I agree that we should be empowering clients by exploring possibilities with them, but I am wondering whether we should be analysing them by using Kelly's theory. It could be seen as a way of messing with people's heads. What if we were to get something wrong? We are only humans ourselves, and we are not mind-readers as far as I know. But wait, we do mess with people's heads, we question their knowledge, and we try to get some of them to move beyond their comfort zone. Here is Kelly's fundamental postulate:
"A person's processes are psychologically channelized by the way he anticipates events."
So Kelly could be saying that a fixed mind set can be changed to a growth mind set. When we come across a client who is limiting their own choices we immediately try to help them broaden their horizons by offering them options. We might not however have the time to get clients to write about themselves in the third person, for us then to sit down and analyse their constructs. I just cannot imagine it happening in the course of a busy working day.
Inspiration from Graduation!
16 years ago
Obviously this tool could be used for bad - 'to mess with people heads'- but sometimes people want/need to explore what is going on in their mind with someone else and see things that may be holding them back from achieving what they want? Even if they don't act on it there and then a few weeks/months/years later something might click!
ReplyDeleteI don't think we can get something wrong though, as we are not telling the client anything. They are telling themsleves hopefully! They are devising the constructs and elements and we help them interpret and explore. But I quite agree that the limitations of the working day may mean it is hard to incorporate to practice.
I disagree that Kelly's approach is messing with people's heads. I think the self characterisation exercise is a great tool for enabling the client to set the agenda, to explore current and different ways of thinking.There are so many different levels that the client could take it to, like peeling the layers of an onion, and if the client is setting the agenda they will in most cases naturally only take it to a level that they are comfortable with and find useful. As to the point about not being able to imagine having the space and time to use such an approach I understand what you're saying but in the end I guess thats up to us.I'm sure by now we are all formulating ideas about how we would like to practice guidance and the types of guidance settings that we be conducive to person centered and more flexible ways of working.
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