Motivational interviewing in the practice team

Motivational interviewing for practice teams: understanding ambivalence, applying OARS, strengthening change talk and supporting change.

Online self-study course – 9 modules, approx. 8 hours, at your own pace, with a confirmation of participation after working through all modules. Sources in APA 7 style.

The course is grounded in self-determination theory, the MI spirit of partnership, acceptance, compassion and evocation (broadened to empowerment in the 4th edition), and the stages-of-change model by Prochaska and DiClemente; you practise open questions, affirming, reflecting, summarising and planning together in everyday practice.

This course is part of the e-learning flat rate – one year of access to all self-study courses.Unlock flat rate →

Self-study without supervision, assignments or assessment of learning progress by instructors; the voluntary self-reflection is for your own orientation only. Your confirmation of participation becomes available once you have marked all modules as done yourself.

What this course covers

1Why motivation comes from within

2The core attitude (MI spirit)

3Understanding ambivalence

4The stages of change

5The four core skills (OARS)

6Recognising & encouraging change talk

7Avoiding resistance: sustain talk & discord

8Providing information, building confidence & planning together

9MI in everyday practice & its limits

Learning objectives

What you will learn

You can explain why well-meant advice and attempts at persuasion in everyday practice often provoke pushback rather than change.

You can explain what is meant by the core attitude (‘spirit’) of motivational interviewing and why attitude comes before technique.

You can describe ambivalence as simultaneously wanting and not wanting something and explain why it is a normal core of any behaviour change – and not a sign of lack of insight.

You can name the stages of change – precontemplation, contemplation, preparation, action, maintenance and relapse – and place their origin in research on smoking cessation.

You can name and explain the four core skills of motivational interviewing – open questions, affirmations, reflections and summaries (OARS) – and describe their purpose in conversation.

You can explain what change talk is, how it differs from sustain talk and why both are expressions of ambivalence.

You can explain why pushback in a conversation is usually a signal of too much pressure and why the older term ‘resistance’ is now divided into sustain talk and discord.

You can explain how focusing and planning are connected as tasks of motivational interviewing, and you can choose a topic for the conversation together with patients when several are pending.

9 modules

Self-study at your own pace

Confirmation of participation after working through all modules

Motivational interviewing in the practice team