Expand mobile version menu

Human Services

Marriage and Family Therapist

job outlook graphic

JOB OUTLOOK

Increasing

Real-Life Activities

Real-Life Communication

"Marriage and family counselors communicate by talking to and listening to families," says counselor David Kaplan. "It takes patience, concentration and skill to really hear what someone is telling you."

Counselor Anita Brown agrees that listening and responding to the client take patience and compassion. Brown says she must write up a treatment plan that outlines the course of treatment, as well as the steps the counselor and client must take to reach the end goal or desired result. "We work on the problems and find solutions together," she says.

You are a marriage and family counselor and you have been asked to write out a short, to-the-point treatment plan for your patient, John Doe. He has self-esteem problems. This treatment plan will help you and the client focus on what the main objective is for the treatment and how that objective will be reached through specific goals or activities.

Your goal is to make John Doe feel better about himself. You will try to get him to focus on his own skills and abilities, as well as on the fact that he is a good person. Try to come up with three or four things John Doe can do to improve his self-esteem.