Transcript Slide 1

Interviewing and Building
Rapport with
Adolescents and Adults
The “How”:
Communication Skills
Step 1: How to Ask Questions
Open-ended: best choice for building
rapport and gathering information
 “What does it mean to you to be…?”
Close-ended/structured choice: when you
need to get a direct answer or give a
direction
“Was that the first time someone had
said that to you?”
“ Did you see that as a positive or
negative experience?”
Step 2: Descriptive Statements
Summarize: show you are listening
• “So, elementary school went fine for
you—it wasn’t until middle school
that the problems started.”
• “Your mother was from Bangladesh
and your father was from Spain, and
you moved here when you were five
years old.”
Step 2: Descriptive Statements
Clarify: double-check
• “It sounds like you have 2 sisters and
3 brothers. Is that right?”
• “Oh, I misunderstood… I thought your
sister was overweight, but it was
actually your brother.”
• “I think I missed that last part... You
were saying that the kids in your
neighborhood were…”
Step 2: Descriptive Statements
Elaborate: encourage expansion
• “I wonder what part of being Muslim
you like the most?”
• “I’m curious if you ever wished your
religion was different than it is?”
• “What was the hardest part about
growing up without a father?”
Step 3: Reflection Statements
Acknowledging emotions: say the
emotion you think the person felt at
the time
• “That must have really hurt to hear
that.”
• “You probably felt really angry.”
• “Seems like you were confused.”
Step 3: Reflection Statements
Validating the person’s experience:
allowing yourself to connect with
support and empathy
• “It makes me feel upset hearing
what happened to you.”
• “I am really impressed with how you
managed that situation.”
• “I would have felt really alone if that
happened to me.”
ANTICIPATING
CHALLENGES…
Dealing with emotions
• What should you do if the person is
showing a negative emotion?
Behavioral Challenges
• The withdrawn/quiet person
• The energetic person
• The aggressive/controlling person
• The bored person
• The anxious person
• Others?
Things to Observe
• General attitude and behavior
Appearance
Mood and affect
Age-appropriate behaviors
Degree of cooperation and compliance
Attention/concentration
Amount of effort put forth
Extent of responses - short vs. elaborate
Speech and language
Thought processes
Strategies for Prevention
• Follow the person’s lead
• Make eye contact (don’t take notes)
• Show empathy (not sympathy!)
• Make reflection statements
• Constantly evaluate the person’s needs
Take breaks
Adjust as needed
Activity: Anticipating
Challenges
• Work in small groups to make a plan
for dealing with situations that you
are concerned about
IDENTITY AND ETHNICITY
IDENTITY
Identity:
• who you are
• what you value
• the directions you choose to pursue
in life
4 IDENTITY STATUSES
(MARCIA)
1) Achievement: commitment after
exploration
2) Moratorium: exploration w/o
commitment
 Higher self-esteem
 More abstract & critical thinking
skills
 More advanced moral reasoning
4 IDENTITY STATUSES
3) Foreclosure: commitment w/o
exploration
 Inflexible, intolerant, fear rejection
 At-risk for joining extremist groups
4) Diffusion: no exploration or commitment
 Apathetic & impulsive
 Time-management & academic probs
 At-risk for depression, suicide, drug
use
4 IDENTITY STATUSES
(MARCIA)
• Can differ across domains
• Progress improves over time (in
college)
INFLUENCES ON
IDENTITY
• Personality/temperament:
• Family/parents
• Peers
• School
ETHNIC IDENTITY
Ethnic identity: sense of belonging to an
ethnic group
3 stages:
1) Unexamined ethnic identity
2) Ethnicity identity search
3) Achieved ethnic identity
• Exploration increases with age
ETHNIC IDENTITY
• Conflict between ethnic & majority culture
• Strong ethnic identity promoted by:
Parents encourage exploration
Effective parenting
Society’s respect of culture
Contact w/same-group peers
• Bicultural identity: exploring & adopting
values from subculture & dominant culture