Questioning Skills

When the parent speaks for the child, and its hard for the child to find a voice:

1. Engage the child in drawing the genogram
2. Invite the child in
   • ‘What do you think? Is what Mum says right?’
   • ‘You are often told to be quiet while adults are talking. It is different here. Please let me know if you disagree or want to add something to what Mum says.’
3. Be assertive
   • ‘I want to hear what Sally has to say’
   • Can be reinforced with eg, gesture of stop sign, if mother interrupts.
   • Use humour, eg, zipping of mouth gesture

Interviewing teenagers who are reluctant to speak: 

1. Multiple Choice Questions

   Open questions (Tell me about your insulin?) are often unrewarding (Dunno); Closed questions (Do the injections bother you?) may get a yes or a no, but that might mean anything.

   Try: 'Are you having trouble with your insulin because you don't like the injections, or you feel embarrassed to be different, or is there some other reason?'

2. Comparative Questions 

   'Are you doing your BSLs more often, less often or about the same as last time that I saw you?'

3. Third person 

   'Lots of kids with Coeliac Disease tell me that they hate most the idea of having to be different from their friends. Maybe you feel that too.'

4.  Speculate

 Rather than using a question, make a (tentative) statement.

I think you might be not wanting to talk today because you are worried that I am going to be cross with you for having forgotten to take your preventer.

Hard Questions -

talking to 13-18 yr olds

Steve Patching and Margaret Philp from Riverland CAMHS have produced a booklet called "Hard Questions". This booklet provides advice for GPs on questioning strategies with young people.

We would like to thank Riverland CAMHS for sharing their valuable information.