Active Listening

Listening is an active process through which the listener aims to achieve an accurate understanding of all the messages that the other person is conveying.

Talking is the skill of putting complex information into words that convey the intended meaning.

Active Listening A term often used to describe a general approach to listening that helps you gain more information, improve your understanding of other points of view, and work cooperatively with team members or peers. This approach requires not just that you learn and remember more of what the other party has said, but also that you communicate your interest and involvement to that party, as well

Active Listening Active listening requires effective use of verbal and nonverbal communication, as well as mental and emotional discipline.

An active listener… Looks and sound interested in the speaker Adopts speaker’s point of view Clarifies speaker’s thoughts and feelings

Reflective Response A technique, borrowed from certain types of counseling techniques Designed to elicit as full a sense as possible of the speaker's thoughts and especially feelings. It is a way of helping someone explore her own personal meanings. This technique involves reflecting back to the speaker what you believe she has said in order to verify (or clarify) your understanding and to encourage the speaker to continue elaborating on her point of view.

In Reflective Response, the listener must be able to… Reflect speaker’s thoughts and feelings Respond rather than lead the conversation Respond to speaker’s feelings rather than the content

Reflective V.S. Directive Response Thus once you have learned to use the reflective mode of listening, you need to consider when to use it, when to shift from that mode to a more directive mode, and when not to be reflective at all. Here are some reasons and times for using this reflective technique…

Reflective V.S. Directive Response When you need or want to understand the other person's feelings more completely When you sense that the other person has not yet revealed his thoughts and feelings about the situation When you sense that the other person is not sure of his true feelings

Reflective V.S. Directive Response Thus active listening with reflective responses is often the first stage of an interaction. Then, once you feel you really understand the person's perspective, you can switch to a more directive or confrontational or persuasive stance. Here, you can lead as well as respond and speak from your own frame of reference as well as the other person's.

In communication with people who are distressed or in crisis social workers will need to be able to: manage and respond to strong emotional responses work with resistance communicate authority and ‘control’ within statutory interventions communicate warmth and empathy, helping to creating a safe environment for a vulnerable person to start to explore difficult issues and to make changes with support.

Using Non Verbal Communication Social workers need to be able to use non-verbal skills in order to demonstrate they are actively listening to what is being communicated. Open body posture Good eye contact Head nods can be used to reassure the speaker that they have your full attention. Be aware that so much more is being communicated than what is said with words.

Social workers need to be aware and sensitive to tone, posture and gestures, behaviour, facial expressions, clothes and appearances. Silence and stillness are also powerful forms of communication. It is estimated that only around 7% of what is communicated is via words alone (Rush, 1989 cited in Stacks and Salwen, 2009); the remainder is communicated via non-verbal cues and tone of voice.

Reflective exercise: Recall a time when you had something important you wished to communicate and felt listened to.  What listening qualities did you value?  How did you know you had the listener’s full attention?  What non-verbal communication skills would you like to develop further? Note down your thoughts in your reflective log. Your shadowing experience might provide opportunities for you to observe the verbal and non-communication skills of practicing social workers.