Direct Social Work Ch. 5 Responding with Reciprocal Empathy and Constructing Reciprocal Responses, the leads list

Constructing Reciprocal Responses Leads for empathic responses include:

"Could it be that" "I wonder if" "You appear to be feeling" "Im not sure that I am with you, do you mean" "It seems that you" "So as you see it" "You must have felt" More examples are on pg. 107

Constructing Reciprocal Responses Many times client messages contain conflicting or contrasting emotions such as the following:

"I like taking drugs, but sometimes I worry about what they might do to me."

Constructing Reciprocal Responses In the example of the client saying they like taking drugs, in such case each contrasting feeling should be highlighted. So, You feel___ yet you also feel____ for example social worker may say

"I sense that you feel torn because while you find taking drugs enjoyable you have nagging thoughts that they might be harmful to you."

Constructing Reciprocal Responses A 17 year old client states: I cant talk to my father without feeling scared and crying. Id like to be able to express myself and to disagree with him, but I just cant. The social worker than might respond with:

"It sounds as though you just feel panicky when you try to talk to your father. YOu feel down on yourself, because at this point you cant say wat you want without falling apart."

Constructing Reciprocal Responses The following paradigm which identifies the elements of an empathic or reflective message, has proven usesful for conceptualizing and mastering the skill of empathic responding:

You feel___ about___ because This accurately identifies or describes feelings

Although responding at additive levels represents an extension of the skill of reciprocoal responding it is an

advanced skill that can be used in a variety of ways to achieve specific objectives.

Constructing Reciprocal Responses The message the social worker say to the 17 year old conveys a relection with a twist. That is it reflects the clients current feelings but implies that it could change at

another point when she acquires more confidence and skill

Constructing Reciprocal Responses Abstract intellectualized language and professional jargon create

barriers to communication and should be avoided

Note that the benefits of making additive empathic responses at levels 4 and 6 are not contingent on the frequency of their usage. In fact, making one such response in the first or second interview may

be helpful and appropriate

Constructing Reciprocal Responses One of the many advantages to audio or video recording your own work is that these habitual responses that can be so insitictive you don't notice them as they occur will

become readily apparent to you

Reciprocal or interchangeable empathic responding (level 3) is a basic skill used throughout the helping process to acknowledge client messages and to

encourage exploration of problems

Because reciprocal responding is an essential skill used frequently to meet the objective of the first phase of the helping process, we recommend that you

first aim to achieve beginning mastery of responding at level 3.

Constructing Reciprocal Responses The reciprocal empathic response format (You feel____because___) is merely a training aid to assist you in

focusing on the affect and content of client messages. The leads list will help you respond more naturally

Extended practice of skill should significantly increase your effectiveness in establishing viable

helping relationships, interviewing, and gathering data

Constructing Reciprocal Responses This type of sterotyped responding draws more attention to the social workers technique than to

his or her message

In the intital phase, empathic responding serves a vital purpose in

individual, conjoint, and group sessions.

Constructing Reciprocal Responses It is also important to frame the message so that you do not

merely restate the clients message.

Constructing Reciprocal Responses The list of varied introductory phases will help you expand your repertoire of

possible responses.

Constructing Reciprocal Responses The response focuses exclusively on the clients message and does not

reflect the social workers conceptualizations

Constructing Reciprocal Responses It is also important to vary the language you use in responding. Many professionals tend to respond with stereotyped, repetitive speech patterns, commonly using a limited variety of communication lead to begin their empathic responses. Such leads as "You feel" and " I hear you saying" repeated over and over not only distract the client but also

seem phony and contrived.

Reciprocal responding sets the stage for deeper explorations of feelings during

subsequent phases of the helping process.

Constructing Reciprocal Responses To reach level 3 on the empathic scale you must be able to formulate responses that accurately capture the content and the

surface feeling in the client message.

Reciprocal responding facilitates the development of a working relationsip and fosters

the climate of understanding necessary to promote communication and self- disclosure

More frequent attempts presume a depth of relationship that has not yet developed. Additive empathic responses often exceed the level of feelings and meaning expressed by clients during early sessions and are thus reserved for

the later phases of the helping process

Constructing Reciprocal Responses Remember that to respond empathically at a reciprocal level, you must

use language that your clients readily understand