Listening for Change: Applying Motivational Interviewing to Support Refugee and Newcomer Goals

Are you a service provider working with refugees and newcomers who are ambivalent about change? This blog describes how you can transition from traditional “advice giving” to a more transformative client-centered approach through Motivational Interviewing, including practical tools you can start using today.

Introduction

Like all people, refugees and newcomers can be ambivalent about change, whether it’s enrolling in classes, advancing in their careers, engaging in mental health services, or building community connections. This ambivalence is normal: clients often express both reasons to change and reasons to keep things the same, reflecting past trauma, safety concerns, and other constraints. When service providers give clients advice, it can feel one-sided or coercive, especially for trauma survivors.
Motivational Interviewing (MI) offers an evidence-based, client-centered alternative. Rather than pushing for change, MI places the client’s goals, values, and priorities at the center. Service providers become partners, using listening, reflection, and open questions to help clients explore their own motivations and identify meaningful next steps.

What is Motivational Interviewing (MI)?
MI is a collaborative conversation style that helps individuals strengthen their own motivation and commitment to change. MI honors clients as the experts of their own lives, respects their autonomy, and aligns with trauma-informed and strengths-based practices. Through reflective listening and open questions, MI invites clients to explore what matters most to them, and why.
At its core, the spirit of MI is grounded in four foundational principles:

The OARS Framework
MI uses a set of core skills, known as OARS: Open questions, Affirming, Reflecting, and Summarizing. These skills can be especially powerful in resettlement contexts.
Open Questions
Asking open questions invites clients to move beyond yes-or-no answers and express their thoughts and feelings in their own way.
Using “what,” “how,” or “where” to frame questions signals your genuine curiosity and helps you learn more about clients’ goals, values, and insights.
Example scripts:
“What has helped you feel most hopeful about building a life here?”
“How have you handled stressful events in the past?”
“Where do you typically find motivation to accomplish your goals?”
Affirming
Using affirmations helps you recognize clients’ resilience, strengths, and past successes by acknowledging and validating the clients, their emotions, and their experiences.
Example scripts:
“You’ve gone through a lot of change, and you’re still here.”
“It takes so much courage to put yourself in uncomfortable situations.”
“Trying to build something new after what you’ve gone through is hard work. It’s okay that you didn’t complete that task last week. Let’s discuss a more realistic step forward.”
Reflecting
Reflecting is rephrasing what you heard to help the client feel seen and understood.
Example scripts:
“It sounds like you’re excited about finding a job but also worried about how to balance work and caring for your children.”
“You’ve worked really hard this week to get your kids to school on time, and you’re also concerned about your son withdrawing socially.”
“You’ve been feeling really lonely and unmotivated since losing your family, and you’re wanting things to feel different for you.”
Summarizing
Summarizing helps you highlight key themes throughout the conversation by clarifying details and confirming your understanding.
Example script:
“What I’m hearing is that English classes matter to you, but your schedule and child care are big concerns.”
“You’re interested in returning to school and want to focus your energy there. Am I understanding you correctly?”
These techniques support respectful dialogue while encouraging clients to articulate and take ownership of their desires for change.

MI in Action with Refugees

MI offers a compassionate, client-centered approach for supporting refugees as they navigate loss, displacement, and trauma—experiences that can affect trust, motivation, and readiness for change. Using MI effectively in direct service work takes practice! The scenarios below compare unhelpful responses with MI-informed ones.
Scenario 1
A newly resettled Congolese mother is unsure about enrolling in English classes because she has three young children and an elderly parent living with her. She feels overwhelmed by the idea of adding another responsibility.
Unhelpful response: “I understand you’re busy, but English classes are important for your future here. Let me help you figure out child care so you can attend.”
MI-informed response: “It sounds like you’re interested in taking English classes but are feeling overwhelmed about adding another responsibility. What kind of support would be most helpful for you right now?” (pause) “How might that support help you attend a class when you feel ready?”
This response reflects the client’s ambivalence and invites her to identify support at her own pace. Additional open questions:
“What feels most overwhelming about adding this right now?”
“How would you like to approach attending classes in a way that feels manageable for you?”
“What has helped you take on new responsibilities in the past?”
Scenario 2
A male youth who resettled to the U.S. seven months ago is graduating high school and interested in a job training program. He shares: “Maybe I don’t deserve to do any of this. All my family is gone.”
Unhelpful response: “Don’t say that—you absolutely deserve this! Your family would want you to take this opportunity. This program will change your life.”
MI-informed response: “You feel bad about having this opportunity when your family members didn’t, but you’re still considering it, which tells me it matters to you.”
This response supports autonomy by inviting the client to explore his values versus being told what he deserves. Additional open questions:
“What feels most encouraging about this program?”
“What about this program connects to the kind of future you want for yourself?”
“What would need to be different for this to feel like a safe step for you to take?”

Practical Tips for Providers

1. Listen more; talk less. Stay curious about your clients and their journey. They often have solutions within them.
2. Avoid trying to convince clients to change.
3. Celebrate with your clients. Acknowledge their progress, no matter how small.
4. Practice building MI into every client interaction (e.g., routine meetings, check-ins, walk-ins, etc.).
5. Use supervision or peer coaching to reflect on your MI skills and interactions.
6. When conversations feel stuck, acknowledge that the client showed up. Simply saying, “Thank you for being here today—I know it took effort,” can help clients reconnect with their own motivation.

Organizational Considerations for Implementing MI

Research and practice guidance on MI implementation emphasize that MI is more than techniques; it’s an approach that requires organizational alignment and support from leaders to be effective. Guidance from the Motivational Interviewing Network of Trainers (MINT) highlights that MI is most successful and effective in environments that foster reflective practice and ongoing skill development and that promote client-centered, trauma-informed care.
Organizational leaders should:

1. Invest in ongoing professional development. Strengthen staff’s MI skills through ongoing training, coaching, or feedback sessions.
2. Model the use of MI in supervision and goal development. Use MI-specific communication in supervision with staff to promote MI as part of the organizational culture.

Conclusion

Now that you understand MI’s core principles—open-ended questions, reflective listening, affirming client strengths, and exploring ambivalence (OARS)—you can begin integrating these skills into your work. Start small: try asking one open question instead of offering advice, or reflect on what you hear before problem-solving. Notice what shifts, and start building more trusting and empowering relationships that will help newcomer clients thrive.

The IRC received competitive funding through the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families, Grant #90RB0053. The project is 100% financed by federal funds. The contents of this document are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official views of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Administration for Children and Families.