Case Work II
Chapter 5
The Question
The Question
The Need to Inquire & Divulge
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Ask questions sparingly.
Ask mostly open-ended questions.
A therapist/helper might need to ask
questions in order to bridge uncomfortable
silences and to push ahead when they
seem to be stuck.
Divulging involves cleansing, “I speak, I
reveal, I come clean.”
The Question
Questioning the Question
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Benjamin believes helpers ask too many
questions.
See bottom of page 135.
Will the question I am about to ask further
or inhibit the flow of the interview.
The Question
Open Vs. Closed Questions
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The open question is broad.
The closed question is narrow.
The open question allows the client full
scope.
The closed question limits a person to a
specific answer.
The open question invites a person to
widen their perceptual field.
The Question
Open Vs. Closed Questions (cont.)
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Closed questions curtailed the perceptual
field.
Open questions solicits one’s views,
opinions, thoughts, and feelings.
The closed question usually demands cold
facts only.
The open question may widen and deepen
the contact.
The open-ended question may open the
door to good rapport.
The Question
Direct Vs. Indirect Questions
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Direct questions are straight queries.
Indirect questions inquire without seeming
to do so.
The indirect question usually has no
question mark at the end, and yet it is
evident that a question is being posed and
an answer sought.
The Question
Double Questions
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Two questions in one is not good.
At best, it limits the client to one choice
out of two.
At worst, it confuses the client and the
interviewer.
Bombarding
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Bombarding – client being asked many
questions back to back
The Question
The Shoe on the Other Foot
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Not every question posed to the helper
needs to be answered.
Helpers tend to be unprepared for and more
or less wary of questions directed at them.
Not every question calls for an answer, but
every question demands respectful listening
and usually a personal reaction on our parts.
Listen with our “ third ear ”
The Question
The Client’s Questions About Others
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Usually the helper cannot reveal anything.
Often times it is good to refer to the life space
of the client.
The Client’s Questions About Us
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Answer directly when appropriate.
Do not take over the stage for long, and revert
to the client as soon as possible.
The Question
The Client’s Questions About Themselves
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Usually be honest and get the client involved.
“Why”
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Today the word why connotes disapproval,
displeasure.
It communicates that the client has done “wrong”
or has behaved “badly”.
The Question
“Why” (cont.)
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Consequently – The client will withdraw
into themselves, attack or rationalize, but
the client will not come closer to us or to
themselves.
The why seems to demand of the client an
answer that they might not possess, one
that is unclear to them, or one that the
client is not willing to share – at least not
yet, perhaps because of the way the
interviewer is going about obtaining it.
The Question
“Why” (cont.)
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If the client perceives that our attitude(s)
is/are unthreatening and if we use “why”
simply to obtain factual information that
the client possesses and we feel we need,
then our use of the word should not cause
undue damage.
Concluding Reflections
How to Use Questions
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See page 156
When to Use Questions
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Ask questions when you (helper) have
been unable to hear, listen, or understand
for one reason or another.
A second situation relates to whether we
have been understood by the client.
Concluding Reflections
When to Use Questions
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I may want to phrase a question to
assist the client in clarifying or exploring
further a thought or feeling they have
been expressing.
Need for more information.
The Question in Retrospect
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See pp. 160-164