Please no plagiarism and make sure you are able to access all resources on your own before you bid. Main references come from Neukrug, E. S., & Fawcett, R. C. (2015) and/or Encyclopedia of Counseling (2017). You need to have scholarly support for any claim of fact or recommendation regarding treatment. I have also attached my and example by the professor on how to respond to get full points. Please respond to all 3 of my classmates separately. You need to have scholarly support for any claim of fact or recommendation like peer-reviewed, professional scholarly journals. I need this completed by 11/30/19 at 6pm.

Expectation:

Responses to peers. Note that this is measured by both the quantity and quality of your posts. Does your post contribute to continuing the discussion? Are your ideas supported with citations from the learning resources and other scholarly sources? Note, that although it is often helpful and important to provide one or two sentence responses thanking somebody or supporting them or commiserating with them, those types of responses do not always further the discussion as much as they check in with the author. Such responses are appropriate and encouraged; however, they should be considered supplemental to more substantive responses, not sufficient by themselves.

THREE PEER RESPONSE POSTS should contain at least 150 words. No references are required for Peer Response posts. Please note that responding to your peers is required by the classroom, which means a substantive post (150 words min.) and one that contains detail and thoroughness. Also, please note that just merely answering the Main Discussion post with 2 references is not an automatic 100.

1. Classmate (S. Car)

Identify three clinical observations and interpretations you noticed about the woman.

The individual being observed appears to be of middle age and of middle class she is Caucasian and appears to be socially presentable. She seems to be concerned with her emotional state and discusses how she is feelings. Her emotions are emphasized with the use of body language in using her hands to express herself. She seems to be looking away in order to recall her memories and thoughts in order to express her emotional state. It is important to look for congruence in one’s body language and verbal communication (Allan & Barbara Pease 2006).  I would say the individuals body language is congruent with how she is feeling. She searches for the words to express how she is feeling but doesn’t really know what to say. She is really searching for empathy or what Car Jong would express as genuineness. She is in a denial about the nail and becomes very frustrated with her partners emphasis on the problem. She wants to avoid the problem and just be heard about how she feels she is not searching for a solution but for her partner to recognize her feelings and validate its ok to feel this way and to express and understanding of her emotional state. This video reflects two different perspectives on the same situation. Sometimes as counselors we must provide a caring environment and express empathy while the client may know what the problem is the individual’s perspective on the matter needs to be addressed before the problem is addressed. Observing this short video is beneficial in gathering information in order to make decisions regarding formal assessments. It also allows for behavior to be observed. According to Neukrug and Fawcett (2015) informal assessments “add to the total assessment process and thus increases our ability to better understand the whole person” (p.282).

References

Neukrug, E. S., & Fawcett, R. C. (2015). Chapter 12: Informal assessment: Observation, rating scales, classification methods, environmental assessment, records and personal documents, and performance-based assessment. In The essentials of testing and assessment: A practical guide to counselors, social workers, and psychologists (pp. 281-305). Stamford, CT: Cengage Learning.

Pease, Allan, and Babara Pease(2006). The Definitive Book of Body Language. New York: Bantam.

2. Classmate (J. Boo)

Observation allows for the helping professional to understand a client (Neukrug & Fawcett, 2015). By observing a client’s behaviors and words used can help with assessing the individual. You can assess the individual by observing the individual in different settings or their interactions with others such as a significant others.

Clinical Observations

In the video, “It’s Not About the Nail,” a woman is discussing her feelings with a man on a couch (Headley, 2013). The woman appears to be frustrated and sad about the “relentless” pressure she feels. She states she is scared about the pressure not stopping. In the beginning she is speaking softly and . As she is talking and expressing her feelings, her voice becomes a little shaky and her hands begin to move rapidly. As the man begins to mention the nail in her head, she appears to get upset. The volume of her voice and pitch increases as she appears to frustrated. She expresses to the man that he “always tries to fix” instead of listening. The man decides he is just going to listen and she appears calmer and happier after the man validates her feelings by smiling and touching his arm. She then embraces him.

Conclusion

As I observed the video, I reviewed the Feeling Word checklist. This checklist helps to identify a feelings that the client is experiencing (Neukrug & Fawcett, 2015). I also paid attention to the volume, tone, and pitch of her voice as she is speaking to get a sense of feelings as well. It is important to observe the client from different aspects before drawing conclusions.

References

Neukrug, E. S., & Fawcett, R. C. (2015). Chapter 1: History of Testing and Assessment. In The essentials of testing and assessment: A practical guide for counselors, social workers, and psychologists (pp. 3-20). Stamford, CT: Cengage Learning.

Neukrug, E. S., & Fawcett, R. C. (2015). Chapter 12: Informal assessment: Observation, rating scales, classification methods, environmental assessment, records and personal documents, and performance-based assessment. In The essentials of testing and assessment: A practical guide to counselors, social workers, and psychologists (pp. 281-305). Stamford, CT: Cengage Learning.

Headley. J. (2013). It’s not about the nail [Video file]. Retrieved from http://jasonheadley.com/INATN.html

3. Classmate (A. Hob)

Intro

“In counseling, practitioners are often interested in human constructs such as emotions, career interests, personality factors, abilities, and aptitudes,” (Whiston, 2012). When utilizing assessment in counseling, this process is preformed to gather behavior as it relates to specific parts of one’s life. When counselors observe clients, they are assessing by collecting body language, facial expressions, and other observational details that explain emotion and other human behaviors.

It’s not about the nail-Observation

After observing the video, it’s not about the nail, recognizing the importance of body language, words, patterns of behavior, facial expressions, and even the tone of voice were all things that drove my observation. Observation can take many forms. Assessments of behaviors, being in the physical space of the client, and even through technology, such as video skype are just a few ways in which observation can occur. The woman in the video appeared to be in her mid-30s, dark brown hair, and brown eyes. She appeared frustrated as she explained herself with her hands, multiple eye rolls, and a stern facial expression. Her voice seemed to indicate throughout her conversation, that she was becoming impatient in terms of explaining herself over and over again. Her body language displayed anger as her shoulders and neck became tense. The male in the room appeared to be a trigger point for her with certain words that he used during conversation. Once he focused on her wants and changed his language, she relaxed her shoulders and her face brightened.

Conclusion

After fully observing this video, I was able to assess the client through behaviors, body language, words, and what helped my understanding come to the surface was having her trigger present; the male in the room. I think that as counselors, we have to utilize specific skills in order to observe and not fix our clients. Attentive skills are a part of these skills that are required. Being able to listen openly and without biases must also include the use of encouraging, paraphrasing, and reflection of feeling. Clients speak with more than just words. We have to be intentional about implementing and practicing particular skillsets so that the client feels heard and can lead themselves to their own solutions.

Reference:

Whiston, S. C. (2017). Principles and applications of assessment in counseling. Australia: Cengage Learning.

Required Resources

Neukrug, E. S., & Fawcett, R. C. (2015). Chapter 1: History of Testing and Assessment. In The essentials of testing and assessment: A practical guide for counselors, social workers, and psychologists (pp. 3-20). Stamford, CT: Cengage Learning.

Neukrug, E. S., & Fawcett, R. C. (2015). Chapter 12: Informal assessment: Observation, rating scales, classification methods, environmental assessment, records and personal documents, and performance-based assessment. In The essentials of testing and assessment: A practical guide to counselors, social workers, and psychologists (pp. 281-305). Stamford, CT: Cengage Learning.

http://aarc-counseling.org/ 

Required Media

Headley, J. (2013). It’s not about the nail [Video file]. Retrieved from http://jasonheadley.com/INATN.html

Laureate Education (Producer). (2013). History of psychological assessment [Interactive media file]. Retrieved from CDN database.