This innovative and highly practical text provides an introduction to solution and narrative approaches to brief counselling and demonstrates how they may successfully be combined to create solution talk with clients. Solution talk is a highly flexible and effective way of empowering people to use their own potential for positive change, for coping with what they cannot change, and for re-creating their lives and even their identities. Judith Milner and Patrick O'Byrne compare and contrast solution talk with other more traditional or problem-oriented approaches to illustrate how a collaborative, co-constructive and empowering way of working may help clients to meet their goals quickly, painlessly and with long-lasting effects. They outline the philosophy, practice principles and specific techniques of solution talk and discuss what to do if no immediate progress is apparent. Through detailed case examples, they illustrate how the approach may be used in client work with a wide range of issues connected to family life, school and work, health, personal safety and leisure. Brief Counselling: Narratives and Solutions will be an essential text for all trainees and practitioners in counselling, psychotherapy and other health-related professions interested in brief therapeutic approaches and working creatively with clients.

This book represents an addition to the literature on brief therapy. Solution Talk is a term Furman and Ahola use to refer to a constructive and agreeable manner of talking with people about problems. A conversation dominated by solution talk rather than problem talk is characterized by an atmosphere of mutual respect and is likely to focus on the future rather than the past, on resources rather than shortcomings, on success and progress rather than failure, and on solutions rather than problems.

`Solution-Focused Groupwork (2001) was a major contribution to the literature on groupwork. It has been one of this author′s most influential books. The Second Edition contains much new material including the uses of ′problem talk′, an activity normally avoided by solution-focused therapists. Preparation for groups, client motivation and collaboration are all explored in detail. The role of (or necessity for?) social time to be built into the therapy model is an interesting and novel idea. Suggestions are made for client evaluation and for creative exercises to enhance the group process. All in all, the result is a valuable and readable new edition′ - Dr Alasdair J Macdonald `Enlightening, clearly written, and helpfully presented...The book echoes what Solution-Focused Groupwork is all about - being practical and optimistic about human potential′ - David Jaques, Author of Learning in Groups `A fund of practical wisdom which will give confidence and encouragement to everyone trying to run groups along solution-focused lines′ - Bill O′Connell, Focus on Solutions Limited, Birmingham `John Sharry has drawn on a combination of extensive experience in running groups and a thorough understanding of current developments to produce an inspiring and practical guide to this powerful way of helping people to change. I have recommended the first edition many times and have been sharing the good news of this new edition ever since I knew it was under way′ - John Wheeler MA, UKCP Registered Family Therapist, Social Worker and Independent Trainer. `Sharry′s book offers a persuasive alternative to traditional methods of group practice. The new edition enhances the applicability of an already major contribution to solution-focused practice. It is obviously written from a real practitioner who understands the process and elements of group work. He offers excellent case material throughout to help demonstrated the skills and values of this approach and does so in a readable and engaging manner suitable for students and professionals at all levels of expertise′ - Professor Robert Blundo, Ph.D., LCSW, Strengths Collaborative, Department of Social Work, University of North Carolina Wilmington, Wilmington, NC. U.S.A. `This slim tautly written volume disguises an enormously practical treasure store to help group facilitators. Solution-Focused Groupwork should be essential reading′ - Barbara Wilson, Family Mediation in Practice Solution-Focused Groupwork, Second Edition is a highly practical guide for all professionals who use groups to help people. For those new to the solution-focused approach it provides a clear, step-by-step introduction, while for more experienced practitioners it presents ideas and techniques which can be readily integrated into existing practice. Using carefully selected case studies, John Sharry takes readers through the various stages in the therapeutic process, from getting started to the final session. He also provides: " creative exercises for use in practice, " guidance on evaluating the outcomes of group work and " a new model for group supervision. A real strength of the book is in showing practitioners how to create a constructive, positive and solution-focused group culture and how to maintain this culture in spite of the challenges, tensions and difficulties that naturally arise within groups. John Sharry is a Principal Social Worker in the Department of Child and Family Psychiatry, Mater Hospital, and part-time Director of the Brief Therapy Group (Private Practice and Consultancy).

Too often doctors, therapists, and social workers ask “what’s wrong in your life?” rather than “what do you want?” Ronald E. Warner’s Solution-Focused Interviewing is a practical guide to talking to clients using a solution-driven and strength-based approach that empowers clients and helps them to find lasting solutions to their problems. In Solution-Focused Interviewing, asking questions about clients’ goals and resources ­– the strengths that will let them change their lives – is the basis of a three-phase therapeutic process that builds empathy before helping clients to set realistic goals and build a plan to achieve them. Based on more than two decades of solution-focused therapy workshops and Warner’s extensive clinical experience, Solution-Focused Interviewing is the first skill development manual based on this innovative tri-phase approach to interviewing.

The Next Generation of Solution Focused Practice shows how practitioners help create change by ‘stretching the world’ of their clients. The book brings new ideas from enactive cognition which show how skilled attention on the client and their words is important both practically and conceptually. It provides both a summary of the development of Solution Focused Brief Therapy (SFBT) over time and how the latest developments form a newly coherent form of practice based on developing descriptions. The author has structured the book using simple and easy to understand metaphors to paint a rich, creative, and visual picture of therapy for the reader, which makes it an accessible read. This book will be of interest to a wide range of SF practitioners internationally, as well as to those involved in coaching, counselling, family therapy, education, social work, healthcare and organisational change.

A highly practical book for all mental health professionals wanting to know how to apply positive psychiatry in their daily work Positive psychiatry is the science and practice of psychiatry and clinical psychology that seeks to understand and promote wellbeing among people who have or are at high risk of developing mental health problems. In this new approach, the person takes center stage, not the disease, and the focus is not only on repairing the worst, but also on creating the best in our patients.. The authors from the fields of medicine and clinical psychology present over 40 applications and many cases and stories to illustrate the four pillars of positive psychiatry: positive psychology, solution-focused brief therapy, the recovery-oriented approach, and nonspecific factors. The book shows how mental health professionals can significantly increase patient collaboration to co-create preferred outcomes through discovering possibilities and competencies and through building hope, optimism, and gratitude. Essential reading for psychiatrists, clinical psychologists, other professionals working in the field of mental health care as well as students who want to take a positive focus to make psychiatry faster, lighter, and yes, more fun. We have high hopes that positive psychiatry will become a firm part of the psychiatry of the future.

The revolutionary yet radical alternative—the solutions-focused approach—to discovering what works at work.

Comprehensive introduction to the theory and practice of therapy Child and Adolescent Therapy: Science and Art, Second Edition relies on both psychotherapy research and clinical expertise to create a comprehensive guide to evidence-based practice for providers of child and adolescent therapy. It includes explanations of all major theoretical orientations and the techniques associated with each, with application to the major diagnostic categories. This updated Second Edition includes a new chapter on Mindfulness-Based Cognitive-Behavioral Therapies (Dialectical Behavior Therapy and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy), incorporation of recent neuroscience research, instruction in Motivational Interviewing, and guidance in using therapeutic diagrams with young clients. The book models the thought process of expert therapists by describing how the science and art of therapy can be combined to provide a strong basis for treatment planning and clinical decision-making. Theoretical concepts, empirically supported treatments, and best practices are translated into concrete, detailed form, with numerous examples of therapist verbalizations and conversations between counselor and client. Child and Adolescent Therapy: Science and Art, Second Edition: Explains the work of therapists from the ground up, beginning with fundamentals and moving on to advanced theory and technique Covers the major theoretical approaches: behavioral, cognitive, mindfulness-based, psychodynamic, constructivist, and family systems Guides therapists in planning effective treatment strategies with balanced consideration of outcome research, cultural factors, and individual client characteristics Connects treatment planning with the diagnostic characteristics of the major child and adolescent disorders For both students and skilled clinicians looking for new ideas and techniques, Child and Adolescent Therapy: Science and Art, Second Edition offers a thorough, holistic examination of how best to serve young therapy clients.

This accessible guide to Solution Focused Brief Therapy (SFBT), an effective therapeutic approach which focuses on strengths and achievements, provides a practical introduction to what SFBT is and how to use it with clients. Barry Winbolt leads the reader through the principles, techniques and steps involved in the approach, including forming a productive working relationship with the client, using questions creatively, the effective use of language, and working collaboratively with the client in finding solutions. Case studies are included to demonstrate the ideas and techniques presented. This book will be invaluable to all those in the helping professions who are either already familiar with SFBT and want to improve their knowledge, or are looking for new and effective ways to communicate with and help the people they work with.

How confident do you feel in your personal tutoring role? In the face of ever-increasing and demanding learner issues, do you feel equipped to provide the essential support to meet their needs? This timely book provides you with essential help in an area which has often been given little attention in comparison with curriculum delivery by: contextualising the support side of a teacher’s role within further education; looking beyond conventional notions of personal tutoring and coaching; appreciating the real world applications of issues; recognising the benefits personal tutoring and coaching bring to learners and educational institutions; reflecting on a variety of different approaches to support learners’ achievement as well as positively affecting institutional key performance indicators. It provides proven practical advice and guidance for planning and delivering group tutorials, undertaking one to ones, identifying and managing vulnerable learners and those at risk of not achieving, as well as helping learners to progress onto their chosen career paths. It explores methods to engage the most disaffected and hard to reach learners, as well as stretching and challenging the more able. It includes clear aims, detailed case studies, learning checklists and a unique self-assessment system for the reader and the educational institution. You are encouraged to develop your skills in order to influence individual learners as well as the systems, processes and performance of your educational institution by becoming an outstanding personal tutor. The text is an excellent foundation for the majority of modules on teacher training qualifications and is relevant to any pre-service or in-service trainee teacher or existing practitioner with a personal tutoring role, a specialised personal tutor, manager or anyone in a learner-facing role within further education.