Values and meaningful action / VAL-A18-3
Trying On a Direction — Clinician dialogue
Guide a collaborative conversation about trying on a direction while checking fit and participant choice.
15 minutes · Clinician script · Mental health professionals
Fictional example: Avery experiments with creative play without deciding to become an artist.
Use within your training and assessment of readiness. A tentative value can be explored through a reversible action.
Invite and obtain permission
Offer: "Would it be useful to explore trying on a direction 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 tentative value can be explored through a reversible action. Ask what fits and what does not.
Guide the task
Choose a possible quality, test a small action, and review whether it feels meaningful rather than deciding in advance. Ask for permission before giving an example. Use this fictional illustration if useful: Avery experiments with creative play without deciding to become an artist.
Reflect and check accuracy
Reflect only what was offered: "I heard you describe ___. What did I miss?" Ask: What did the experiment teach you about the direction? 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 did the experiment teach you about the direction?
- 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.