SOLUTION-FOCUSED BRIEF THERAPY: TECHNIQUES AND APPLICATIONS

This workshop covers the key assumptions and major therapeutic tools and strategies of the Solution-Focused Brief Therapy approach developed by Steve de Shazer, Insoo Kim Berg, and the original team of the Brief Family Therapy Center in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. In this “hands-on” practice-oriented workshop, participants will have the opportunity to learn the major categories of Solution-Focused questions, improve their interviewing skills, foster cooperative relationships, even with the most challenging clients, constructing powerful observing team messages, and a wide range of Solution-Focused therapeutic tasks that empower clients to achieve their goals. Difficulties and stuck points that may occur in the treatment process with more challenging clients will be covered. As a result of attending this workshop, participants will be able to:

• Understand the major assumptions of the Solution-Focused Brief Therapy model
• Assess and match what you do with the type of client-therapist visitor, complainant, and customer relationship interactions to foster cooperative relationships
• Use pretreatment change, miracle, scaling, solution-building, coping, and pessimistic questions
• Negotiate well-formulated and solvable treatment goals with individuals, couples, and families
• Use practical guidelines for selecting and matching Solution-Focused categories of questions with clients’ unique cooperative response patterns
• Use practical guidelines for designing, selecting, and matching therapeutic tasks in line with clients’ unique cooperative response patterns and goals
• Construct powerful team messages with observing colleagues consisting of client compliments, underscoring their resourcefulness and creativity, and reframing negative behaviors
• Use goal-maintenance tools and strategies to consolidate clients’ gains and constructively manage slips

The workshop format will consist of information-rich didactic presentation, extensive use of videotape examples of major therapeutic tools and strategies, skill-building exercises, and live client consultations and supervision. This workshop can be presented in a one-three day format.