What is VIG?

Video Interaction GuidanceTM (VIG) is a strengths-based, brief intervention that promotes attunement, sensitivity, and mentalization in relationships. The principles and practice can be used to work within any relationship.

VIG is effective with parents and carers of children across all ages (including babies and unborn babies).

VIG is used in a variety of contexts, including health, schools and social care. VIG is used with both clients and professionals

The VIG Approach

The VIG practitioner engages the client (or professional) actively in a process of change, supporting the client to realise their own hopes for a better future in their relationships.

VIG is client-centred: moving at the client’s pace, with their goals in mind.

VIG practitioners are guided by values and beliefs around equity, respect and empowerment, including:

a belief that people in troubled situations do want to change
a belief that affirmation and appreciation of strengths is the key to supporting change
a belief that in every conversation there are two equally important people
a belief that trust is built through recognition and empathetic regard for what people are managing
a conviction that people must be actively involved in their own change process.

This video has parents talking about their positive experiences of VIG.

This video concerns VIG in a perinatal service, showing a parent reflecting on her experience of VIG with a VIG practitioner.

Here we have parents talking about their experience of doing VIG with their health visitor.

How Does VIG Work?

VIG highlights and builds on attuned moments in interaction.

Clients are supported by a VIG practitioner to view and reflect together on strengths-based micro-moments of video.

Clients are asked: ‘What is it that you are doing that is making a difference?’ Through this process of active engagement and reflection, clients become aware of, and build on, their skills in attunement.

VIG is powerful and emotionally moving: client’s voice their surprise and pleasure in what they see.

Parents and carers say:

Professionals say:

The VIG Process

The VIG practitioner begins by helping the family or professional to negotiate a 'helping question' linked to their goal; for example: What am I doing to build a closer relationship with my child?'
The VIG practitioner takes a video of a few minutes of interaction
The VIG practitioner microanalyses the video: editing it to create 'clips' of attuned moments
The VIG practitioner and the client view, and explore, the clips together in the ‘shared review’
The VIG practitioner receives the client’s ideas (initiatives)
Together they notice and build on the client’s strengths and co-create new ideas.

VIG is effective in facilitating new narratives; for example, helping parents and carers move to a new, more positive narrative about:

themselves as a parent
their child
their relationship with their child.

These more positive narratives are key to secure attachment in the child.

VIG is offered in a wide variety of contexts. VIG is adaptable with any client group, any helping professional, and can be applied to the system around the client.

Here are some examples of VIG applications.

Where is VIG Used?

Health

Perinatal mental health, parent-infant services, children's mental health services (all ages), adult mental health, hospital settings, learning difficulties services, elderly and dementia services

Social Care

Schools

To promote staff attunement to pupils (including children with special needs), or for staff teams, to enhance oracy and literacy skills, to promote well-being for stuff and pupils, and to support children who have experienced neglect and/or trauma.

And also...

To promote parental or foster carer attunement to their child. Although useful for all families, VIG is an effective intervention for families on the edge of care, under a Child in Need or Child Protection plan, and for foster or adoptive families.

Drug and alcohol services, domestic violence services, courts (assessments of families going through legal proceedings), and third sector services.

VIG is also used to support professionals in their roles; for example, projects supporting GPs and health visitors to improve their communication skills and attunement with their clients.

Find a VIG Practitioner

VIG in public services

Most VIG therapeutic work is carried out in the public sector or by charities. If you are looking for such a provider of VIG, please contact your local authority or health service adviser.

Examples of public services that may provide VIG:

health visiting
family support services
CAMHS
perinatal services
educational psychology services
children’s centres.

Independent VIG practitioners

AVIGuk as an organization does not provide VIG services. We publish a directory of independent practitioners who offer VIG services directly to the service user or their representative. These services are normally fee-paying.

A listing in our directory does not amount to a recommendation by AVIGuk, but is evidence of accreditation by AVIGuk, and ongoing registration with us.

VIG Across the World

Video Interaction Guidance, as developed in the UK, is being used across the world. Here are some of the countries where VIG is being practised in a range of contexts.

Where did VIG come from?

The birthplace for VIG was the Netherlands, where researchers looked closely at the subtle and natural ways that babies and their parents communicate. The researchers looked for the ‘moments of vitality’ between parent and baby/child. VIG as a therapeutic method was born from an understanding of the importance of these moments.VIG was first brought to the UK in the mid-1990s. There are other video interventions that are based on the video intervention originally developed in the Netherlands in the 1980s. These approaches are very similar to VIG, as used in the UK, and are practised in many countries, including: Netherlands, Germany, and USA.