__________ involves the ability of counsellor to reflect on what the client says and feels using different words.
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 2
The correct answer is Option (2) → Paraphrasing
Option (1) Empathy — Incorrect. Empathy is the ability of a counsellor to understand the feelings of another person from her/his perspective, like stepping into someone else’s shoes. It is understanding the feeling, not restating what was said.
Option (2) Paraphrasing — Correct. Paraphrasing involves the ability of a counsellor to reflect on what the client says and feels using different words. The listener does not repeat the exact words but gives a summary and restatement of what s/he understood, which shows how much of the message was received.
Option (3) Authenticity — Incorrect. Authenticity means that one’s behavioural expressions are consistent with what one values and with one’s inner self-image. It concerns the counsellor being genuine, not restating the client’s words.
Option (4) Unconditional Positive Regard — Incorrect. It is the therapist’s continuing positive feeling towards the client, without judging her/him, even if the client is rude or confides all the ‘wrong’ things s/he has done. It is an attitude of acceptance, not a skill of rewording.
Note: Paraphrasing as a skill of an effective counsellor was there in the chapter ‘Developing Psychological Skills’ of the pre-rationalised NCERT, which NTA followed in 2023, and is not there in the NCERT book (2025-26). This question has been picked from the pre-rationalised NCERT.
NCERT (2025-26): “Therapeutic Relationship … The therapist conveys by her/his words and behaviours that s/he is not judging the client and will continue to show the same positive feelings towards the client even if the client is rude or confides all the ‘wrong’ things that s/he may have done or thought about. This is the unconditional positive regard which the therapist has for the client. The therapist has empathy for the client. … empathy is present when one is able to understand the plight of another person, and feel like the other person. It means understanding things from the other person’s perspective, i.e. putting oneself in the other person’s shoes.…” NCERT (Pre-rationalised): “Characteristics of Effective Helper … In this section, we will discuss four qualities that are associated with effective counsellors. These include: (i) Authenticity, (ii) Positive regard for others, (iii) Ability to empathise, and (iv) Paraphrasing.…” “Characteristics of Effective Helper … (iv) Paraphrasing: This skill has already been discussed in the section on communication earlier. You will recall that this involves the ability of a counsellor to reflect on what the client says and feels using different words.…” “Paraphrasing … How would you know that someone has been listening? Ask her/him to restate what you had said. The person in doing this does not repeat your exact words. S/he makes a summary of the ideas just received and provides you with a restatement of what s/he understands. This is called ‘paraphrasing’. It allows you to understand how much s/he understood of what was communicated. If someone cannot repeat or write down a summary of what was said, then s/he probably did not get the whole message or did not understand it.…” |