Which statement describes recognizing incongruence during readiness assessment?

• A. Acquires, comprehends and applies knowledge/skills related to the individual's readiness to change.
• B. Clarifies stages of change: pre-contemplation, contemplation, preparation, action, maintenance.
• C. Accepts, explores, reinforces, and encourages client's expressions.
• D. Recognizes incongruence between body language, words used, and the tone of voice.

Answer: (D)

Noting incongruence means paying attention to what the client says and comparing it with their nonverbal cues, such as body language and tone of voice, to gauge true readiness to change. This helps reveal ambivalence or hesitancy that may not be spoken outright, guiding you to address underlying concerns rather than taking words at face value. In readiness assessment, you’re looking for that mismatch—words that express readiness paired with tense posture, avoidance of eye contact, or a defensive or uncertain tone—which signals that the client isn’t fully committed yet. By recognizing this, you can gently reflect on the discrepancy and explore what would need to happen for genuine readiness to emerge. The other options describe related aspects of the process, like understanding stages of change, building knowledge or skills, or supporting expression, but they don’t specifically describe the act of noticing and interpreting incongruence between what is said and what is conveyed nonverbally.