Motivational Interviewing

[BSWdavid]

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Anyone have experience with Motivational Interviewing? If so, what are your thoughts? What populations benefit from it? I have the opportunity to attend an MI training but am curious if it will fit well into a psychodynamic framework.

 

[psychmama]

I use motivational interviewing quite a bit, and I'm primarily (although not exclusively) psychodynamic. Favorite MI applications? Alcohol and drug use, internet addiction, food issues (but not eating disorders). Works really well with college students, which is a population I deal with a lot since I'm at a University counseling center.

 

[Stu951]

I was surprised to see this pop up, I just walked out of a 6 hour motivational interviewing continuing ed course at my work. I have been more humanistically trained, so I cannot really speak to it's compatibility with psychodynamic work. But I think as psychmama said it would work well with alcohol and drug use (the population I am currently working with). I also spent a couple years working as a GA in a university counseling center and could see its usefulness there.

 

[Student4Life0]

I use MI with a substance dependent population and it's an invaluable tool. I think it can be very useful with any population that displays a lot of ambivalence and/or resistance. I use it within a CBT framework but I imagine it would be useful when paired with other orientations as well.

 

[clinpsych]

I can't speak to its compatibility with a psychodynamic approach, but MI is also used with medical populations to increase treatment compliance and promote health behavior change.

 

[docma]

I think MI is a foundational skill for use with almost any population and valuable no matter what your theoretical allegiance is. It is invaluable in working in a community mental health setting.

 

[BSWdavid]

What about training? There is a training being offered in my area (14hrs, taught by two instructors that were trained by Miiler and Rolnick) at a cost of $120. Not sure if it is worth the cost.

 

[mj215]

What about training? There is a training being offered in my area (14hrs, taught by two instructors that were trained by Miiler and Rolnick) at a cost of $120. Not sure if it is worth the cost.

Just my 2 cents, but I'd say it's worth it. I've been to a similar training session that was held for a bunch of us who were helping with a study using MI for eating habits/weight loss, so I personally didn't pay but I think it would have been worth the cost if I'd had to. It's an incredibly useful tool to have, and when used correctly is also quite effective, and therefore it is worthwhile to be properly trained. Techniques such as "rolling with resistance" and using amplified reflections can be more difficult to implement successfully than one might think.

 

[docma]

Training is worth it. It can seem like a "simple" technique--but implementing it well does take some training and it is a great "tune up" for basic counseling/intervention skills

 

[aequitasveritas]

I use the concepts of MI a little differently than its intended for. I find it most useful when trying to understand a patients' phase of treatment. When I started to see patients for long term treatment in practice I often found myself needing to find a way to conceptualize their treatment progress in more than symptom reduction terms. The stages of change in MI help with that. Its also a concept that analysis has been utilizing for decades but that hasnt been put into any type of doctrine, so to speak.

 

[paramour]

Highly beneficial across multiple presenting problems as used by myself, and I've seen it used by other folks w/ various theoretical orientations.

If you have the opportunity for training, go for it. Comes in handy.

 

[Shatani]

What about training? There is a training being offered in my area (14hrs, taught by two instructors that were trained by Miiler and Rolnick) at a cost of $120. Not sure if it is worth the cost.

i would absolutely say its worth it. I work in addictions and MI definitely comes in handy....i think it can be compatible with psychodynamic practice in that it can help you and the client see where his/her behavior is incompatible with his/her goals and then with psychodynamic techniques you can start to explore why thats the case....

just my two cents.