Financial Counseling Helps Nonprofit Clients Make Lasting Changes

By Michelle B. Glassburn



Profits aside, have you ever thought about the fundamental difference between a nonprofit and a for-profit company? For most for-profits, the goal is to create a "customer for life." But, in many nonprofits, the goal is to help people make a change so that the organization's services will never be needed again.

But how can effective nonprofits create lasting change?

Certainly the first job of a nonprofit is to address the basic needs of someone in crisis. Finding shelter, food, employment or health services must occur before an individual can be receptive to developing new habits.

Very soon, though, the nonprofit has a unique opportunity to influence a person who is choosing whether to continue the behaviors that led him or her into crisis, or forge a new path toward personal change. And, more often than not, changing a person's financial behaviors will be a part of that process.



Theory of Change

In the 1980s, James Prochaska, director of the Cancer Prevention Research Center and professor of Clinical and Health Psychology at the University of Rhode Island, studied behavior change as it related to smoking cessation. As he examined the various models for behavioral change, he noticed some underlying commonalities. Through this evaluation, he developed the Transtheoretical Model of Change (TTM).

The theory identifies how individuals move from intention to action and is a guide for implementing effective behavioral change interventions. Since then, the model has been applied to a wide range of behaviors including diet, exercise, substance abuse and even money management habits.

According to the theory, individuals move through a series of five phases as they make a change in their behavior.

Stage 1 - Precontemplation: There is no intention to change behavior in the foreseeable future.

Stage 2 - Contemplation: Individual is aware that a problem exists and is seriously thinking about overcoming it, but has not yet made a commitment to take action.

Stage 3 - Preparation: Individual intends to take action in the next month, or has unsuccessfully taken action in the past year.

Stage 4 - Action: Individual modifies his or her behavior, experiences or environment in order to overcome problems.

Stage 5 - Maintenance: Individual works to prevent relapse and consolidate the gains attained during action.

Movement between the stages is facilitated by implementing one or more of 10 "Processes of Change."

1. Consciousness Raising

2. Counterconditioning

3. Dramatic Relief

4. Environmental Reevaluation

5. Helping Relationships

6. Reinforcement Management

7. Self-Liberation

8. Self-Reevaluation

9. Social Liberation

10. Stimulus Control

(Visit the Cancer Prevention Resource Center's web page at www.uri.edu/research/cprc/TTM/ProcessesOfChange.htm for a complete discussion of these processes.)



Change for the Better

Awareness of the continuum and the ways to facilitate change can help program directors develop effective services for their clients.

After a crisis, when basic needs have been met, individuals often find themselves with a redefined financial reality. Events such as job loss, foreclosure, illness or divorce can derail a family even if they were previously able to make ends meet. In the transition out of crisis, a human service agency offering a financial education and counseling program can help move a family from "contemplation" to "action" - and help them make a lasting change in their financial lives.

There are a variety of factors that contribute to a successful financial education program. Not surprisingly, many of the keys to success are closely correlated to Prochaska's 10 Processes of Change. For instance, successful movement from Preparation to Action involves the change process termed Self-Liberation. With that, individuals set specific goals and make a firm commitment to change.

Studies suggest that the most effective financial education programs are goal-based. And, as people succeed in the Action stage and move to Maintenance, the implementation of Helping Relationships can be a key process for change. As you might guess, developing a network of family, peers and community resources is cited as a key to successful financial education.

So, as your organization considers the services it is offering to clients, implementation of a financial counseling and education program might enhance your clients' chances for success. Understanding the keys to behavioral change will assist you in creating programs that lead to client success stories. By helping people make lasting change, you will ensure that they no longer need your services.



Michelle B. Glassburn is president of makingCHANGE - A Financial Wellness Center (www.makingchangecenter.org), a nonprofit based in Howard County that is dedicated to raising awareness around the need for financial literacy. She can be reached at 443-718-9350.