Interviewing for Happiness: How to Weave Positive Psychology Magic into the Initial Clinical Interview

In this course, Dr. John Sommers-Flanagan, clinical psychologist, Professor of Counselling at University of Montana, describes the stages and process components within those stages of the traditional clinical intake interview. While he is an advocate for positive psychology, Dr. Sommers-Flanagan does not endorse the “toxic positivity” of telling people how many things they can be grateful for when they are not ready to hear it. Instead, he walks you through strategies at each stage – introduction, openers, the body of the interview, and the closing – which integrate principles from positive psychology and solution-focused therapy. Notions such as role induction, the authentic purpose statement, and building hope from the bottom up, along with several clips of actual interviews, make for an engaging course.