Solution-focused therapy / SFB-A19-1
Ending with a Useful Summary — Concept brief
Understand the idea behind ending with a useful summary and consider whether it fits your context.
8 minutes · Handout · Adults; supported use as appropriate
Fictional example: Devin wants a summary that does not turn possibilities into promises.
Use an ordinary or fictional example, with a clinician when appropriate. A closing summary can use the person's language and preserve uncertainty.
The idea
A closing summary can use the person's language and preserve uncertainty.
An ordinary example
Devin wants a summary that does not turn possibilities into promises.
What this can look like
Summarize the preferred difference, one existing resource, and an optional next step; invite correction.
Check the fit
What would you change in this account of today's conversation? You may disagree with the framing, use fiction, or decide that this approach is not useful today.
A useful distinction
A preferred future can include advocacy, accommodations, and external change; optimism is not required.
Prompts for this resource
- What part of this idea makes sense to me?
- What would you change in this account of today's conversation?
Conceptual background
What is Solution-Focused Therapy? — Solution-Focused Therapy 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.