Emotion recognition can be thought of as the ability to identify and understand emotions in other people. This skill has been referred to by some researchers as ‘cognitive empathy’ (as contrasted with ‘affective’ empathy – with the latter being the ability ‘feel’ or...
As mental health professionals working with children and young people, our primary focus is of course on the mental and emotional well-being of the young humans we have the privilege of supporting. However, anyone who has worked in child/adolescent mental health for...
Therapy homework (or home practice) has long been a part of mental health treatment for children and families. It has been understood a variety of ways but can be defined as ‘tasks assigned to clients to promote skill acquisition between treatment sessions’ (Dozois,...
One of the joys and privileges for mental health professionals working with children is meeting a new person/family for the first time and having them share their “story” with us. However, there are also significant challenges for us in this first meeting (or...
Have you looked directly into someone’s eyes today when you spoke with them? Did it help you understand them? Or connect with them? Or did it make you feel uncomfortable? And (perhaps more interestingly) have you consciously thought about using this eye contact or...
One of the important questions I ask the children and teens I work with is this: “would you please tell me about your friends”. This question sometimes surprises families. Having made an appointment to see a psychologist they are expecting questions about...
