| Course | HW350 Principles of Health Coaching |
|---|---|
| Unit | Unit 7 |
| Paper type | Motivational interviewing exchange |
| Length | About 810 words, 5 pages double-spaced |
| Format | APA 7 student paper |
| School | Purdue University Global |
| Program | BS in Health and Wellness |
| Updated | October 2026 |
Free sample paper for HW350 Unit 7
"It's the One Thing I Enjoy in the Afternoon": A Unit 7 Annotated Motivational Interviewing Exchange Within the 5A Model
[Student Name]
Purdue University Global
HW350: Principles of Health Coaching
Unit 7 Motivational Interviewing Exchange
[Instructor Name]
[Date]
The exchange is composite and written for teaching; it is not a recording of a real session. The sources cited are real.
Background
The 5A model gives a brief structure for behavior change conversations in primary care: assess the behavior and readiness, advise, agree on goals, assist with plans and barriers and arrange follow-up (Whitlock et al., 2002). In motivational interviewing, the helper and client work as partners, and the helper's questions, affirmations, reflections and summaries are aimed at surfacing the client's own case for change (Miller & Rollnick, 2013). In coaching, "advise" is reframed: the coach shares information only with permission and lets the client decide what to do with it. That fits self-determination theory's emphasis on autonomy as a source of lasting motivation (Ryan & Deci, 2000).
Assess
Coach: You mentioned the afternoons a couple of times today. What are they like now?
Annotation: An open question invites Gloria to describe her experience in her own words.
Gloria: Quiet. Too quiet. My husband's at the hardware store, and I end up in the kitchen. Chips, cookies, whatever's there. Honestly, it's the best part of my afternoon.
Coach: The afternoons feel empty, and the snack is the bright spot.
Annotation: A reflection captures both the problem and her positive feeling toward the snack, so she feels understood rather than judged.
Gloria: That sounds sad when you say it like that. But yes.
Advise, With Permission
Coach: May I mention something other people in your spot have noticed?
Annotation: Asking permission before giving information protects her autonomy.
Gloria: Go ahead.
Coach: Some people find that when the reason for eating is boredom or loneliness, changing the afternoon itself helps more than changing the food. But you know your afternoons best. What do you make of that?
Annotation: Information is offered as other people's experience, then handed back with an open question.
The coach's most important sentence in the exchange is "you know your afternoons best."
Agree
Gloria: I don't want to give up the chips. I'll be honest.
Coach: You'd rather stop eating so many snacks, so let's start by
Annotation: Here the coach nearly slips into the "righting reflex," taking over and proposing a goal Gloria has not chosen. Motivational interviewing calls this a common trap. The coach stops and corrects.
Coach: Actually, let me back up. You don't want to give up the chips, and you also told me you don't want to end up on pills like your sister. Both of those matter to you.
Annotation: A double-sided reflection holds both sides of her ambivalence without pushing, which often lets the client resolve it herself.
Gloria: Yes. Maybe it's not the chips. Maybe it's having nothing to do at two o'clock.
Coach: That's an interesting thought. What might two o'clock look like if it weren't empty?
Annotation: She has generated her own reframing; the coach follows it with an open question.
Assist
Gloria: The church needs someone to answer the phone in the office on weekday afternoons. I said no because I thought I'd be too busy. I'm not.
Coach: You'd be helping, you'd be out of the house and you'd be around people. That sounds like your old route in a way.
Annotation: An affirmation connects her idea to strengths identified in the positive psychology unit: meaning, relationships and routine.
Coach: What would get in the way?
Gloria: My knee on the church stairs. And Thursdays, because that's when I walk my granddaughter.
Coach: So two or three afternoons, maybe, and the stairs to think about.
Arrange
Coach: What would you like to do before we talk next time?
Gloria: I'll call the church office tomorrow and ask about Mondays and Wednesdays. And I'll keep doing the pause before the pantry.
Coach: Let me summarize. The afternoons feel empty, and snacking fills them. You want to keep enjoying food but don't want to end up on medication. You've decided to ask about volunteering two afternoons a week and keep pausing before snacks. We'll talk in two weeks about how it went. Did I get that right?
Annotation: A summary gathers her own words and decisions, confirms understanding and sets follow-up.
Gloria: That's it.
What the Exchange Shows
The exchange moves through all five A's in under ten minutes. The coach never tells Gloria to stop snacking; she arrives at changing her afternoons herself, which motivational interviewing predicts is more likely to last than a change imposed from outside. The near-slip shows how easily a coach can take over, and the correction shows the skill of returning to the client's own reasons.
References
Miller, W. R., & Rollnick, S. (2013). Motivational interviewing: Helping people change (3rd ed.). Guilford Press.
Ryan, R. M., & Deci, E. L. (2000). Self-determination theory and the facilitation of intrinsic motivation, social development, and well-being. American Psychologist, 55(1), 68-78. https://doi.org/10.1037/0003-066X.55.1.68
Whitlock, E. P., Orleans, C. T., Pender, N., & Allan, J. (2002). Evaluating primary care behavioral counseling interventions: An evidence-based approach. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 22(4), 267-284. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0749-3797(02)00415-4
What the HW350 Unit 7 assignment asks for
For Unit 7, the assignment is usually a short coaching exchange, written or transcribed, annotated to show motivational interviewing skills, often organized by the 5A model. Each annotation should name the skill and explain why it was used at that moment. Instructors look for a realistic client voice, including ambivalence, and for a coach who follows rather than leads. Annotating a mistake and its correction often earns more credit than a flawless script, because it shows awareness of common errors. Advice, if given, should come only with permission and be handed back to the client. The exchange should end with a summary and a follow-up. Mark clearly that the exchange is composite or used with consent, and keep identifying details out.
How this HW350 Unit 7 example is built
The worksheet opens with a short background on the 5A structure and motivational interviewing, linked to self-determination theory. The assess section uses an open question and a reflection that captures Gloria's enjoyment of her snack. The advise section asks permission, offers what others have noticed and hands it back, under a highlighted line naming the coach's most important sentence. In the agree section the coach starts to propose a goal, stops and offers a double-sided reflection, and Gloria reframes the problem herself. The assist section affirms her volunteering idea and explores barriers. The arrange section ends with a summary in her words and a date. A final section explains what the exchange demonstrates.
HW350 Unit 7 rubric: what earns full points
Annotated exchanges are graded on skill accuracy, annotation quality and realism. Each core skill should appear and be labeled correctly. Annotations earn credit when they explain the purpose of a turn, not only name the technique. Graders reward a client voice with real ambivalence and a coach who does not rush to fix it. Identifying and correcting a coaching error shows reflective practice. The 5A structure, if required, should be visible. A closing summary that uses the client's words is expected. Clear formatting of speaker turns and annotations helps the reader. The motivational interviewing text, the 5A paper and self-determination theory belong in APA 7.
Common HW350 Unit 7 mistakes, and how to avoid them
Exchanges often read like scripts in which the client agrees with everything, which misses the point of motivational interviewing. Another frequent problem is annotations that only name a skill, such as reflection, without explaining why it fit that moment. Some writers have the coach give advice without permission, or ask several closed questions in a row. Summaries that introduce the coach's ideas rather than the client's undermine the exchange. Forgetting to arrange follow-up leaves the conversation unfinished. Before writing, choose one topic your client is ambivalent about and draft the client's side first. Send the topic and your client's situation, and the exchange can be written and annotated around them.
Get an HW350 Unit 7 example written to your instructions
Send the client, the goal and the instructions with the rubric. A custom exchange shows open questions, reflections and summaries with annotations. Delivery is within 24-48h, and a first exchange is free. The paper above is an original model document written by our desk, not a submitted student paper and not an official Purdue University Global document.
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HW350 Unit 7 questions, answered
What are the core motivational interviewing skills?
Open questions, affirmations, reflections and summaries.
What is the 5A model?
Assess, advise, agree, assist and arrange, a framework for brief counseling in primary care.
Should the exchange be realistic?
Yes, including the client's mixed feelings.
Where can I find a free HW350 Unit 7 sample paper?
The complete HW350 Unit 7 motivational interviewing exchange is available on this page, an annotated composite conversation organized by the 5A model with one corrected coaching error.
What mistake is annotated in the HW350 Unit 7 sample?
The righting reflex: the coach begins to propose a snack-reduction goal the client has not chosen, then stops and offers a double-sided reflection instead.