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The Effect of Solution‐Focused Versus Problem‐Focused Questions: A Replication

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Journal of Marital and Family Therapy

Published online on

Abstract

In therapeutic conversations, questions can be considered as interventions in their own right. This study is a cross‐cultural replication of Grant (Journal of Systemic Therapies, 2012, 31, 2, 21) study on the effects of different types of questions on various clinically relevant variables. A total of 204 students of a Spanish university described a real‐life problem that they wanted to solve and were then randomly assigned to either a solution‐focused or a problem‐focused questions condition. Before and after answering the questions, they completed a set of measures that assessed positive and negative affect, self‐efficacy, and goal attainment. Solution‐focused questions produced a significantly greater increase in self‐efficacy, goal approach, and action steps than problem‐focused questions, and a significantly greater decrease in negative affect, providing further empirical support to solution‐focused practices.