[vc_row][vc_column][vc_column_text]For the diagnostic purposes it is often indispensable to obtain information concerning the lifeline of an examined person, their way of overcoming difficult situations, needs and reasons etc. These data are often extremely private, unrevealed even to closest relatives. In order to obtain them, certain conditions must be provided in which such a person could and is willing to talk. A situation characterized by a fulfillment of these conditions is called a diagnostic contact.
A diagnostic process takes place in the event of a particular uncertainty experienced by both parties of the relation (an examined person and a diagnostician) the responsibility, however, lies with the examining party. Problems that must be overcome by a professional diagnostician are specified by substantive factors related a characteristic of a diagnostician (their age, education, knowledge and experience) as well as by objective factors referring to gathered diagnostic materials (Kułakowska, 1998). According to E. Wysocka a creative and innovative implementation of strategies adequate to a diagnosed situation is associated with specific competences of a diagnostician. They should create such conditions to a diagnosed person so that they can get in touch with themselves as openly and fully as it is possible. A diagnostician should also control their emotions in such a way as not to affect the content expressed by an examined person. Following S. Geller, during a diagnostic process ( a contact) a diagnostician should not be hypocritical and unreserved by controlling their expression to a certain extend. Thus, the very first characteristics of a diagnostics contact is communication asymmetry, applied intentionally with respect to the aim of an interview. E. Wysocka states that what should be taken into account is a disposition of a diagnostician relevant from the point of view of a due examination as well as potential categories of errors that can be made while analyzing a complex system of factors constituting a pedagogic situation of an individual and an evaluation of their individual features. It is relevant with reference to responsibility which is put on an examiner by a developing and decision-making nature of a diagnosis made. When it comes to fundamental dispositions, these are as follows:
- Substantive knowledge – concerning thinking processes, memory, emotional processes, problem shooting, social mechanism of functioning of an individual and features of functioning of fundamental pedagogical units: a family, school and peer group;
- An ability to apply this knowledge which results in a capability of logical thinking enabling to creatively correlate various information;
- A fundamental skill to observe and lead a conversation, linked with an ability to obtain necessary information, determined by many fundamental competences allowing to initiate a diagnostics contact and successfully develop it;
- Particular technical skills, namely a resource of available diagnostic techniques which varies in different areas of a diagnosis: it is indispensable then to be able to select an adequate technique to examined problems, a particular situation and specific features of diagnosed objects as well as creative developing or appropriate implementation of fundamental diagnostic techniques; an ability to link different techniques in order to obtain a more thorough and complex diagnostic image is also extremely vital and associated with a complementary link of methods, so called, objective, psychometric ones (scales, inventories, questionnaires, tests) and subjective, clinical ones (an interview, talk, observation, analysis of results) and finally projective techniques.
As W. Sztander states, a diagnostician should be aware of fundamental features of a diagnostic contact which are as follows:
- asymmetry of roles, connected with a control of an interviewing process with respect to its aim (enforcing thematic frames) and creation of an atmosphere for an examined person to open up, which belongs to fundamental indicators of a diagnostician’s role; an examined person surrenders themselves to a certain extend which does not mean that they are treated instrumentally, as it is the examined person who specifies what is relevant to him or her (continuing or discontinuing the topic);
- communication asymmetry linked with the fact that an examined person mostly speaks and a diagnostician mainly listens, however it does not mean that the latter one does not have any influence on the flow and course of a talk;
- research function asymmetry, which means respecting ethical principles of examination according to rules indicating the wellbeing of an examined person, whereas obtaining personal gratifications by a diagnostician has only an indirect dimension, resulting from e.g. an acquired experience and abilities.
According to J. Przesmycka-Kamińska, a diagnostician (a practitioner, pedagogue, psychologist or linguist) in difficult events and for the benefit of an examined person, is obliged to cooperate with representatives of other disciplines , among them by participation in interdisciplinary scientific research and cooperation with specialists.
Following A. Schneider, a diagnostician who reflects on his or her professional activities should take it into account in three fundamental areas: knowledge, their own experience as well as attitude and values. Those three areas cover, so called competences (see below)
Competences = knowledge + attitudes and values + experience
A diagnostician should shape their various abilities that help them with holding a conversation with other subjects of research, develop a relation and eliminate any interference, these are:
- Following a client – an ability to closely listen to the meaning of words of an examined person and embark on treads in the course of a conversation;
- Emphatic reacting – communicating of understanding the examined person;
- Unpossessive kindness – an acceptance of an examined person with preservation of their freedom and respect for their doubts;
- Openness – an ability to speak about themselves in a proper way and place of a conversation;
- Positiveness – attention and curiosity about the substance, „sticking to the ground”;
- Focus on „here and now” – concentration on a situation and a diagnostic contact aiming at elimination of any interference (Sztander, 1999).
A diagnostician should also develop various abilities connected with manners of reacting in a diagnostic contact which in an open diagnosis constitutes a therapeutic process. Techniques of coping with stress are extremely important and they should constitute an indispensable tool and ability in a diagnostician’s work. Among those most fundamental ones are, as follows:
- remaining silent – manipulating with silence constitutes a paradoxical method of decreasing emotional tension of an examined person, but it is not a universal method since as a result of prolonged silence by a diagnostician a tension may increase;
- change, reformulation of a question – change of a topic or increasing the level of generality of a question which becomes less threatening, so called: „contact freezing”;
- Giving messages on perceiving difficulties of an examined person – their function is to manifest a diagnostician’s ability to empathy and syntony, they cannot, however, have a form of reprimand as in such a situation an assessment constitutes an additional source of resistance;
- paraphrase – it means that the foregoing utterance of an examining person is formulated by a diagnostician in a slightly different manner. Following L.M. Bramer by means of this technique we can check whether we properly understood the client’s utterance. It is based on presenting the content of a client’s message in a bit different form, usually by using fewer words. If there appears a pause, in a process of communication, then a diagnostician may briefly summarize, what was already expressed. Paraphrasing is especially vital in situations when messages conveyed by an examined person are dull, e.g. the communicates are of a double meaning. A diagnostician „catches” the verbal and nonverbal message and conveys it in a „clearer form”. By means of paraphrasing, unclear messages are translated into clearer and those complex into simpler ones. As the authors of a German guide state paraphrasing should start with a statement „You think that…” and has a form of a statement or a question;
- giving additional information – it often has a form of highlighting the specific nature of their role as a diagnostician or making an examined person aware of the fact that what he or she goes through is natural, thus eliminating their feeling of being threatened;
- a request for substantial utterance – it constitutes a simple technique of coping with a resistance, resulting in intellectualization, rationalization or objectiveness ( putting our own situations in specific other’s ones or „general other”) based on either giving a general instruction e.g. „how does the situation exactly take place” or more rarely on formulating closed questions, referring to analyzed contents;
- a conversation „here and now” – is a technique applied in coping with an active resistance that may have a form of a question directly asked e.g. „why does an examined person not want to talk about something;”
- significance of a role and function of examination – it is a risky but sometimes applied way of coping with an examined person’s resistance based on putting pressure on them by stating that the problem solving is depended on the quality of their utterance or the level of their openness and sincerity;
- expressing their own emotions associated with resistance reveal – it is based on informing an examined person about their (a diagnostician) emotions resulting from an examined person’s behavior e.g. negatives states – sorrow, inability to act, which may volatile the trust to a diagnostician being a professional, though.
L. Marszalek faces a special pedagogue with certain duties and abilities, who not only is responsible for a process of revalidation of children and teenagers with disabilities , but also makes a diagnosis. According to her opinion, an ability to make a positive diagnosis, to perceive strengths and positive traits of personality, mainly in other person depends mostly on a pedagogue’s attitude towards a child. Without a doubt, in order to create such an attitude, there is a need for general knowledge of a child’s psyche and his or her proper development, a thorough discover of each pupil and his or her closest environment, rich knowledge of special pedagogy as well as command for a wide variety of methods and forms of revalidation work. This thorough knowledge and practical abilities should be accompanied by specific psychological qualifications – some tendencies and abilities that predestinating a pedagogue to difficult work with children and teenagers with disabilities. By a positive diagnosis a special pedagogue encourages a child to discover themselves, to wake and fish out his or her best qualities to pose questions concerning his or her potential and ways of personal fulfillment.
Ethical dimension of a diagnosis
Ethics – (gr. Ethikos- morality) it is a study on morality, usually perceived as a philosophical discipline which subject is a theory of the good that is an establishing of what is right and what is wrong from a point of view of morality. Ethics is also a set of assessments and moral norms. Ethics searches for answers to a question „How should it be?” Professional codes are essential indicators and the expression of self-limiting awareness of professional environment. However, nothing replaces motivation to take moral responsibility and respect for other person. It requires an understanding of an axiological aspect of their activity, constant sensitivity to this aspect and analysis with respect to implemented values. It can be said that the general ethical reason for a diagnosis to be made is a profound need for intervention and particularly the intention to help. When a conflict between professional duties and moral values arises (e.g. because of a non-cooperative attitude of an examined person) one has to be aware that diagnosing is a violation of personal rights of an individual: their right to privacy, personal confidentiality, confidentiality of correspondence etc. Examined persons usually express their consent as they hope to obtain support – which, nevertheless, shouldn’t release a diagnostician from a wary use thereof. The responsibility towards a client, respecting them and tireless taking into account of wellbeing of an examined person, institution he or she works in and a society, respect for binding law, reliability, honesty and competence – these are constant elements of professional ethical codes (American Psychological Association, 1992) What should be stressed here is the fact that ethical standards are developing which in turns has great significance for diagnosing.[/vc_column_text][mk_padding_divider size=”20″][mk_custom_list title=”References”]
- Jarosz E., Wysocka E., Diagnoza psychopedagogiczna. Podstawowe problemy i rozwiązania, Wyd. Akad. „Żak”, Warszawa 2006.
- Marszałek L., Wybrane kompetencje diagnostyczne pedagoga specjalnego – diagnoza pozytywna, [w:] Palak Z., Bujnowska A. (red.), Kompetencje pedagoga specjalnego. Aktualne wyzwania teorii i praktyki, Wyd. UMCS, Lublin 2008.
- Okoń W., Nowy słownik pedagogiczny, Wyd. Akademickie „Żak”, Warszawa 2007.
- Paluchowski. J. W., Diagnoza psychologiczna. Podejście ilościowe i jakościowe, Wyd. Naukowe „Scholar”, Warszawa 2006.
- Przesmycka-Kamińska J., Diagnoza psychologiczna dzieci z trudnościami w porozumiewaniu się werbalnym, Wyd. Uniwersytetu Wrocławskiego, Wrocław 2004.
- Schneider A., International Training of Trainers in Human Rights Education with Children, EYC Budapest, Hungary 2008.
- Szustrowa T. (red.), Swobodne techniki diagnostyczne. Wywiad i obserwacja, Wyd. UW, Warszawa 1987.
- Wojtasik B., Warsztat doradcy zawodu. Aspekty pedagogiczno-psychologiczne, PWN, Warszawa 1997.
[/mk_custom_list][mk_padding_divider size=”20″][vc_column_text]#Dudała #diagnosis #diagnostics #therapy #psychology #pedagogy #ethics[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]