of time. For instance
the label ‘depression’ can become an all-encompassing description leading one to attend primarily to evidence
that one is depressed. De Shazer and others (2006) state:



Interviewing for Solutions – © 2010 Jos Kienhuis                                                                  8
‘Periods of tiredness, moments of discouragements, relationships faux pas, nettling irritation at small
           slights, etc., are granted foreground status while hopeful thoughts about the future, small
           accomplishments, satisfying interactions, and moments of contentment are either ignored
           completely or dismissed as naïve or untrustworthy because they do not corroborate the description
           of depression’ (p. 154).

Helping the client to develop a solution description (see table 2) will provide a positive and different linguistic
structure. Former experiences are seen as trustworthy, are embraced as evidence and are seen as the
development of a solution by a client coming to pass.

Table 2: Asking questions

Problem-focused thinking results in asking                Solution-focused thinking results in asking
problem-focused questions                                 solution-focused questions

•   When did your problem arise?                          •    When does your problem happen less?
•   What went wrong?                                      •    How did you succeed to make it smaller?
•   How come you do not cope?                             •    How come you are already on a 4 on the scale?
•   Other people must be very embarrassed?                •    What would be a good result for you?
•   What more problems do you have?                       •    What will your friend say when she is satisfied?
•   Why did you not say anything?                         •    What will be your first step to do so?
•   How did your problem get bigger for you?              •    How do you manage to stay on track?


           "The easiest success measurement tool is a simple question. What did you do today to move
           forward? The easiest project plan on earth is also a simple question. What will you do tomorrow to
           move forward? At the end of each day, document your success and design your next move."
                                                                                               Rich DiGirolamo

A solution focused therapist takes a not-knowing stance, using his sincere curiosity and respectful language
without labeling or defining a client. This not knowing stance, which we regard as inevitable, and even think of
as a basic attitude and a skill, includes all kinds of supposed knowledge or foreknowledge, e.g. gender (male,
female), age, diagnosed problem, cultural minority. Rademakers (2004) states, that every client is a minority of
one. He explains that every client has his own unique history, his own unique experience, and his own unique
future. The mentioned not-knowing stance affects the way we ask questions. In this process we are experts in
solution-focused interviewing to help the client find his own solutions by means of his unique history and
resources. We believe that it is the expertise of the client to find fitting solutions. Therefore we communicate
the message to clients that they know best how to solve a problem situation. We think that he is the expert of
his own life. Each client needs room to be able to present his problem. So it is our job to take time to listen
and to voice our client and ask questions that lead to solutions. We do so in order to not only construct
understanding but also to have a conversation that allows the client to decide what he wants to change in his
life. In the next paragraph we will go into the meaning of ‘voicing the client’.

6.5 Voicing the Clients
Hadfield and Haw (2001) state that the links between the rights of young people, their treatment by society
and ‘voice’ has been of interest to those who work with and represent young people for some time. The idea
of ‘voice’ relates with terms such as ‘working from the bottom-up’, ‘partnership’, and ‘participation’, in order
to describe different forms of collaboration between young people and professionals. ‘Voice’ is now used in a
wide variety of projects and policies. Hadfield and Haw continue that the ‘voice’ of young people is being
increasingly sought as part of the general move towards social inclusion. It has become an established element
of central and local government rhetoric, but as it gains in popular usage it becomes increasingly open to
question and criticism. This is particularly so, over the issue of whether the focus of this work should be on
supporting young people articulate their voice or directed at getting professionals to listen and respond.
Inevitably, at the heart of this debate are the ones relating to issues of power and how power intersects with,
and emerges through, positions of, for example, age, social class, ethnicity and gender.
Occupational therapists and clients are a team. They work together in finding mutual understanding about
‘the job that has to been done’. Occupational therapists and clients communicate where they want to go -
what goals they want to achieve and how they can live up to their dreams. It is about enabling clients to have
a voice so we can learn from them. Video interaction guidance can be a very useful instrument to do so and



Interviewing for Solutions – © 2010 Jos Kienhuis                                                                  9
has been used during the project. Teachers, nurses, and occupational therapists too would need to know how
to frame, guide, and revise tasks, and to pose and reformulate questions, so as to learn more about clients’
ideas and understandings. Ball and Cohen did research on the voice of pupils (1999) and came to the
conclusion that learning is not only produced in response to what arises, but also includes a kind of predictive,
imaginative anticipation. We could say that occupational therapists need to learn in and from practice rather
than in preparing to practice, knowing what to do and how to do it.
There is another point of view that is grounded in the idea of emancipation through empowerment. It is about
the equality between the positions of clients and therapists when they respectfully dialogue during the
cooperative activities where one person does not act on another, but rather people work with each other. In
‘Pedagogy of Hope, reliving pedagogy of the oppressed’, (Freire, 2005) we read his statement that he could
not ‘give’ participants a voice but rather that his work ‘provides’ participants with right to a voice.

           ‘No one lives democracy fully, nor do they help it to grow, if, first of all they are interrupted in their
           right to speak, to have a voice, to say their critical discourse, or, second, if they are not engaged, in
           one form or another, in the fight to defend this right, which, after all, is also the right to act.’ (p. 116).

The Ladder of Participation from Hart (1992) is a model for thinking about youth participation. The bottom
three rungs (1–3) describe youth involvement that is not true participation whereas the top five rungs (4–8)
describe true participation. True participation runs from rung 8 - youth-initiated, shared decisions with adults -
towards rung 4 - assigned and informed by adults about the specific role of youngsters and how they are being
involved. Not true participation runs from rung 3 tokenism, to decoration rung 2, and to manipulation rung 1.
Tokenism is where young people appear to be given a voice, but in fact have little or no choice about
participation. Decoration is where young people are used to help or "bolster" a cause in a relatively indirect
way, although adults do not pretend that the cause is inspired by youth. Manipulation is where adults use
youth to support causes and pretend that the causes are inspired by youth.
Essentially, the debate is which of these levels of participation is actually the most meaningful? Many believe
that shared decision making is most beneficial to both young people and adults. Others believe that young
people are most empowered when they are making decisions without the influence of adults. Most often, this
doesn't exclude adults but reduces their role to that of support. Both arguments have merit; ultimately, it is up
to each group to determine which form of decision-making best fits with the groups' needs in the social
centers for our target group.
People with mental ill health or disability meet fear and prejudice from others, often based on misconceptions
about mental ill health. Stigma increases personal suffering and social exclusion and can impede access to
housing and employment. It may even prevent people from seeking help for fear of being labeled. Large
mental hospitals can easily contribute to stigma. Within reforms of psychiatric services, many countries are
moving away from the provision of mental health services through large psychiatric institutions towards
community based services. This goes hand in hand with instructing patients (clients) and their families as well
as the staff in active participation and empowerment strategies. The development of policy for mentally
handicapped people throughout the years has been scheduled in a matched scheme – table 3.

Table 3: development of policy towards counseling and structure of mentally handicapped people

 Person                        Counseling                      Structure                      Policy
 patient                       care, treatment                 Institutes                     Segregation
 human being with              development, training           special services               normalization
 resources
 civilian                      giving support                 normal services                 Integration
 full citizen                  voicing the client             supported living                Inclusion

Because of these changing concepts, care and services to people with a handicap has moved into the direction
of providing support in an inclusive society. Support is addressed to the person with a handicap, as well as to
his direct environment. We are aware of the fact that there are still different forms of social exclusion like
subtle stigmatization, discrimination, self-stigmatization and territorial exclusion. These different forms of
exclusion do exist in varieties. The central issue here is that a handicapped person should be able to grow up,
fulfill his life within his community and within his natural environment. In this way he is connected and
included, and part of society. Steman and van Gennep (1997) state that a handicapped person should be
enabled to have the same possibilities and support making use of services and facilities like other civilians do.




Interviewing for Solutions – © 2010 Jos Kienhuis                                                                      10
6.6. Swarm intelligence and resilience
Swarm intelligence (Kennedy, 2001) learns that ‘no bird ever flew on one wing’. Flocks of birds move together
across the sky, turning and swooping in unison, forming complex patterns. It looks like the movements are
orchestrated, as if they are following one leader flying up front. Three simple rules keep birds flying together
as a flock;
      •     Fly in the same direction as the bird in front
      •     Fly at the same speed as your neighbors do
      •     Try not to bump into each other
This phenomenon has been called distributed control. Shared values and shared goals engender these kinds of
simple rules within an organization. A group of people who have a set of values and goals that are understood
and shared strongly simply don’t need much orchestration. Such a group easily will be able to create flow. To
create flow working with our clients, you have to assess collective visions and goals. Therefore we ask
ourselves at the job: ‘Can you please talk to me about the goals and visions that we all share here at this
service?’ This question is also true for the many professionals within the Matra project ‘I am an adult person’.
The human flock capacity focuses on resourceful and client centered relationships built between occupational
therapist and clients within the social centers. They collaboratively want to find out how to fly in the same
direction, changing from lead position. Occupational therapists do so in order to meet the unique strengths
and resources of clients and put this to work on the challenges they face, flying at the same speed.
Occupational therapists use solution-focused interviewing being a highly respectful approach that acts to
empower clients to rediscover their unique strengths. They try not to bump into each other or into clients,
parents and care takers. A solution-focused approach embraces professional mentality, a mentality that is
strongly connected with our mindset, the daily polishing of our core principles and values that we live; being
equipped for our task to guide and stimulate young adults in society and in their development. It means that
one needs to have a heart in it; being engaged in collective intelligence and ambition.
The swift and chivalrous House Martins are true examples of sensitive and goal-oriented communicators and
they do so without having collisions - taking care of each other during the flight when they cross the
dangerous Sahara. They fly in high atmospheres to avoid dessert sand storms using focused eyes and iron
holding crystals, (magnetite) that like a compass needle detects the correct fields of force to register the right
destiny. They loose tons of weight; from 23 to 15 grams and during this trip they have international
engagements. After their resort period they will start the retour flight collaboratively and face the challenges
of this trip. They finally are engaged again in their habitat – a glorious heaven of hope that is filled with at least
150.000 insects per brood.
The resilience of birds, that seem to be very vulnerable at first sight, proves that we can be very successful
when we are collaborative group members, trained to do so, well equipped, sticking together, having the drive
and attitude to reach our destiny. The power of faith in the strengths ‘of all birds that cross deserts, swamps
or travel seas’, can be a helpful metaphor for all professionals in the field of education and health care.
Believing in a strength-based approach means that ‘all birds carry solutions on their wings’. We experience
occupational therapists being resilient professionals that work at the state social centers in Belarus. Everyday
they manage to plan flights and construct nests with their clients, parents, caretakers and colleagues. During
the project we became very much aware of the expression: If you are not part of the solution then you are
part of the problem. The increasing focus on solutions and on the future inspired us all and lifted us up. During
the project - and in many different ways - we managed to support each other during our flights. We went
through different stages of being wonderful-feathered birds and became better professionals on the job.

References

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Interviewing for Solutions – © 2010 Jos Kienhuis                                                                   11
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Interviewing for Solutions – © 2010 Jos Kienhuis                                                             12

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Interviewing for solutions 2010.doc

  • 1. Kienhuis, J. (2010) Interviewing for Solutions, Chapter 6, 156-182, in Dollevoet T., Kienhuis, J., Lieshout, van N., Minenkova, I, Radygina, V., Schrurs, J. (2010) ‘I am an Adult Person - Development and Implementation of Occupational Therapy for Multi Handicapped Youth in Belarus, Matra Program, Publisher NGO Belapdimi, Minsk, Belarus Interviewing for solutions Jos Kienhuis Fontys University of Applied Sciences (Tilburg, the Netherlands) A solution-focused approach validates clients being the ‘experts of their own lives’ and having exclusive ideas about where they want to go and how they want to get there (de Shazer, 1994) Introduction The strengths and the joy one will meet when working with the clients who visit the social centers in Minsk has been clearly observed in the passion and motivation of the trainees during the execution of the 2 year OT Train the Trainer program in Minsk. The passion for their clients and their work is identified in their communication, homework, questions, video tapes and collaboration during the workshops using their cognitive and pragmatic intelligence, discussing and exchanging the best fitting solutions for their adults in the social centers in a changing society. This chapter will start with the short history, the principles and main assumptions definition of the solution focused approach (6.1). In paragraph 6.2 we will go into interviewing for solutions and creating hope. The 8-step dance will be described in paragraph 6.3 and in 6.4 we address the art of questioning. The final paragraphs 6.5 and 6.6 will be about enabling clients to have a voice and about swarm intelligence & resilience. 6.1 Solution-focused approach: history and definition The solution-focused approach derives from solution-focused brief therapy (SFBT) which was developed at the Brief Family Therapy Center in Milwaukee by its co-founders Steve de Shazer, Insoo Kim Berg and colleagues as a response to the question, “What works in counseling and therapy?” The co-developers of the model worked in a therapy clinic with a team and other therapists observing clients behind a one-way mirror and using qualitative, process research methods attempting to discover the most effective and efficient therapy techniques for getting clients to change quickly (De Shazer et al., 1986). Through the years the solution- focused brief therapy approach has become one of the leading schools of brief therapy throughout the world as well as a major influence in such divergent fields as business, social policy and education. Figure 1: problem talk – solution talk Solution-Focused Brief Therapy can be defined as a short-term goal-focused therapeutic Problem Talk Solution Talk approach which helps clients change by constructing solutions rather than dwelling on • Problem formulating • Goal Formulation problems (Figure 1). Elements of the desired • Analyzing causes • Focus at progress solution are often already present in the • Blaming explanations • Asking for exceptions client's life, and become the basis for ongoing • Defensive attitude • Empowerment change. The ability to articulate what the changes will be like is often more important • Good attitude, temper than understanding what led to the problem. • Bad attitude, temper • No collaboration • Collaboration SFBT is based on the idea that, if our aim is to • No ideas • Many ideas help clients change, we ought to use things related to how change happens rather than concentrating on how problems develop. No progression Progression Understanding the details and 'cause' of the problem is often not necessary to finding a solution. In the western world, we like to look for causes to our problems. We think that it is helpful to jump into anyone's problem box. It is more or less ingrained in our mindset; it is almost like our Interviewing for Solutions – © 2010 Jos Kienhuis 1
  • 2. lifeblood. It is the way we see things. We feel that if we go into all the possible details of what may have caused a problem, we will be able to solve it. Often we seem to believe that we cannot begin to build a solution until we fully understand what has gone wrong before. Often by dwelling on the cause of problems we can perpetuate and exaggerate them. Over-engaging in self-reflection and focusing on problems actually makes us feel worse. George, Iveson & Ratner (1999) suggest that we should start a conversation or session with a period of problem-free talk. It is often a good beginning, especially if clients are unsure of what they want from the session at the start. Just a few minutes talk (socializing – an important first step) about something that they enjoy or a skill that they possess allows them to feel at ease and ready to focus on what they want, or what direction is helpful for them. There will be sufficient time to set a baseline account of the problem too, which will make it easier to assess progress. By looking for solutions we shift their focus from the past to the future. The important issue here is how clients want things to be different and what it will take to make it happen. Envisioning a clear and detailed picture, of how things will be when things are better, creates hope and expectation and makes a solution possible. SFBT is future oriented and majors on the establishing and elaboration of clear goals. Goals direct the therapy process and help it remain focused and brief (if we do not know where we are going, we do not know when we have got there). SFBT also focuses on solution language and the client strengths and resources to help clients recognize how to use their resources to bring about changes (Kienhuis & Switek, 2007). An inquiring attitude is requested being a professional, listening attentive and with professional curiosity to the clients ideas, perspectives, and goals. Butter (2008) thinks that professionals ought to possess an open, communicative and reflexive attitude, an attitude of continuous self research and reflection being aware of your conceptual models and to explicit and structure them in your work also willing to let go of so-called ‘mindsets’. An open attitude toward another and yourself is a characteristic that he embraces. Harinck & Meijer (2007), state that an open unprejudiced attitude is of vital importance. An inquiring attitude goes beyond the individual person himself and includes a variety in professional behavior on instrumental, communicative and normative level (Claasen. a.o., 2009). Harinck and Meijer mention four aspects of an inquiring attitude; curiosity – the discovery that you do not know something and that you are eager to know it; sensitivity for signals – being alert when things do and do not work out fine and go for insights through reflection asking yourself and clients solution-focused questions; putting question marks at your daily job. A professional reflects on the quality of his behavior, skills and attitude in order to become a better one; good administration and observation are important characteristics of an inquiring attitude too. Harinck en Meijer (2007) continue to say that an inquiring attitude is an approach that cannot always be observed instantly. An inquiring attitude focuses on expanding insights in a certain area of the professional activities. Harinck, Kienhuis and de Wit (2009) did research on the inquiring attitude of students and teacher trainers in Higher Education and mention in this perspective that one has an inquiring attitude when he is open for new things and ready for the unexpected. The solution-focused model thus is a mental health model that offers specific skills and change strategies for enabling and facilitating positive future behaviors. It is future-oriented, goal-directed, and offers a set of well- defined and easy to learn intervention methods that focus on making changes in clients’ perceptions, behaviours and social environment. Underlying these intervention-related aspects there are a number of tenets that characterize and can be related to the effectiveness of the solution-focused approach. These tenets serve as guidelines for therapists when co-constructing and communicating with clients. Some main assumptions are mentioned here. 1. If it isn’t broken do not fix it. All kind of theories, therapy, models, philosophies of interventions are irrelevant if an identified problem has been solved already by the client. If there is no problem, there should be no therapy. 2. If it works do more of it If a client is in the process of solving a problem, the primary role of the therapist should be to encourage the client to do more of what is already working. SFBT therapists do not judge the quality of a client’s solutions, only whether it is effective. As a result of identifying what works well, the client is able to repeat this success and the solution further evolves. 3. Clients are seen as competent: there are always exceptions to the problem behaviour This orientation on strength rather than weakness focuses the therapist on identifying the client’s resources, enabling the person to solve their own problems. Solution-focused therapists elicit from the client personal strategies and social situations that have helped them avoid the problem in the past. Clients always display exceptions to their problems, even small ones, and these exceptions can be utilized to make small changes (de Shazer, Dolan a.o. (2007) 4. The focus is on solutions Interviewing for Solutions – © 2010 Jos Kienhuis 2
  • 3. Focusing on the solution to the problem and not the problem itself is especially emphasised. By stepping outside the problem (seeing problems as influences to be overcome) and ‘exception finding’ (identifying times when problems are absent), those involved with the client are able to work together to defeat the problem. 5. Clients are experts on their own lives In addition, solution-focused therapists see the client as the expert on their own problems and lives. Simply put, solution-focused therapists define the problem as what the client says it is. For this reason, the therapist takes a ‘not knowing position’. This does not mean that the therapist has no expertise, but rather that he or she does not know as much about the client and his or her resources as the client does (De Jong & Berg, 2002). 6. The language for solution development is different from that needed to describe a problem. The language of problems tends to be very different from that of solutions. (de Shazer, Dolan, a.o. 2007). Problem talk is usually negative and past-history focused in order to describe the origins of a problem, and often suggests the permanence of the problem. The language of solutions however is usually more positive, hopeful, and future-focused, and suggests the transience of problems. In this perspective we listen to the voice of Wittgenstein (1962) who stated that the world of the happy is quite another than that of the unhappy. Röhrig (2005) asks us to scale ourselves on a scale from 1 to 10 in terms of ‘How good are you at criticizing someone in such a way that he or she has accepted your criticism without being hurt or insulted’? When giving constructive criticism a first step to take is to talk about what already is going well. That is solution talk. A solution-focused question during an interview could be: ‘You have probably thought about this situation and how to change it for the better. Tell me, what do you suggest? What could be a first small step to achieve your goal? 7. Clients have the desire to succeed Consistent with an optimistic view of the client, solution-focused therapists do not believe in the concept of resistance and lack of desire to succeed. In contrary, it is assumed that all clients have the desire to change. When clients say ‘no’ we see this as a healthy response of the client to tell us that we should not push further than the client can bear. From this perspective it is not right to criticize clients on their courage to present a clear opinion (Le Fevere de Ten Hove, 1996). Instead we should draw the conclusion that we did not receive mandate from the client yet and n order to join with a client we have to adapt our therapeutic intervention. The Korzybski Institute in Belgium has developed a flowchart for this matter which gives direction for the therapist in a scheme of interventions (not a diagnosis), based on four possible levels of client-therapist relationships: a visitor, a searcher, a buyer and a co-therapist relationship. 8. Future orientation A solution-focused approach is future-oriented. There is not much investigation into the past except to inquire about those times when the client has been able to develop solutions to the undesired behavior. Instead, the solution-focused therapist helps the client develop and visualise behaviour that is more desirable or adaptive. These assumptions can help to support or reframe our ‘present beliefs’ about co-construction and communication with our clients when needed or useful. Constructing a different way of thinking can certainly have an impact on our mental model leading us from a more problem-oriented stance towards a more solution-focused one, making room for increasing empowerment of clients and encouraging them by focusing on possibilities and strengths to create hope. Isebaert (2007), states, that it is the humanity of the therapist (with his characteristics and background) who is able to create hope. From this perspective we draw the question: ‘How do we know and how can we observe that our clients are hopeful, or becoming more hopeful? What is it that we see, hear or experience when we are interviewing for solutions, using our (total) communication skills with clients?’ 6.2. Interviewing for Solutions – creating hope An interesting quote about ‘Hope” can be found in the title of the music album ‘Anthem’ of Leonard Cohen: ‘There are cracks, cracks in everything. That’s how the light gets in.’ It is reframing a situation. In the perspective of interviewing for solutions Taylor and Fiske (2005) quote Cooper, Darmody, and Dolan (2003) who say that working with clients are “hope-friendly” acts. Just entering into therapeutic conversation, at any level, seems to us to be a statement of hopefulness—hopefulness that, as Lance Taylor (2005) points out, is already there, available for “tapping into”. The ‘taps’ are questions that help clients say: • what they would prefer to be doing more of • what are some examples of this happening already • what do they do to help these things happen • what benefits result from these efforts • what are some next steps Taylor (2005) continues to say that one thing we look for is simply the client’s response to being heard: the head nodding as the therapist reflects an understanding of what has been said, the body shifting, perhaps leaning slightly forward—what some would call early signs of rapport or positive relationship. Often these Interviewing for Solutions – © 2010 Jos Kienhuis 3
  • 4. signs are accompanied or followed by a language shift, from problem description to a statement about wanting change, a first “invitation” to solution talk. When clients talk about what gives them hope, they often refer to those moments: you listened, you understood, that gave me hope. The basic skills of reflective listening are the heart of helping. Listening mindfully and open to the client’s views, free from mental “chatter”, is an attitude and a daily challenge in working with clients. As stated by Isebaert, (2007) creating hope, concerns different aspects that reflect the humanity of the therapist. These aspects are appreciation, authenticity, empathy, care and interest that are described more detailed now. 1. Appreciation: the therapist appreciates by respecting the client and the members of the client system, his beliefs, existential decisions, and the choices made in an active manner. 2. Authenticity: the therapist will in collaboration with the client construct a new therapeutic reality and the therapist will show those emotions that are authentic and helpful for building future perspectives for the client. 3. Empathy: a therapist is also able to use his sensibility and intuition to crawl under the skin of another person and to verbally and non-verbally express with empathy what the client has experienced. 4. Care: Care for a patient does not only mean being concerned, it also means loving attention. Care is a pedagogical aspect of the therapeutic relationship and the therapist stimulates the self-motivation of the client. 5. Interest: a therapist takes interest in the aspects that are of importance of the client. He will be an active listener and be asking respectful and curious questions for concrete details. In the next paragraph you will read about the communication of strengths and hope by using the 8-step dance. These five aspects represent an important way of expressing ethical commitment. The occupational therapist’ personal moral qualities are of the utmost importance to clients. Many of the personal qualities considered important in the provision of services have an ethical or moral component and are therefore considered as virtues or good personal qualities. It would be inappropriate to prescribe that all occupational therapists should possess these qualities, since it is fundamental that these personal qualities are deeply rooted in the person concerned and developed out of personal commitment rather than the requirement of an external authority. In the BACP (British Association for Counseling and Psychotherapy) we read that personal qualities, to which occupational psychotherapists are strongly encouraged to aspire, include: Empathy: the ability to communicate understanding of another person’s experience from that person’s perspective Sincerity: a personal commitment to consistency between what is professed and what is done. Integrity: commitment to being moral in dealings with others, personal straightforwardness, honesty and coherence. Resilience: the capacity to work with the client’s concerns without being personally diminished. Respect: showing appropriate esteem to others and their understanding of themselves. Humility: the ability to assess accurately and acknowledge one’s own strengths and weaknesses. Competence: the effective deployment of the skills and knowledge needed to do what is required. Fairness: the consistent application of appropriate criteria to inform decisions and actions. Wisdom: possession of sound judgment that informs practice. Courage: the capacity to act in spite of known fears, risks and uncertainty. Fundamental values of counseling for occupational therapist include a commitment to respecting human rights and dignity of the client, and ensuring the integrity of the therapist-client relationships which was so well to be seen on the video tapes made by the trainees in the OT Train the Trainer Program. It is a value to enhance the quality of professional knowledge of personnel for the future and its application and to alleviate personal distress and suffering of the client. Values inform principles. They represent an important way of expressing a general ethical commitment that becomes more precisely defined and action-orientated when expressed as a principle for instance like the principle autonomy. Autonomy means to have respect for the client’s right to be self-governing. This principle emphasizes the importance of the client’s commitment to participate in and relate to activities on a voluntary basis. The principle of autonomy opposes the manipulation of clients against their will, even for beneficial social ends. 6.3 The 8-step dance Clients and occupational therapists find themselves in a varied panorama of everyday activities and learning situations, which demands a lot of flexibility. They are constantly challenged to come up with different solutions. Adopting the metaphor of Cauffman (2001), we see solution-focused communication as a dance between therapist(s) and client(s). Many dancing steps are possible and can be combined. The solution- focused 8-step dance, therefore, is not a rigid dance. This dance allows therapists to do a ‘tango’ or even a ‘waltz’ or ‘quick-step’, which is quite different from doing a ‘quick-trick’. Sometimes a therapist uses only one Interviewing for Solutions – © 2010 Jos Kienhuis 4
  • 5. of the steps in a conversation with a client, other times an occupational therapist might use more steps or use them all. The most elegant dance is the dance that is most effective for a client. When you want to dance you have to start one way or another. Carrying out step number one ‘making contact’ is, therefore, the best step for an occupational therapist is to start the dance. When we compare the assumptions and contents of solution-focused communication, carried out through the 8-step dance with the starting points for enabling clients to have a voice (§ 6.5), we see that there is a great deal of consensus. They both are focused on building relationships and assuming an inquiring attitude on the part of the occupational therapist in order to co-construct solutions for ‘educational issues’ with clients. They place the highest emphasis on respect for clients and their competencies, strengths, and resources to reach joint goals. This brings us to the question how we enable our clients to have a voice, since doing so involves joining with the client, which in fact naturally leads us to use a shared language – a solution language (see also figure 1). In chapter 4 about occupational therapy and chapter 5 about video interaction guidance we already have read about the value of total communication with clients, having an observing eye for clients’ language and gestures, using verbal and non-verbal language to voice them, embracing the tenets and assumptions of the solution focused approach. Littrell and Peterson (2005) examined how language shapes the way we understand the world. They stated that language is a way of structuring the world, giving meaning to it. Perhaps for most people language is “invisible”, simply woven into the fabric of our lives and not seen as a separate strand in itself. Because we are so immersed in language, we are not aware of how we use it and how language affects us. A technique that involves consciousness about our use of language is called ‘reframing’. When we are reframing the problem situation we look at a ‘problem’ from another perspective. Reframing is about changing the meaning we give to events, not necessarily changing the events themselves. When a client is quite self-centered you could reframe this in: “Iwan, I see that you are taking good care of yourself, could you be so kind to pass the bread for me?’. Or, ‘They call you stubborn? Then you must have a strong will?’ We like to add that solution focused language shapes the world for clients in a ‘strengths based perspective’. The 8-step dance, as described and illustrated in figure 2, appears to be a useful tool for doing so (Kienhuis, 2007). Figure 2: 8-step dance (Cauffman, 2001) 1. Making contact: the engine of change runs by building a strong relationship with clients, parents and scaling professionals 1. making contact Contextualize: every situation finds itself in a specific context Goals: useful goals (the client’s goals) are signs that future contextualize show us the shortest way to solutions orientation compliments Resources: every client, parent, professional has resources Exceptions: there are exceptions to any problem Compliments: to compliment is a verb – a do word exceptions goalsetting Future orientation: solutions are realistic by using imagination resources Scaling: using the scaling-technique can help to determine differentiation We will go into the different steps now adding per step solution-focused questions (SF Questions). 1. Making contact The engine of change runs by building a strong relationship with clients, parents and professionals. One could ask for the recipe of creating a powerful relationship with the clients in the social centers. It is our first step! The following hints will get you started (Cauffman, 2006). • It is your job to develop a positive and respectful relationship with your clients and to collaboratively create the right cooperative mindset. • Stay focused on their way of thinking and speaking; adjust to the language of your client. Speak the same language, verbally and nonverbally. • Go slow and go with the flow. Organize room and quality time to build up cooperation in the working relationships at your center • Kiss – principle: keep it smart and simple – do not make things complex neither for your clients nor for your colleagues. Develop the goals with each client in RUMBA – formulated terms. Interviewing for Solutions – © 2010 Jos Kienhuis 5
  • 6. Stay away of the fantasy of being the savior of your client. “If we can abandon our missionary zeal we have less chance of being eaten by cannibals” as Carl Whitaker (1983) puts it. • Cooperate like a flock of birds. Don’t bump into each other. Stay connected as a group and fly at the same speed. Work together as a TEAM – Together Everybody Achieves More! SF Questions: assume competence and create the future Hi Sasha, what needs to come out of this meeting that will tell you this has been a worthwhile visit for you? What made you decide to come to see me? I hear you say that you do not agree with the situation? So you must know what you prefer instead? How will you know Elena that at the end of the day this workshop has been useful for you? What will be different for you in your work? What will your clients notice? Contextualize: every situation finds itself in a specific context Everything that we encounter in life or at work, we encounter in a specific context. Questions about the context show the client that you are more interested in him as a person than in his issues or problems. Your client is assured by your approach that his voice will be heard with the highest respect and appreciation. Asking context questions will result to discover collaboratively the pieces of information that will lead the client in the direction of a solution. Like: ‘I hear you had a wonderful evening at home. Could you tell me something more about it?’ SF Questions: contextualize When you are happier, what are you doing then? At what times you are happier? When you are happier, what will Valentina or Lena notice? In which situations are you less happy? With whom are you happy, in what place? How did you manage to finish your work on Wednesday? Goals: useful goals (the client’s goals) are signs that show us the shortest way to solutions Without a goal of your client you cannot score. Useful goals are fun to carry out. They are realistic, concrete and achievable and preferably from small goals – small steps - to big ones. Take one step at the time. Useful goals are the goals where the client is motivated for. Unclear goals will make you feel dissatisfied. You will soon become insecure, since you will not notice any progress. In table 1 you see an adapted interview model that can be used as a guideline for a solution-focused motivation interview. The model derives from Furman. He used it during a Conference presentation at Fontys University in 2007. Goals can help you in your work perhaps alongside the use of scales, to help you and your client to identify progress, and to notice when you have reached! Table 1: Solution-focused motivation interview about having a job What do you think are benefits for yourself of having a job? What else could be a benefit? What may be the benefits for others? What else could be a benefit? Where would you say you are now on realizing a 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 job on the scale from 1 to 10? |-----------------------------------------------------------------------| ______________☺ What have you already done to get that far? What else have you done? Who has helped you? In what way? Who else have helped you to get this far already? How will you know that you have moved up one 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 little step on the scale? |-----------------------------------------------------------------------| ______________☺ How will you know that you have moved up two 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 steps on the scale? |-----------------------------------------------------------------------| ______________☺ To whom will you report about your progress? How will you do this? Who do you acknowledge when you have reached your goal, finding a job? For what part? Who else? How will you celebrate Inna, when finding a job? Interviewing for Solutions – © 2010 Jos Kienhuis 6
  • 7. Goals in solution-focused therapy, based partly on De Shazer (1991) will usually have different qualities. Goals at the first place should be important to the client, and seen by them as involving their hard work. Goals should be small rather than large and be described in specific, concrete, behavioral terms who will be doing what, where, when, how. They should be described as the start of something and not as the end of something: what the first steps will be, not the end point. The description of a goal should be framed in positive terms and include the presence of new behaviors rather than the absence or cessation of existing behaviors. Goals should be clear about what the client will do. Since it is not helpful to describe what a client will not do! Therefore we have to construct goals in achievable steps within the practical constraints of clients' lives. Goals are therefore interactional - who is going to notice your changes and how? What will the changes mean to your friends or colleagues at the job, your family? Establishing realistic and concrete goals is not an easy task, yet experience shows that the more we can help a client clarify his or her 'problem-free' future the more likely it is to happen. Solutions can often be different to goals. They often show up as original and unexpected ideas and actions from your client or from others around them. Clarity about goals and purpose can help you and clients a great deal and you need to have your ears wide open for the unique, new things they will bring to your meetings. Resources: every client, parent, professional has resources The solution-focused approach assumes that every human system, individually or as a team, has resources at its disposal at all times, even in times of trouble. Most of the times clients or teams have momentarily lost confidence in their own solution-focused possibilities. Cauffman (2006) says in this perspective, that clients have (temporarily) lost their personal manual on how to use their resources. Therefore it is our job as an occupational therapist to help (re) discover these ‘forgotten’ resources and/or to give clients new tools for building fitting solutions. The essence of resource orientation with your clients is that you turn your attention and the attention of the staff to everything that goes well in spite of the problems you are facing. The focus is on what still works and on the resources that are available. It is in fact stepping out of the viscious circle of a counterproductive problem stance. Instead you boost your possibilities for finding fitting solutions. Sharry, Madden & Darmody (2001) advise us to become solution detectives, making us aware of the possibilities. This means that we intent to discover the solution and credit the client with his achievement. SF Questions: goals What is your dream Tatiyana? What is it that you are motivated for? What would you like to achieve this morning? Suppose you can do three wishes, what is it that you wish for? What would be a good result for you? When are you feeling at your best? How does that look like? What do you want instead of your problem? How will you mother know that things are going better? How do you know that this problem can be solved? What will be the first sign that things are going better? Tell me Yuliya, what is going to be your next step? What can we do today to make our meeting useful? What needs to happen today that tells us that we did a good job? Exceptions: there are exceptions to any problem No single problem is present all the time and with the same intensity. Each exception contains the beginning of a solution. There are always exceptions to the problem. Exceptions can be identified in moments and under circumstances when the problem occurs to a lesser degree or even not at all. No client is bad tempered, depressed, hyper at the same degree during a day. In these exceptions we are able to find and to address the partial solutions. Exceptions can be identified by asking ‘who, how, what, when and where’ questions. Steve de Shazer has said on many occasions that why-questions should be avoided since it leads to speculative and general answers that do not usually clarify goals or behavior. How come is a good alternative, since it is more likely to lead to a behavioral description (Macdonald, 2007). It may be helpful for all of us to daily wipe our looking glasses to have clear sight and notice resources in order to voice our clients. In developing a healthy resource appetite, you will create a productive atmosphere which is a motivator for success. SF Questions: exceptions When does your problem happen less? How do you manage to cope with fear when you have to go to the dentist? Can you make this happen again at home too? In what other situations do you feel proud? At what times the problem is less present? Do I hear you well Veronika, you feel good when you go shopping? Can you tell me more about that? What days at the center do work out fine for you? How do you manage to be in time on Tuesdays? Compliments: to compliment is a verb – a do word – and should be used daily Compliments must be appropriate to the situation and based on reality. They must be genuine, authentic and sincere. You should not exaggerate your compliments. Complimenting is much more that just trying to be friendly. It is an attitude in order to join with your clients and to develop a working relationship and is therefore strongly connected with the first step ‘making contact’ or socializing. Complimenting tells your client Interviewing for Solutions – © 2010 Jos Kienhuis 7
  • 8. that you observed that they are on the right track and that they show useful behavior. Sharing your authentic appreciation helps your client to do more of what works. The efficiency of complimenting is not dependent on culture it is dependent on how your compliment is. SF Questions: compliments Wow Danuta! How did you manage to do that? How did you know doing that was important? Where did you get that idea from? Unbelievable Yuri, how did you know how to get there? Future orientation: solutions are realistic by using imagination The past is a limitation. Nor our clients neither we can change it. It would be a waste of time and energy to try to do so. The problems of us and our clients also belong to the past. Solutions though belong to the future. For instance when you have a problem at this moment, we can conclude that your solution for it by definition belongs to the future. If you had a solution for this problem it would not be a problem anymore. By looking to the future, we ask our clients to bring the desired future into the realm of today. Envisioning is a strategy to move people into a desired future state. It allows individuals to shift their thinking into the future, releasing them from their current state. To make this possible we ask our clients future oriented questions. SF Questions: future orientation Suppose you could change your life by one snap of your finger? How would your life look like Nataliya? Suppose your Belarusian was fluently Maria, how would that make a difference to you? The miracle question is a special future-oriented question and goes something like this. Suppose you woke up tomorrow morning and a miracle has occurred while you were sleeping and the problems had disappeared and the solution was present. How would you know that the solution was present Elena? What would be different? How would you feel? What would you notice first? How would other people know? If I asked you Olga to make a video about your life, what would be your main strengths and what other topics need to be presented? Scaling: using the scaling-technique can help to determine differentiation The solution focused approach is about constructing possibilities. At one end of the scale we are looking for miracles, at the other end we are looking for mere possibilities.There are different types of scales to identify differentiation and progress and we can use scales in different creative ways like using smiley’s, ladders, drawings, etc. In fact you can scale everything. You can scale for feelings, progress, motivation, success, collaboration, presentation, usefulness, etc. Scaling helps us to stay away from the tendency to think and talk in black and white terms. How often do we hear ourselves and hear our clients use phrases like ‘it is always like that!’ or ‘he never is on time!’ In this context the next question may be useful. Where are you now? When or 1 is ‘no motivation at all’ and ☺ or 10 stands for, ‘very motivated to go to work’. We suggest to talk and to think in differentiation about the situations and the problems we meet in life. Although we all have our share of problems, we know that in a way we share and we collect happy and sunny times too. This differentiated modus - this mindset - allows us to have more freedom in thinking and acting which will also influence the way we speak and use words. We can choose to speak in differentiated shades of gray (or more accurately in colour) or in black and white tones. The latter often leads to frustration, since things simply aren’t black and white. SF Questions: scaling When 1 is ‘I cannot live independently’ and 10 is ‘I live in my apartment’ where are you now on the scale of independence? Tell me Svetlana, what makes you smile already on this scale? How are you managing to stay on track on the scale? How come you did not slide backwards? What will be your next step on the scale? 6.4 The art of questioning The solution focused approach very well permits the discussion of problems. In fact, in solution focused interviewing, therapists will create space for ‘honoring’ the problem or the issue, which is vital for the therapy if clients are to feel that the therapist understands their predicament and is interesting in helping. Talking about what clients want to be different will almost always be talking about the problems since clients will be describing or pointing out the difference between the problem and what they want. Solution focused therapists will devote their energy to eliciting a rich description of the clients’ solution, rather than to produce a very detailed description of the problem (de Shazer, a.o. 2006). They give two reasons for this. At first when clients develop a detailed description of a solution, it is very likely that they will find avenues to make their goal come true. When clients are voiced and encouraged to develop their own path, the motivation to walk it is built. Secondly problem descriptions often become routinized. They live their own lives, not being helpful and not focusing on the exceptions and use of the resources of the client during a certain period of time. For instance the label ‘depression’ can become an all-encompassing description leading one to attend primarily to evidence that one is depressed. De Shazer and others (2006) state: Interviewing for Solutions – © 2010 Jos Kienhuis 8
  • 9. ‘Periods of tiredness, moments of discouragements, relationships faux pas, nettling irritation at small slights, etc., are granted foreground status while hopeful thoughts about the future, small accomplishments, satisfying interactions, and moments of contentment are either ignored completely or dismissed as naïve or untrustworthy because they do not corroborate the description of depression’ (p. 154). Helping the client to develop a solution description (see table 2) will provide a positive and different linguistic structure. Former experiences are seen as trustworthy, are embraced as evidence and are seen as the development of a solution by a client coming to pass. Table 2: Asking questions Problem-focused thinking results in asking Solution-focused thinking results in asking problem-focused questions solution-focused questions • When did your problem arise? • When does your problem happen less? • What went wrong? • How did you succeed to make it smaller? • How come you do not cope? • How come you are already on a 4 on the scale? • Other people must be very embarrassed? • What would be a good result for you? • What more problems do you have? • What will your friend say when she is satisfied? • Why did you not say anything? • What will be your first step to do so? • How did your problem get bigger for you? • How do you manage to stay on track? "The easiest success measurement tool is a simple question. What did you do today to move forward? The easiest project plan on earth is also a simple question. What will you do tomorrow to move forward? At the end of each day, document your success and design your next move." Rich DiGirolamo A solution focused therapist takes a not-knowing stance, using his sincere curiosity and respectful language without labeling or defining a client. This not knowing stance, which we regard as inevitable, and even think of as a basic attitude and a skill, includes all kinds of supposed knowledge or foreknowledge, e.g. gender (male, female), age, diagnosed problem, cultural minority. Rademakers (2004) states, that every client is a minority of one. He explains that every client has his own unique history, his own unique experience, and his own unique future. The mentioned not-knowing stance affects the way we ask questions. In this process we are experts in solution-focused interviewing to help the client find his own solutions by means of his unique history and resources. We believe that it is the expertise of the client to find fitting solutions. Therefore we communicate the message to clients that they know best how to solve a problem situation. We think that he is the expert of his own life. Each client needs room to be able to present his problem. So it is our job to take time to listen and to voice our client and ask questions that lead to solutions. We do so in order to not only construct understanding but also to have a conversation that allows the client to decide what he wants to change in his life. In the next paragraph we will go into the meaning of ‘voicing the client’. 6.5 Voicing the Clients Hadfield and Haw (2001) state that the links between the rights of young people, their treatment by society and ‘voice’ has been of interest to those who work with and represent young people for some time. The idea of ‘voice’ relates with terms such as ‘working from the bottom-up’, ‘partnership’, and ‘participation’, in order to describe different forms of collaboration between young people and professionals. ‘Voice’ is now used in a wide variety of projects and policies. Hadfield and Haw continue that the ‘voice’ of young people is being increasingly sought as part of the general move towards social inclusion. It has become an established element of central and local government rhetoric, but as it gains in popular usage it becomes increasingly open to question and criticism. This is particularly so, over the issue of whether the focus of this work should be on supporting young people articulate their voice or directed at getting professionals to listen and respond. Inevitably, at the heart of this debate are the ones relating to issues of power and how power intersects with, and emerges through, positions of, for example, age, social class, ethnicity and gender. Occupational therapists and clients are a team. They work together in finding mutual understanding about ‘the job that has to been done’. Occupational therapists and clients communicate where they want to go - what goals they want to achieve and how they can live up to their dreams. It is about enabling clients to have a voice so we can learn from them. Video interaction guidance can be a very useful instrument to do so and Interviewing for Solutions – © 2010 Jos Kienhuis 9
  • 10. has been used during the project. Teachers, nurses, and occupational therapists too would need to know how to frame, guide, and revise tasks, and to pose and reformulate questions, so as to learn more about clients’ ideas and understandings. Ball and Cohen did research on the voice of pupils (1999) and came to the conclusion that learning is not only produced in response to what arises, but also includes a kind of predictive, imaginative anticipation. We could say that occupational therapists need to learn in and from practice rather than in preparing to practice, knowing what to do and how to do it. There is another point of view that is grounded in the idea of emancipation through empowerment. It is about the equality between the positions of clients and therapists when they respectfully dialogue during the cooperative activities where one person does not act on another, but rather people work with each other. In ‘Pedagogy of Hope, reliving pedagogy of the oppressed’, (Freire, 2005) we read his statement that he could not ‘give’ participants a voice but rather that his work ‘provides’ participants with right to a voice. ‘No one lives democracy fully, nor do they help it to grow, if, first of all they are interrupted in their right to speak, to have a voice, to say their critical discourse, or, second, if they are not engaged, in one form or another, in the fight to defend this right, which, after all, is also the right to act.’ (p. 116). The Ladder of Participation from Hart (1992) is a model for thinking about youth participation. The bottom three rungs (1–3) describe youth involvement that is not true participation whereas the top five rungs (4–8) describe true participation. True participation runs from rung 8 - youth-initiated, shared decisions with adults - towards rung 4 - assigned and informed by adults about the specific role of youngsters and how they are being involved. Not true participation runs from rung 3 tokenism, to decoration rung 2, and to manipulation rung 1. Tokenism is where young people appear to be given a voice, but in fact have little or no choice about participation. Decoration is where young people are used to help or "bolster" a cause in a relatively indirect way, although adults do not pretend that the cause is inspired by youth. Manipulation is where adults use youth to support causes and pretend that the causes are inspired by youth. Essentially, the debate is which of these levels of participation is actually the most meaningful? Many believe that shared decision making is most beneficial to both young people and adults. Others believe that young people are most empowered when they are making decisions without the influence of adults. Most often, this doesn't exclude adults but reduces their role to that of support. Both arguments have merit; ultimately, it is up to each group to determine which form of decision-making best fits with the groups' needs in the social centers for our target group. People with mental ill health or disability meet fear and prejudice from others, often based on misconceptions about mental ill health. Stigma increases personal suffering and social exclusion and can impede access to housing and employment. It may even prevent people from seeking help for fear of being labeled. Large mental hospitals can easily contribute to stigma. Within reforms of psychiatric services, many countries are moving away from the provision of mental health services through large psychiatric institutions towards community based services. This goes hand in hand with instructing patients (clients) and their families as well as the staff in active participation and empowerment strategies. The development of policy for mentally handicapped people throughout the years has been scheduled in a matched scheme – table 3. Table 3: development of policy towards counseling and structure of mentally handicapped people Person Counseling Structure Policy patient care, treatment Institutes Segregation human being with development, training special services normalization resources civilian giving support normal services Integration full citizen voicing the client supported living Inclusion Because of these changing concepts, care and services to people with a handicap has moved into the direction of providing support in an inclusive society. Support is addressed to the person with a handicap, as well as to his direct environment. We are aware of the fact that there are still different forms of social exclusion like subtle stigmatization, discrimination, self-stigmatization and territorial exclusion. These different forms of exclusion do exist in varieties. The central issue here is that a handicapped person should be able to grow up, fulfill his life within his community and within his natural environment. In this way he is connected and included, and part of society. Steman and van Gennep (1997) state that a handicapped person should be enabled to have the same possibilities and support making use of services and facilities like other civilians do. Interviewing for Solutions – © 2010 Jos Kienhuis 10
  • 11. 6.6. Swarm intelligence and resilience Swarm intelligence (Kennedy, 2001) learns that ‘no bird ever flew on one wing’. Flocks of birds move together across the sky, turning and swooping in unison, forming complex patterns. It looks like the movements are orchestrated, as if they are following one leader flying up front. Three simple rules keep birds flying together as a flock; • Fly in the same direction as the bird in front • Fly at the same speed as your neighbors do • Try not to bump into each other This phenomenon has been called distributed control. Shared values and shared goals engender these kinds of simple rules within an organization. A group of people who have a set of values and goals that are understood and shared strongly simply don’t need much orchestration. Such a group easily will be able to create flow. To create flow working with our clients, you have to assess collective visions and goals. Therefore we ask ourselves at the job: ‘Can you please talk to me about the goals and visions that we all share here at this service?’ This question is also true for the many professionals within the Matra project ‘I am an adult person’. The human flock capacity focuses on resourceful and client centered relationships built between occupational therapist and clients within the social centers. They collaboratively want to find out how to fly in the same direction, changing from lead position. Occupational therapists do so in order to meet the unique strengths and resources of clients and put this to work on the challenges they face, flying at the same speed. Occupational therapists use solution-focused interviewing being a highly respectful approach that acts to empower clients to rediscover their unique strengths. They try not to bump into each other or into clients, parents and care takers. A solution-focused approach embraces professional mentality, a mentality that is strongly connected with our mindset, the daily polishing of our core principles and values that we live; being equipped for our task to guide and stimulate young adults in society and in their development. It means that one needs to have a heart in it; being engaged in collective intelligence and ambition. The swift and chivalrous House Martins are true examples of sensitive and goal-oriented communicators and they do so without having collisions - taking care of each other during the flight when they cross the dangerous Sahara. They fly in high atmospheres to avoid dessert sand storms using focused eyes and iron holding crystals, (magnetite) that like a compass needle detects the correct fields of force to register the right destiny. They loose tons of weight; from 23 to 15 grams and during this trip they have international engagements. After their resort period they will start the retour flight collaboratively and face the challenges of this trip. They finally are engaged again in their habitat – a glorious heaven of hope that is filled with at least 150.000 insects per brood. The resilience of birds, that seem to be very vulnerable at first sight, proves that we can be very successful when we are collaborative group members, trained to do so, well equipped, sticking together, having the drive and attitude to reach our destiny. The power of faith in the strengths ‘of all birds that cross deserts, swamps or travel seas’, can be a helpful metaphor for all professionals in the field of education and health care. Believing in a strength-based approach means that ‘all birds carry solutions on their wings’. We experience occupational therapists being resilient professionals that work at the state social centers in Belarus. Everyday they manage to plan flights and construct nests with their clients, parents, caretakers and colleagues. During the project we became very much aware of the expression: If you are not part of the solution then you are part of the problem. The increasing focus on solutions and on the future inspired us all and lifted us up. During the project - and in many different ways - we managed to support each other during our flights. We went through different stages of being wonderful-feathered birds and became better professionals on the job. References Ball, D. L., & Cohen, D. K. (1999) Developing Practice, Developing Practitioners: Towards a Practice-Based Theory of Professional Development In; L. Darling-Hammond & G. Sykes (Eds.), Teaching as the Learning Profession. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass. Butter, R. (2008) Dancing with structure, Research in Ecological Pedagogic; Magazine for Special Pedagogics, 12, 531-532 Cauffman, L. (2006): The Solution Tango: Seven steps to solutions in management. London: Cyan & Marshal Cavendish Ltd Cooper, S., Darmody, M., & Dolan, Y. (2003) Impressions of hope and its influence: An international e-mail trialogue, Journal of Systemic Therapies, 22(3), 67-78 Claasen, W., Bruïne, E. de, Schuman, H., Siemons, H., Velthooven, B. (2009) Inclusive competent – generic profile of competences of inclusive education. LEOZ project 4: a Nationwide Project Expertise Center Education & Care, Antwerpen/Apeldoorn, Garant Publishers Freire, P. (1995). Pedagogy of Hope: Reliving Pedagogy of the Oppressed. New York: Continuum nd George, E., Iveson, C., Ratner, H. (1999) Problem to Solution (2 edition) London: Brief Therapy Press Hadfield, M., & Haw, K. (2001) ‘Voice’, Young People and Action Research Educational Action Research, 9(3) Interviewing for Solutions – © 2010 Jos Kienhuis 11
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