Exploring Valued Domains
Values are the “principles for living” that capture what matters most to people. Elucidating values can serve many therapeutic functions, such as clarifying a sense of purpose, informing goal setting or treatment planning, and motivating clients to engage with difficult experiences or challenging therapeutic tasks. Values-focused interventions are used in many psychotherapies, most notably acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT). This Exploring Valued Domains exercise is designed to help clients clarify their values in different areas of their lives, such as their wider family, intimate relationships, work, and spiritual life.
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Offers theory, guidance, and prompts for mental health professionals. Downloads are in Fillable PDF format where appropriate.
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Includes client-friendly guidance. Downloads are in Fillable PDF format where appropriate.
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Introduction & Theoretical Background
Exploring the domains in which values are enacted is an effective way to introduce clients to the concept of values, and can not only be highly motivating, but can also promote greater psychological flexibility.
Values are discussed and explored in many psychotherapies, including cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT; e.g., Beck et al., 2021), person-centred therapy (Rogers, 1964), behavioural activation (Kanter et al., 2010), motivational interviewing (e.g., Miller & Rollnick, 2023), logotherapy (e.g., Frankl, 2004), and positive psychotherapy (e.g., Slade et al., 2017). However, acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) has presented the most comprehensive theory for values. It is grounded in basic behavioural principles and relational frame theory, and has developed a thorough range of values-focused interventions (Plumb et al., 2009).
ACT is primarily a behavioural treatment, which aims to help people pursue an actively meaningful path through life. Accordingly, all ACT interventions ultimately support individuals to live by their values (Hayes
Therapist Guidance
Before starting this task, ensure that the client has a general sense of what values are and why they are important:
"The word ‘values’ can mean many different things. You might use it to talk about your sense of right or wrong, or about your goals and things you want to achieve, like being a parent or making money. The values I’d like us to explore are the ones that “reflect the kind of person you want to be as you move through life”, or “the way you live when you’re living a meaningful life”. They’re the qualities you would want to bring to your actions. For example, you might value being caring and supporting in your relationships, or care about seeking justice and fairness for people who are vulnerable.
I’d like to do an exercise exploring the areas of your life that might be important to you and where
References And Further Reading
- Beck, A. T., Grant, P., Inverso, E., Brinen, A. P., & Perivoliotis (2021). Recovery-orientated cognitive therapy for serious mental health conditions. Guilford Press.
- Chase, J. A., Houmanfar, R., Hayes, S. C., Ward, T. A., Vilardaga, J. P., & Follette, V. (2013). Values are not just goals: Online ACT-based values training adds to goal setting in improving undergraduate college student performance. Journal of Contextual Behavioral Science, 2, 79-84. DOI: 10.1016/j.jcbs.2013.08.002.
- Ciarrochi, J. & Bailey, A. (2008). A CBT-Practitioner’s Guide to ACT: How to Bridge the Gap Between Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy. New Harbinger Publications, Inc.: Oakland, CA.
- Dahl, J. C., Plumb, J. C., Stewart, I., & Lundgren, T. (2009). The art and science of valuing in psychotherapy: Helping clients discover, explore, and commit to valued action using acceptance and commitment therapy. New Harbinger Publications.
- Dahl, J., Wilson, K. G., & Nilsson, A. (2004). Acceptance and commitment