Behavioral Change through Motivational Interviewing and Transtheoretical Model of Change

Running head: BEHAVIORAL CHANGE
Behavioral Change through Motivational Interviewing and Transtheoretical Model of
Change
Name of the Student
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Author Note

1BEHAVIORAL CHANGE
Introduction:
Transtheoretical Model is an approach of behavioral modification or behavioral
change which helps to assess the readiness of an individual towards a change to healthier
behaviors and guides individuals to change their behavior. The model is comprised of 5
stages that an individual passes through in order to change their behavior, such as
precontemplation stage, contemplation stage, preparation stage, action stage and maintenance
stage (Kushnir et al., 2016).
Motivational Interviewing is a form of client centered counseling approach that aims
to resolves ambivalence to support change in behavior through the development of
interpersonal relation between the therapist and the client. In this approach, the therapists try
to change the behavior of the clients by motivating them to make the correct choice that can
support the behavioral change (Lindson‐Hawley et al., 2015).
The aim of this study is to identify how Transtheoretical Model of Stages of change
and Motivational Interviewing can be used to help the client to change his behavior so that he
can maintain a healthy weight and overcome the problem of obesity.
Discussion:
Using Transtheoretical Model of Stages of Change:
Using the Stages of change theory, the client can be moved through the stages of
change implement and maintain a healthy behavior of the patient. In the given scenario, the
client will be undergoing a Total Knee Replacement Surgery. The client is overweight and is
concerned about his own health and is afraid that his health condition is caused due to his
overweight problem (Mastellos et al., 2014).

2BEHAVIORAL CHANGE
This concern shows that the patient is already aware how his overweight problem has
led to his current health condition and the need for a knee replacement surgery. Thus the
patient might be ready to contemplate on the need to change his behavior in order to improve
his health condition (Friman et al., 2017). Therefore, the patient might have already crossed
the precontemplative stage and have entered the contemplative stage, where he understood
the relation between his condition and his behavior. At this stage the patient might have
ambivalences about the change that needs to be made on his behavior and analyze the
advantage and disadvantages of changing the behavior (Garcia & Benavidez, 2016). An
individual is also prone to procrastinate the necessary actions, due to which it is vital to move
the client to the next stage of change that is the preparation stage. To do this, any
ambivalence or confusions he might be facing related to the necessity of changing his
behavior can be educated to him along with the possible benefits of the change (Lipschitz et
al., 2015). The therapist can educate the client on how overweight can increase the risks of
obesity and many other related health conditions (such as diabetes, hypertension, osteo-
arthritis, coronary heart diseases, stroke and even cancer), thus showing that the behavioral
change to lose weight and maintain healthy weight can certainly be beneficial to his health
and wellbeing (Romain et al., 2016).
One all the doubts are cleared, the client can move towards the preparation stage,
where the client is ready to change his behavior and adopt a healthy lifestyle and restrict his
weight gain process. At this stage the client also needs to know about specific action that can
help them to lose weight and maintain a healthy weight, such as improving diet and
increasing physical activities. Involving dieticians, lifestyle therapists and physicians can be
helpful to assist the client in this stage and thus help to move to the next stage that is the
Action Stage (Lee et al., 2017).