Prochaska and Diclemente's Transtheoretical Model of Change

Change is an individual and personal process, and no one can change another person if they do not want to change. That is why the coaching has the complex mission of empowering people to be aware of their own ability to achieve their goals and achieve positive and lasting changes in their lives.

For several decades, a theoretical model of change has been applied in many areas (addictions, changes in lifestyle little healthy, etc.) to help understand why individuals often fail despite wanting to initiate a change in their lifetime.

The process of personal change seen from Psychology

There has been little work in the literature regarding specific change in the field of coaching, but a psychotherapeutic theory has shown itself to be very effective in this regard, as it proposes not only a description of the phases or stages of change, but also provides a framework conducive to the correct intervention. This theory was proposed by James prochaska (in the image) and Carlo Diclemente and receives the name of Transtheoretical Model of Change.

Said model explains the phases that a person needs to go through in the process of changing a problem behavior (or behavior that is intended to change) to one that is not, considering the motivation as an important factor in this change, and assigning the subject an active role, since he is conceived as the main actor in his behavior change.

The model also takes into account other variables apart from motivation, which in the opinion of the authors influence behavior change. These elements are: the stages of change, the process of change, the decisional balance (pros and cons) and the self-confidence (or self-efficacy).

Since any personal change requires commitment, time, energy, and clear and realistic strategies, it is important to recognize that this process can be challenging. This theory warns that it is probable to suffer relapses and return to the previous stages. Therefore, it provides hope for individuals, since accepting failures as normal positively affects the perception of self-confidence (self-efficacy).

The coaches They should make clients aware of this aspect of the theory, as it is a useful tool to empower them in the face of change.

The stages of the Prochaska and Diclemente model of change

This model gives us the opportunity to understand that human development is not linear but rather circular and that human beings can go through various phases, and even stagnate and regress on the path of change.

The different stages of the Prochaska and Diclemente model are shown below, and for a better understanding, we are going to use as an example an individual who wants to start exercising to improve his health and leave behind the sedentary life he was used to:

• Precontemplation: at this stage the person is not aware of having a problem, and there is frequent defense mechanisms like denial or rationalization. In our example, the individual would not be aware of the negative effects of a sedentary life or would repeat to himself "something has to be died of."

• Contemplation: in this phase the person realizes that he has a problem, begins to look at the pros and cons of his situation, but has not yet made the decision to do something. In our example it would be someone who is aware that sedentary life causes many health problems, but he has not made the decision to join a gym or repeats "he will join".

• Preparation: the person has already made the decision to do something about it and begins to take a few small steps. In our example it would be a person who goes to buy sports clothes or registers in the municipal swimming pool.

• Action: the person already takes the necessary steps, without excuses or delays. In our example the person begins to do physical exercise.

• Maintenance: the new behavior is established, it begins to be a new habit. In our example, the person has been going frequently for more than six months to swim or practice “running” on a regular basis.

Maintenance phase

In the maintenance phase, the person can go to the “termination” phase in which the new habit is already solid and it is difficult to abandon it, since it is part of her life; or it may relapse (although it may relapse at any stage), but never returning to the "pre-contemplation" stage.

Relapses

In case of relapse, the person can:

• Re-engage in change, acknowledge your progress, learn from experience, and try not to make the same mistake again.
• View relapse as a failure and stagnate eternally without changing.

Therefore, in the event of a relapse, the coach must make the client see that he is not a failure and must encourage him to move forward with the change.

The phases and levels of change

This dimension of the Transtheoretical Model of Prochaska and Diclemente explains what changes are needed to stop a problem behavior and indicates the content of this change. All behavior is given a context and conditioned by certain environmental factors.

The different conditioning factors are organized into five interrelated levels, on which the coach intervenes following a hierarchical order, from more superficial to deeper. Being related, changing one level can cause a change in another and it is also possible that an intervention at all levels is not necessary, since not all levels have to affect the behavior that is intended to be changed.

The five levels of change They are:

• Symptom / situational (pattern of harmful habits, symptoms, etc.).

• Maladaptive cognitions (expectations, beliefs, self-evaluations, etc.).

• Current interpersonal conflicts (dyadic interactions, hostility, assertiveness, etc.).

• Systemic / family conflicts (family of origin, legal problems, social support network, employment, etc.).

• Intrapersonal conflicts (self-esteem, selfconcept, personality, etc.).

Coaching applied to personal change processes

The intervention usually begins at the most superficial level, and as you progress, it is possible to intervene on deeper levels. The reasons why intervention is usually started in the most superficial situation are:

• Change tends to happen more easily at this more overt and observable level.

• This level generally represents the main reason for attending the coaching session.

• Since the level is the most conscious and current, the degree of interference necessary for an assessment and intervention is less.

• Since these levels are not independent, the change in one of them probably causes changes in others.

Decisional balance

The decisional balance it is the relative weight between the pros and cons of changing behavior, which each individual assigns in their process of awareness. The model predicts that for individuals in the precontemplation stage, the cons of change will be more apparent than the pros and cons of change. that this decisional balance will gradually reverse as individuals move through the rest of the stages.

For individuals in the action and maintenance stages, the pros of the change will be more important than the cons.

Another key: Self-efficacy

The Self-efficacy They are the judgments and beliefs that a person has about her abilities to successfully perform a certain task and, therefore, direct the course of her action. It helps to face different difficult situations, without having relapses. Therefore, it is positive to face the various problematic situations that may arise during the change process and it is positive to maintain the desired behavior.

The model predicts that self-efficacy will increase as individuals move through stages of change.

If you want to know more about the concept of self-efficacy, we invite you to read the following post:

"The Self-Efficacy of Albert Bandura: Do you believe in yourself?"

Change strategies

Within the Transtheoretical Model of Change, stages are useful to help place the client at a certain point. However, little would be achieved knowing this and not knowing the strategies that could be implemented to encourage the subject to move forward.

The processes of change are the activities that encourage the individual to move towards a new stage, but it must be mentioned that they are not restricted to coaching. In fact, this theory comes from psychotherapy, since this model is the result of a comparative analysis of theories that led the psychological therapy and behavioral change in the 1980s.

As a result of the work, Prochaska he identified 10 processes that occur in subjects that are changing their behavior, such as the "increased awareness" coming from the freudian tradition, the "contingency management" of Skinner's behaviorism, and the establishment of "helping relationships" of the humanist Carl Rogers.

Processes linked to change

The processes shown below characterize people in stages of change, and each one works best in a certain stage:

• Increased awareness: It has to do with individual efforts in the search for information and their corresponding understanding in relation to a certain problem.

• Reevaluation of the environment: it is an evaluation by the subject of the behavior to change and its effect on interpersonal behavior and on the people close to him. Recognition of the benefits for such relationships derived from behavior modification.

• Dramatic relief: Experimentation and expression of emotional relationships caused by the observation and / or warning of the negative aspects associated with modifying behavior.

• Self appraisal: Affective and cognitive assessment of the impact of the behavior to change on the values ​​and self-concept of the individual. Recognition of the benefits that behavior change represents for your life.

• Social liberation: awareness, availability and acceptance by the subject of alternatives.

• Counterconditioning: it is the substitution of alternative behaviors to the behavior to change.

• Helping relationships: is the use of social support to facilitate change.

• Administration of reinforcements: changes the structure that supports the problem.

• Self-liberation: commitment of the individual to change behavior, including the idea that one owns their change

• Stimulus control: it is the control of situations and the avoidance of situations that initiate the unwanted behavior.

Strategies applied to coaching

The intervention that the person needs to have an effective change depends on the stage in which they are. At each stage there are specific interventions and techniques that have a greater impact in helping the person move to the next stages of behavior change. Here are some strategies that the coach can use in each phase:

Precontemplation

• When the client is not aware of the negative effects of the change, it is necessary to provide information about the benefits of the change, that is, why making the change can be beneficial to the person. It is important that the information is provided in a non-authoritative manner.

Contemplation

• Help visualize the arguments for and against change.
• Encourage reflection on the different options for change and their positive effect.
• Encourage consideration of the first steps to begin making change, rationally and realistically.

Preparation

• Plan the change together carefully, before making decisions viscerally.
• Break the action plan into achievable goals.
• Employ a commitment to change contract.
• Help think of ways to follow through with the action plan.

Action

• Follow the plan, monitor progress.
• Reward and congratulate for the successes achieved (even the smallest ones).
• Remind yourself of the benefits that will occur if the objectives are achieved.
• Help identify benefits when they happen.
• Help the client stay in an ideal state of motivation.
• Help her learn from things that don't turn out as expected.

Maintenance

• Maintain and review the plans until you are absolutely sure that they are no longer needed.
• In case of relapse, try not to return to the starting point. Instead, it helps to recognize progress and encourages learning from failures so they don't happen again.
• Help reflect on whether it is possible to help others make positive changes based on the experience of change.

In conclusion

From this perspective, Behavioral change is explained from its stages (when), processes (how) and levels (what). Attention is also paid to self-efficacy and motivation, understanding that the latter varies depending on the stage in which the person is, and understanding that it is mediated by multiple aspects of the subject (the desire to avoid failure or maintain control of his life), which make motivation must be approached from the global point of view, understanding it as a process.

In coaching, This intervention model can be useful, as it provides knowledge about the stage in which the coachee is and provides information about the change processes suitable for each stage, above the level or levels affected. Therefore, it produces a progressive change in the person who intends to change, addressing first the most superficial aspects, to progressively treat the deeper aspects.

To find out what stage the individual is in, there are different questionnaires that provide this information, but the coach can use verbal questions for the same purpose.

A theory that equips the coach

Finally, in this theory there are also some aspects that are of great importance for the coach:

• The coach should not treat everyone as if they were in the action stage.
• People in the action phase are more likely to achieve better and faster results than those in contemplation or preparation.
• The coach must facilitate the passage of introspection and action.
• The coach must anticipate relapses, and make the client understand that they are part of the change.
• The coach should encourage self-regulation of action plans by the coachee.