Like it or not, confrontation is a necessary part of all therapy. Maybe your client comes into therapy with grand pronouncements: “I’m all in—I'll do the work!” And for a little bit, it seems like they’ll follow through. But when you bring up, even gently, the ways in which they’re undermining their goals, they deny, diffuse, or become defensive, and the work stalls. In this workshop, you’ll discover the six skills that are proven to help clients take accountability without triggering defensiveness. Using video from actual client sessions—including moments of confrontation—we’ll break down the “confrontation cycle,” walking through techniques that move clients forward, instead of causing them to regress or feel attacked. You’ll learn how to:
Prime clients for moments of confrontation
Use confrontation in individual and couples sessions
Recognise and process your own emotional reactions during confrontation of all sorts, including soft, empathetic, and indirect
Help clients confront themselves
Planning Committee Disclosure - No relevant relationships
All members of the PESI, Inc. planning committee have provided disclosures of financial relationships with ineligible organizations and any relevant non-financial relationships prior to planning content for this activity. None of the committee members had relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies or other potentially biasing relationships to disclose to learners. For speaker disclosures, please see the faculty biography.
PESI Australia, in collaboration with PESI in the USA, offers quality online continuing professional development events from the leaders in the field at a standard recognized by professional associations including psychology, social work, occupational therapy, alcohol and drug professionals, counselling and psychotherapy. On completion of the training, a Professional Development Certificate is issued after the individual has answered and submitted a quiz and course evaluation. This program is worth 2 hours CPD for points calculation by your association.
File type | File name | Number of pages | |
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Manual - Confrontation Without Defensiveness (2.6 MB) | 20 Pages | Available after Purchase | |
Manual - Confrontation Without Defensiveness - French (2.6 MB) | 20 Pages | Available after Purchase | |
Manual - Confrontation Without Defensiveness - Italian (2.6 MB) | 20 Pages | Available after Purchase | |
Manual - Confrontation Without Defensiveness - German (2.6 MB) | 20 Pages | Available after Purchase | |
Manual - Confrontation Without Defensiveness - Spanish (2.6 MB) | 20 Pages | Available after Purchase |
Ellyn Bader, Ph.D., is in private practice and is Co-Director of The Couples Institute in Menlo Park, California. Over the past 25 years she has conducted professional training programs in couples therapy and has trained therapists throughout the United States as well as Europe, Asia, South America, and Australia. She is a past president of the International Transactional Analysis Association and a recipient of the Clark Vincent Award for an outstanding literary contribution to the field of marital therapy from the California Association of Marriage and Family Therapists. Dr. Bader is frequently invited to speak at national and international conferences. She and her husband, PETER PEARSON, Ph.D., coauthored the books, “In Quest of the Mythical Mate: A Developmental Approach to Diagnosis and Treatment in Couples Therapy” (Brunner/Mazel) and “Tell Me No Lies: How to Face the Truth and Build an Honest Marriage” (St. Martin’s Press).
Speaker Disclosures:
Financial: Ellyn Bader is the director of The Couples Institute and receives compensation as a consultant. She receives royalties as a published author. Ellyn Bader receives a speaking honorarium and recording royalties from PESI, Inc. She has no relevant financial relationships with ineligible organizations.
Non-financial: Ellyn Bader is a member of the American Psychological Association, the International Transactional Analysis Association, and the California Association of Marriage and Family Therapists.
Access never expires for this product.
For a more detailed outline that includes times or durations of time, if needed, please contact cepesi@pesi.com
What is confrontation and why is it necessary in therapy?
What is involved in skillful confrontation
The 6 types of confrontation
Confrontation challenges the therapist
The confrontation cycle
Symbiotic beliefs and regressive patterns that require skillful confrontation
Preparing a client for a confrontation
How to decide whether a confrontation should be made by the client themselves, by their spouse or by the therapist
Video demonstrations
Risks and Limitations
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