Ann Sparling White, MS, LPC, NCC
annsparling@gmail.com
THE VOLCANO MODEL
AS AN ASSESSMENT TOOL
•
Allows for quick and easy information gathering
•
Is non-intrusive
•
Works both individually and with a family or group
AS A TREATMENT PLAN
•
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Gives the counselor information so that treatment can
be designed to maximize client cooperation and foster
client/counselor trust.
Treatment is client driven which enhances the
opportunity for positive outcomes
WHY THE VOLCANO MODEL IS ESPECIALLY
HELPFUL IN TODAY’S WORLD
1. TIME WITH CLIENTS IS LIMITED. WE NEED INTERVENTIONS
THAT ARE QUICK AND EFFECTIVE.
2. THE VOLANO METAPHOR IS EASILY UNDERSTOOD AND
REMEMBERED BY PEOPLE OF ALL AGES
3. THERAPEUTIC ENVIRONMENTS VARY AND TOOLS NEED TO BE
ADAPTABLE TO DIFFERENT SPACES
4. GRIEF AND LOSS ISSUES ARE BETTER UNDERSTOOD (in many
areas of the country) THAN IN THE PAST, AND THE OPPORTUNITY
FOR POSITIVE IMPACT IS MORE AVAILABLE.
5. ANGER THAT IS UNEXPRESSED IS DANGEROUS. AS
POPULATION INCREASES, IT BECOMES MORE DANGEROUS.
Why The Volcano Model Is Needed As A Tool In
Your Toolbox
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All people experience
change and transitions that
elicit feelings.
It is helpful to children and
adults to have consistent
structure and expectations.
Feelings influence behavior.
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Feelings,
unexpressed, cause
stress and pressure
that can disrupt our
ability to cope with
daily life and
irritations.
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Children learn more easily if their environment is
predictable.
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Our society has no uniform, understood language
with which to communicate the process of
adjustment to change.
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It is easier to maintain behavior if everyone is
behaving in similar ways.
Basic Needs for Healthy Growth
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Understanding and support
A sense that there is purpose in striving
A sense that we have the capacity to deal with a
situation
Language that clearly expresses what we are
experiencing
A knowledge of options
The freedom and opportunity to try a new option
Respect
Emotions Leading to Anger and Violence

Fear

Sadness

Frustration

Loneliness

Guilt

A sense of being separate and
misunderstood
I know a few people who are walking time
bombs. They are constantly in the midst
of fights, pain and terror. These kids
don’t like to talk about their feelings and
keep them bottled up.
Tabitha, age 17
(from Understanding the Human Volcano)
“I believe that people who start most of
the violence are kids who have trouble
expressing themselves in any other
way.”
Tommy, age 16
“There used to be this kid in my class
who, whenever he got mad, would throw
things around and sometimes hit others.
I think he did that because he was so
frustrated and didn’t know how else to
express his feelings.”
Lillian, age 16
From Understanding the Human Volcano,
by Earl Hipp
People need information and
understanding in order to have choices
about emotional response to
experience.
The first step is to develop a link to a
feeling word. The choice of this word
helps us to gauge the intensity of the
feeling and to choose an appropriate
response.
How Someone Feels Is Important
• The counselor needs to understand a client’s
feelings about a loss or change in order to offer
them effective support.
• Assuming client feelings is not helpful.
• Obtaining feeling information in a respectful and
timely way is hard.
• The first task in our work with clients is to get
accurate information on how they feel about the loss
and change that has brought them to you.
How To Ask About Feelings Without Asking
About Feelings
This may be our most difficult task. Especially
when working with a family.
Have them show you instead of having to talk
about it.
The Feeling Word Chosen Gives Us Very
Important Information That We Can Use To
Develop Effective Treatment Options
Sad
vs
Devastated
Frustrated
vs
Furious
Lonely
vs
Invisible
Techniques oriented toward behavioral
change that emphasize learning and
cognitive restructuring are superior to
approaches that focus solely on insight or
the expression of feelings.
Geraldine Orton
Strategies for Counseling Children and their Parents
Steps for Emotional Health
b
Identify stressor
b
Identify feeling
b
Park the feeling (when necessary)
b
Vent
The Components of the Volcano
Explosions
 Ways of relieving stress and pressure
that elicit negative response.
Vents
 Often involves a talent or a strength.
Allows for positive expression of an
internal feeling.
Rest
 Getting away from feelings 
distraction.
Vents that Are Helpful
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Talking
Crying
Drawing
Writing
Music
Creative arts
Shouting
Hitting soft,
inanimate objects.
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Connecting with nature
Sports/exercise
Laughing
Deep breathing
Imagery
Running
Reframing
Storytelling
Common losses and expression of the
feelings that result 
CHANGE OVER TIME
It is never too late to figure out how
to take care of your emotional
needs. Because the world is a
difficult and crazy place, it’s
incumbent on each of us to figure
out how to be happy.
- The Volcano Model
Manual
Do you have any feelings right
now that are telling you that you’re
stressed?
What are they?
What can you do
about them?
“Sorrow needs expression, but it’s not always
with words. The more tools and permission
provided for children and adolescents, the more
likely they will find their own forms of
expression rather than the narrow options we
might offer. Give sorrow words, yes, but also
paint and glue and hammers and nails and long
walks and quiet and music and play and all
other possible forms of expression, including
silence.”
Donna L. Schuurman, Ed. D
Ex. Director, The Dougy Center
When individuals begin using their
natural Vents and receive the positive
feedback inherent in them, they begin
to feel some control over the world in
which they live  and develop a
positive sense of self as an effective
participant in that world.