Values and meaningful action / VAL-A02-3
My Chosen Values Words — Clinician dialogue
Guide a collaborative conversation about my chosen values words while checking fit and participant choice.
15 minutes · Clinician script · Mental health professionals
Fictional example: Avery replaces the word success with dependable participation.
Use within your training and assessment of readiness. Values language should be personally meaningful rather than imposed.
Invite and obtain permission
Offer: "Would it be useful to explore my chosen values words 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: Values language should be personally meaningful rather than imposed. Ask what fits and what does not.
Guide the task
Choose, rewrite, or reject several value words and explain what the chosen ones mean in everyday behavior. Ask for permission before giving an example. Use this fictional illustration if useful: Avery replaces the word success with dependable participation.
Reflect and check accuracy
Reflect only what was offered: "I heard you describe ___. What did I miss?" Ask: Which words feel like yours? 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:
- Which words feel like yours?
- What would tell me to adapt, stop, or seek supervision?
Conceptual background
Valuing as a Choice — Association for Contextual Behavioral Science
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.