Basic Interviewing: A Practical Guide for Counselors and Clinicians

by Michel Hersen (editor), Vincent B. Van Hasselt (Editor)

This book offers clear and direct answers to the questions most frequently asked by students and trainees learning how to talk to clients and extract critical data from them. Its development reflects the old adage that "necessity is the mother of invention." For many years, the editors taught beginning level mental health clinicians. They found, however, no text to be satisfactory--including a number that they themselves were involved in producing. Some were too difficult; some were too simplistic; some were too doctrinaire; still others had missing elements.

Written in a reader-friendly "how-to" style, the chapters in Basic Interviewing are not weighed down by references. Rather, each contributor suggests readings for students and instructors who wish to pursue questions further.

After the initial overview chapter, there are 12 chapters addressing the nuts-and-bolts concerns of all clinicians that can be particularly vexing for neophytes. They cover a variety of issues from the most specific--like how to begin and end interviews--to the more general--like how to build rapport and identify targets for treatment. Throughout, rich clinical illustrations facilitate the pragmatic application of fundamental principles. Beginning graduate students in counseling and clinical psychology, social work, and other allied mental health fields, as well as psychiatric trainees, will find this text to be an indispensable companion.

Genres: Psychology

248 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1998

Reviews

[Mats Pettersen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Decen't book. But Corey and Corey's becoming a helper is better.

[Joie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Trying to make my 2013 Goodreads Challenge slightly less pathetic by including assigned reading. And since I think I might be the only actual review on Goodreads, I should probably try to say something moderately useful.

This book was an excellent resource for those of us who are in the very early stages of clinical work (aspiring psychologists, counselors, social workers). You could probably go ahead and retitle this Intake Interviews for Dummies. On the whole it was very accessible, and acted much like a nice set of water wings for fledging clinicians drowning in that seemingly enormous sea of "What the Hell Am I Doing." Some chapters were more engaging than others, but overall it's worth a read for students beginning (or soon to be beginning) their first year of practicum. Note though that when they say "a practical guide," they mean it--this book is geared toward the nuts and bolts of conducting an intake interview. Readers interested in insight into longer-term relationship building and the therapeutic process should look elsewhere.