Created by Pet Petersen Choice Theory

Created by Pet Petersen Basic belief:- Perception determines Your behaviour

Created by Pet Petersen Background Choice theory /reality therapy is based on the work of William Glasser, an American psychiatrist. In 1957 Glasser developed serious reservations about psychoanalytic counselling methods. In 1965 he pioneered the idea of Reality Therapy-a new approach to psychiatry. In the 1980s he wrote a book called “Ten steps to discipline” as a way of introducing reality therapy into schools.

Created by Pet Petersen Glasser, much to his disappointment found that schools used the process as an approach to discipline and left out the first 4 steps. The first four steps asked teachers to review their own behaviour as teachers and if it wasn’t working to change it. As a result, Glasser disowned the “10 Steps” and has not referred to it since. Instead he developed the Quality Schools Program as a way of integrating Choice theory into school curriculum. The main principles of choice theory in schools are that – relationships must be being based on trust, respect and elimination of incidents of discipline –choice theory is not only a part of our school lives but is a part of our whole lives –all students can complete quality work that is significantly beyond what is considered to be just competence.

Created by Pet Petersen The main beliefs of choice theory The only person’s behaviour we can control is our own All we can give or get from other people is information. All long lasting psychological problems are relationship problems Revisiting the past can do little to change the present We are driven by five genetic needs;-survival, fun, love, belonging and power We can satisfy these needs only by satisfying a picture or picture in our quality world All we can do from birth or death is behave.All behaviour is made up of acting, thinking, feeling and physiology All behaviour is chosen. We have direct control over only the acting and thinking components. We can however control our feelings and physiology through how we CHOOSE to act or think

Created by Pet Petersen The Seven habits Connecting Listening Trusting Supporting Accepting Encouraging Negotiating Respecting Disconnecting Criticising Threatening Blaming Punishing Complaining Rewarding to control Nagging

Created by Pet Petersen We can’t make kids do anything. We can’t make ANYONE do ANYTHING. The best way we can get students to make positive choices about the learning that we are offering them is to get ourselves into their quality world as their teachers. They can only do that if they value the relationship with us

Created by Pet Petersen A student throws a book of a desk What are your choices? How do you make that choice? The Quality World The real world The knowledge Filter The valuing filter The perceived world The comparing place The involuntary behaviour The behavioural system

Created by Pet Petersen Knowledge Valuing Perceived world Quality World The world inside your head Needs Safety (security) Love (belonging) Fun (Learning) Freedom (choice) Power (Achievement) Needs Total Behaviour Think Feel DoPhysical Touch Taste Smell Hear See World outside Your head

Created by Pet Petersen The real world The people,situations This is internalised through our senses touch feel smell sense hear see

Created by Pet Petersen The Knowledge Filter Allows us to filter in information via the lens of Is it useful? It might be useful It isn’t useful

Created by Pet Petersen The valuing filter This doesn’t mean our values. It means whether or not the information is important to us It opens up pictures in our memory that are important to us It is like an icon on the desk top It goes to the heart of the matter

Created by Pet Petersen The Quality World This contains the mental pictures of the things that are important to us. These pictures always need satisfying and if we had them we believe we are happy fulfilled and content

Created by Pet Petersen The perceived world All we know.All information is perceived.Our perception tells us if the information is pleasurable or painful,or neutral.

Created by Pet Petersen Comparing Scales The scales compare perception with the Quality World. In counselling terms “what you want?” with" what you have got ? ‘

Created by Pet Petersen The Behavioural System 2 Parts Organised behaviour learned behaviours Creative Behaviour we invent these when we believe our organised behaviours aren’t working for us.”

Created by Pet Petersen All behaviour is total That is they all occur together Acting/ feeling/ Thinking/ Physiology Question When your car (teacher and adult) crashes with a student’s (child’s) Who has the greater responsibility?

Created by Pet Petersen YOU CAN’T MAKE SOMEONE UNLESS:_ You manipulate them They fear you They see the outcome as not important to them They accept the outcome as a reasonable consequence

Created by Pet Petersen Change using choice theory It is in our Comparing place (scales) that we compare what is in our perceived world (got) with our quality world (want ). When our scales are out of balance there are several things that we can do to change 1.Quality world;- Add/ adjust /update a picture 2.Perceived world:- Challenge the filter 3. Behaviour System:- Add another new behaviour Refine an existing behaviour Change our total behaviour through thinking and focusing

Created by Pet Petersen The Reality Therapy Questions Want What do you want (The quality world) Doing What kind of choices are you making to help you get what you want? Evaluation Did it work? Did that choice help you get what you want? Plan Are there any different choices that you could make ? Information Can you think about some information I need to give you? (In choice theory terms, all we can do is give another person information)

Created by Pet Petersen First:-Do no Harm

Created by Pet Petersen Is what I am doing taking me closer to or further away from the person with whom I am dealing ?