Praxical.Psych
Session simulator

Motivational interviewing: the man who does not want to be here

Every instinct you have to persuade him will make him more certain. The entire session is an exercise in not arguing.

Motivational InterviewingintermediateSession 1 of 6 · Court-mandated~50 min

What you are practising

  • 1Engage a client attending under coercion
  • 2Recognise and suppress the righting reflex
  • 3Roll with sustain talk rather than opposing it
  • 4Elicit change talk using scaling correctly
  • 5Assess medical withdrawal risk before any abstinence conversation

Briefing

The referral

Attendance is a condition of a drink-driving sentence. Six sessions. AUDIT-C = 9. Licence gone for eighteen months, which for a self-employed builder has halved his work. Separated two years; sees his fourteen-year-old son on alternate weekends.

The one thing that matters today

You are not going to change his drinking in session one. You are going to find out whether he will come back, and whether there is anything he wants that you could help with. Everything else is premature.

The case

Greg Nowak

52, he/him, self-employed builder, separated, sees his son alternate weekends

Alcohol use, referred after a drink-driving conviction; he does not think he has a problem.

Read the full case first

The phases

  1. 1

    Engaging

    Make the hour worth his time, on his terms.

  2. 2

    Sustain talk

    Roll with it. Every impulse to correct is the righting reflex.

  3. 3

    Evoking

    Elicit change talk. Do not supply it.

  4. 4

    Before anything else

    Medical risk, and the questions he will not raise.

  5. 5

    Closing

    Summarise the change talk. Leave the sustain talk behind.

Educational use only

Praxical.Psych is a teaching tool. It is not medical, clinical, psychological or legal advice, not a diagnosis, not treatment, not supervision, and not a credential. Nothing here creates a clinician–patient or solicitor–client relationship. Every patient, case, transcript and simulated session is fictional. Clinical and legal requirements vary by jurisdiction and change over time — verify anything that bears on a real decision against your own regulator, statute and current professional guidance, and consult a qualified professional.

Do not enter real patient information. If you or someone else is in crisis: US & Canada 988 · UK & Ireland 116 123 · Australia 13 11 14 · elsewhere findahelpline.com · immediate danger, your local emergency number.

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Before you begin

What Praxical.Psych is, and is not

Praxical.Psych is an educational tool. It teaches the theory, evidence base and clinical method of psychotherapy at the level of an advanced survey course, and it lets you rehearse a complete session in a simulator.

It is not medical, clinical, psychological or legal advice. It cannot diagnose or treat anyone, and it does not state the law where you practise — requirements differ by jurisdiction and change. Nothing here creates a clinician–patient or solicitor–client relationship.

  • Every patient, transcript and case in this app is fictional — a composite written for teaching. None depicts a real person.
  • Praxical.Psych is not therapy, not a substitute for supervision, and not a credential. Competence to practise comes from training, supervised hours and licensure.
  • Scores from the instruments here are for learning how they behave. They are not a diagnosis and not a risk assessment, and must not inform a decision about a real person.
  • Do not enter real patient information. Everything you type stays in this browser, but that is not the same as a compliant clinical record system.
If you are in crisis

In the US and Canada, call or text 988. In the UK and Ireland, call 116 123 (Samaritans). Elsewhere, find a local line at findahelpline.com. In immediate danger, use your local emergency number.

Read the full disclaimer