Dialectical behavior therapy / DBT-A20-3
Skills Practice Review Card — Clinician dialogue
Guide a collaborative conversation about skills practice review card while checking fit and participant choice.
15 minutes · Clinician script · Mental health professionals
Fictional example: Taylor tried pausing before a message and found that a written draft helped more.
Use within your training and assessment of readiness. A practice record can track fit without becoming a diagnostic score.
Invite and obtain permission
Offer: "Would it be useful to explore skills practice review card using an ordinary or fictional example? We can adapt it, observe, or stop." Ask what the person wants from the conversation.
Elicit before teaching
Ask: "How does this show up, if at all, in your own words?" Offer this idea tentatively: A practice record can track fit without becoming a diagnostic score. Ask what fits and what does not.
Guide the task
Record one situation, a skill attempted, what happened, and an adjustment; use no risk scoring and no identifying details. Ask for permission before giving an example. Use this fictional illustration if useful: Taylor tried pausing before a message and found that a written draft helped more.
Reflect and check accuracy
Reflect only what was offered: "I heard you describe ___. What did I miss?" Ask: What will you keep, change, or seek help with next time? Avoid assigning motives or interpreting silence as agreement.
Respond to a mismatch
If the person rejects the frame, say: "Thank you for correcting it. What would be more useful?" Return to their language or choose a different approach.
Close with agency
Ask which observation, question, or support request the person wants to keep. Confirm a manageable ending and appropriate follow-up; do not turn a tentative possibility into a homework obligation.
Prompts for this resource
- Readiness, permission, cultural context, and access needs to check:
- What will you keep, change, or seek help with next time?
- What would tell me to adapt, stop, or seek supervision?
Conceptual background
Dialectical Behavior Therapy Skills Training: Fundamentals — Behavioral Tech Institute
Background on the approach only. Original exercises and wording are by More Than Therapy with AI assistance; the source does not validate or endorse these materials.