Paraphrasing is based on a strategy that intends to provide the counselor with an opportunity to better understand the client through active listening. While utilizing the active listening technique, in such a scenario, the client is not forced or pushed by the counselor to speak rather the client is given space and the counselor sits with the client maintaining the silence. Often it happens during a session that a client tends to become silent. This way the client gets the message that the counselor is actively involved and listening to the client. While the client shares his experiences and feelings, the counselor “nods his head”, “says mmhmm”, “says ahan” or “says tell me more about it “ to encourage the client to share his experiences. Verbal affirmations are short 2-3 word phrases that are used by counselors in active listening to encourage the client to keep sharing whatever he or she is sharing with the counselor. In order to connect better with the client, the counselor uses active listening to understand and identify the non verbal cues of the client that can later help the counselor infer connections while case formulation. During active listening the counselor also maintains good eye contact with the client. In counseling sessions, active listening skills demand the therapist to be a keen observer of the client’s body language, facial expressions, emotions, feelings, moods and the client’s energy. The basic components of the active listening skills in counseling sessions are the following : Avoid jumping to conclusions What are the basic components of active listening in counseling?.Avoid listening to the client for preparing yourself for the reply.Pushing the client to get quiet and behave normally if the client starts crying.Pressurising the client to talk we=hen he gets silent.Ignoring the client’s feelings in the situation.Finishing the sentences of the client for the client.Advising, reassuring, judging or criticising a client.Taking decisions based on any biased judgements about the client.Talking about themselves and inducing results.Changing topics and forcing the client to switch from one topic to another.Interrupting the client while the client is sharing their feeling.The active listening prevents the counselors from : Try to take note of the client’s body language and facial expressions.Provide active feedback to the client based on their words and feelings.Challenge the client only after establishing a strong rapport with the client.Accurately summarise the client’s message.Understand the incongruencies and congruences between the client’s feelings and words.Clear any ambiguities by probing further with the client using various questions for further clarification.Give the client an active feedback to avoid misinterpretation.Listen to the client’s verbatim carefully.Give the client their undivided attention.The active listening in counseling suggests that a counselor :

The aim behind using active listening in counseling is to understand and comprehend the intent behind the client’s verbatim and ask questions for further clarification to prevent any biased interpretation. What is active listening in counseling?Īctive listening is a psychotherapeutic technique that is defined by listening actively to the client and paying attention to the verbal and non verbal cues of the client. We will also discuss the various components of active listening in counseling. We will discuss the importance of active listening in counseling and the purpose of using active listening in counseling. The current blogpost will be based on the question “what is active listening in counseling pdf?”.

Active listening skills checklist