Snatching Change Talk

Snatching Change Talk from the Jaws of Ambivalence

'''Abstract''': Participants practice selectively reflecting the change talk content within ambivalence.

'''Overview''': When ambivalence is present, it is normal for change talk to occur within the
context of sustain talk. Participants are presented with client statements containing both
change talk and sustain talk, and form reflections focused on the change talk.
Guidelines: Generate some client statements, appropriate to your training audience and topic, in which change talk is embedded within at least two bits of sustain talk. Then have participants choose what to reflect.

'''Example''': ''I really don’t want to stop smoking, but I know that I should. I’ve tried before and it’s really hard''.

An alternative to open generation of appropriate change talk reflections is to offer multiple choice options from which to select, explaining why one is the best option.
Example options related to above client statement:
A. You really don’t want to quit.
B. It’s pretty clear to you that you ought to quit.
C. You’re not sure if you can quit.
Of these, the option that focuses on the change talk is B.

'''Examples''':
I don’t drink any more than most people I know. I mean, I can drink most of them under the table. I don’t see why everybody is making such a fuss about this. I can handle it.
I was worried there at first, but I don’t think I really have diabetes. The doctor said it was “borderline” or something like that, and I feel fine.

Well sure, I’d like to be as healthy as I can, but I’m 68, for heaven’s sake. I figure I can get away with some bad habits now. They won’t have time to catch up with me.
I wasn’t doing anything wrong! I just went along for the ride, and I didn’t know they were going to grab that lady’s purse. Now they’re saying that I violated my probation. I guess it’s not smart to be cruising around at 2 in the morning but it happened so fast, there was nothing I could do about it. I didn’t break any laws, and I’m not going back to jail for this.

It’s just such a hassle to take all those pills. I’m supposed to remember to take them four times a day, and half the time I don’t even have them with me. And I how they make me feel. I guess there’s a good reason for it, but it’s just not possible for me.

'''Notes''':
The point in this exercise is not to do a double-sided reflection, but rather to select out the change talk and focus on that in the reflection.

Contributed by: Bill Miller and Terri Moyers