A comparison of motivational interviewing with non-directive counselling

(from the chapter) Motivational interviewing (MI) is still a relatively new method of intervening psychologically. It was developed at a time and in a treatment context when overt, aggressive confrontation, particularly in group and family settings, was considered a key ingredient of successful psychotherapy. This was particularly so in the United States where 12-step approaches were dominant. MI has subsequently become popularised and has gained widespread support as a key psychotherapeutic intervention within the addictions field and beyond. However, the popularity of motivational approaches that now exists around the world is not reflected in a strong scientific literature attesting to its specific efficacy. In fact, to our knowledge, our study (Sellman et al. 2001), on which this chapter is based, was the only randomised controlled trial in the literature in which a motivational approach is directly compared with a non-directive psychotherapy. This chapter provides a selective review of existing literature on the relative efficacy of MI compared with non-directive approaches. It then describes the purpose, findings and development of our study. Finally the chapter explores issues related to therapist training and reflects on the experience of delivering the two contrasting therapies from both training and therapist perspectives. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved) (chapter)