Motivational Interviewing
A Brief Introduction
The Evolution of
Motivational Interviewing
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Crisis Intervention Theory – People have
different levels of motivation. It is much
easier to help them when their motivation
to make a change is high.
The Evolution of
Motivational Interviewing
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The Transtheoretical Model – Researchers
discovered that people actually go through
five separate stages in the change process
and they move through these stages in
different ways.
The Evolution of
Motivational Interviewing
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Motivational Interviewing – Perhaps we
can develop therapeutic techniques that
would help us to help people raise their
motivation levels. This would, in turn, help
them to get better.
Motivational Interviewing is one of
the most research-based treatment
models ever developed
It is always necessary to use Motivational
Interviewing principles no matter what
other theoretical model you might use
(CBT, DBT, Rogerian, etc….)
Understanding Motivation
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Ambivalence about change is normal
Change is often nonlinear
Readiness is not static
Attend to readiness in your work
Why the use of Motivational
Interviewing is so important
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Each individual will be at a different point
with their motivation to change
This is a perfectly normal part of being
human – we shouldn’t treat somebody as
being sick or wrong simply because they
aren’t motivated to change as much as we
believe that they “should” be
Why the use of Motivational
Interviewing is so important
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It is the clinician’s job to HELP the consumer
with his or her motivation level
This process starts by learning to “meet the
consumer where he/she is at the time”
Why the use of Motivational
Interviewing is so important
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Many of our consumers feel hopeless about
the possibility of recovery
It is our job to provide hope when the
consumer has none!
How many people does it take
to change a light bulb?
Only one, but the light bulb must really
want to change!
The most important Skill Sets
for Motivational Interviewing
Identifying the stage of change
 Using the four foundational principles
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The Stages of Change
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At a minimum, all clinicians at Cummins
will have a basic, working familiarity with
the stages of change
But to truly “master” Motivational
Interviewing, you need to be able to
monitor the consumer’s stage of change
constantly and adapt your approach
accordingly.
The Stages of Change
Precontemplation
 Contemplation
 Preparation/Planning
 Action
 Maintenance
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Four Foundational Principles
 Express
empathy
 Develop discrepancy
 Roll with resistance
 Support self-efficacy
Of these four principles, “Developing
Discrepancy” is the one that actually gets
things resolved. And please notice that it
is the CONSUMER who resolves the
discrepancy, not the clinician.
This is an incredibly
powerful approach!
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After all, the consumer is the one who
stands to benefit from the change and is
the one who will have to change the
behaviors.
Therefore, it is only the consumer’s
reasons for making the change that
matter, not the clinician’s.
This means that
Motivational Interviewing is:
A collaborative approach, not a
confrontational approach
 Accomplishes its goal through the
empowerment of the consumer
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Summary
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MI is evidence-based and is built upon a realistic
understanding of how human motivation works.
It can be used along with any other treatment
model.
It is a collaborative model built upon
empowering the consumer and helping him/her
find his/her own reasons to make a positive
change, and then reinforcing these reasons.
Questions? / Comments?
Thank you for your
participation!
Additional Resources
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Motivational Interviewing: Preparing
people to change addictive behavior, Miller
& Rollnick, 1991
Building Motivational Interviewing Skills: A
practitioner workbook, Rosengren, 2009
A Toolkit of Motivational Skills, second
edition, Fuller & Taylor, 2008