Storytelling: An enjoyable and effective therapeutic tool

Abstract

Storytelling has great potential for stimulating insight and behavior change, particularly when client and clinician seem to have reached an impasse, as is frequently the case with adolescent clients. The storytelling process provides a viable alternative to the traditional therapeutic communication style in which the client is the only storyteller. It provides a means to circumvent client resistance and present new concepts and paradigms for healthy behavior. This paper provides a practical guide for the use of therapeutic metaphors and storytelling as an intervention technique, provides examples of successful interventions made through the storytelling process with both adolescent and adult clients, and outlines suggestions for the effective use of storytelling as a therapeutic tool.