Discriminant validity of the Francis Scale of Attitude towards Christianity with respect to religious orientation

This study examines the discriminant validity of the Francis Attitude towards Christianity Scale with respect to the extrinsic, intrinsic and quest orientations of the Religious Life Inventory, among a sample of 400 British students. It was concluded that the attitude scale is a selective measure of intrinsic orientation and that previously reported associations with extrinsic religiosity and quest can be explained by intercorrelations among the three orientations included in the Religious Life Inventory.     

Short-term effectiveness of psychotherapy treatments delivered at a university counselling service

This work aimed to evaluate the short-term effectiveness of psychotherapy delivered at the counselling service of the University of Bologna (Italy), by means of a single group longitudinal study including a 6-months follow-up. To this end, sixty-six students completed the 6-months follow-up and filled in the Symptom Questionnaire (SQ) three times, during the first and the last session of the psychotherapy, and 6 months after its conclusion. The majority of students presented a problem concerning mood (n?=?35; 53.03%); students completed a programme of psychodynamic therapy (n?=?38, 57.58%) or cognitive-behavioural therapy (n?=?28, 42.42%). With reference to 10 out of 12 SQ dimensions, significant improvements were observed both after therapy and at the 6-months follow-up, in comparison to pre-treatment; furthermore no significant differences were observed between the end of psychotherapy and the follow-up. The present data indicate the effectiveness of the therapy in reducing students’ distress at the end of treatment and also in the short-term.     

Avatar‐based counselling for young people within school counselling. Qualitative analysis of client experience

Background

This study is a qualitative analysis of clients’ experiences of a new avatar based counselling intervention, based on the ‘ProReal’ software ( www.proreal.world ). The intervention was piloted in eight secondary schools in the UK in 2016.

Aims

Twenty‐nine participants (53% of the full sample) were interviewed about their use of the software, experience of the intervention, process of change and views about its helpfulness.

Materials and Methods

Interviews were semi‐structured and were analysed using thematic analysis.

Results

The analysis shows that the intervention was potentially attractive to these clients, particularly those enthusiastic about digital software and clients who found visual communication helpful. The software provided additional opportunities for clients to communicate their inner worlds to the counsellor and supported the development of insight. Male clients, in particular, commented on its helpfulness.

Discussion

There is an indication that digital imagery supported the process of change in counselling and the development of meaning bridges: both internally and with the counsellor (Stiles, 2011; Stiles et al., 1990). However, the software could be experienced as an obstacle when clients wanted to talk about specific problems or ‘vent’ their feelings. All clients who reported that they did not find the software helpful were female. There were a number of suggestions about developing the software to increase opportunities for expression as well as appropriateness for clients from different minority ethnic backgrounds.

Conclusion

Use of digital software in counselling has a potential to enhance communication and support a process of change, particularly with male clients, those who find visual communication helpful, and clients enthusiastic about digital technology. Further research is needed to develop the intervention and compare it to the use of other creative media in counselling.     

The future of Canadian counselling psychology: Doctoral students

Little is known about the overall characteristics and beliefs of Canadian counselling psychology doctoral students. An online survey was administered to 43 doctoral students across all Canadian counselling psychology programmes, representing an approximate 26% response rate. Results indicated that the average age of doctoral students in the sample was about 32 years and that the majority were women (about 77% in the sample). Additionally, findings can be taken to suggest that participants were satisfied with their choice of counselling psychology as a career. The doctoral students sampled primarily practised from an integrationist theoretical standpoint and spent very little of their practice time providing formal psychological assessment services or career counselling. Participants generally intervened through individual counselling or psychotherapy and were focused on disorder treatment rather than preventative or developmental services. Curriculum changes that should be considered from the results of this study pertain to the topics of assessment, career counselling, advocacy/media skills, professional identity development and prevention/developmental interventions. The results of this study can also be taken to predict characteristics of the next generation of Canadian counselling psychologists and the future practice of counselling psychology in Canada.     

Online counselling: The experience of counsellors providing synchronous single‐session counselling to young people

Kids Help Line (KHL) is a national Australian youth counselling service that provides free online and telephone counselling. This qualitative study examines the experience of 26 online KHL counsellors. Using a focus group methodology, counsellor responses were organised into categories: privacy and an emotionally safe environment; communication through text; and time. Counsellors reported the main benefit of the online environment to be emotional safety, due to reduced client emotional proximity to the counsellor, and the main disadvantage to be that reduced emotional proximity and the absence of non‐verbal cues could result in communication problems and difficulty in accurately assessing young people's concerns. Time proved a significant issue for counsellors, as the slow speed of text exchange could limit their ability to complete interventions. Methods that enhance both the process and effectiveness of online counselling are needed. Potential solutions to the challenges faced by online counsellors are discussed.     

Intentions to participate in counselling among front-line,at-risk Irish government employees: an application of the theory of planned behaviour

ABSTRACT

The study set out to examine intentions to engage in counselling among at-risk Irish government employees and the differential utility of two alternative theory of planned behaviour (TPB) models of behaviour to explain intentions to participate in counselling. Individuals (N=259) employed in a front-line, at-risk occupation for the Irish government completed a TPB-based questionnaire. Quantitative analyses revealed that participants held positive to neutral intentions to participate in counselling, irrespective of gender. The original TPB model explained 49.9% of variance in intentions whereas an alternative TPB model, splitting the perceived behavioural control (PBC) construct between its internal and external control components, explained a further 8.9% of variance. Furthermore, self-efficacy was found to be the strongest predictor of intentions. This study therefore supports the use of the TPB in understanding counselling-seeking behaviour.     

Oppression within the counselling room

This paper suggests that the oppression experienced by disabled people in society is sometimes replayed in the counselling room by counsellors who are unaware of their own disablist attitudes and prejudices. Whilst the provision of Disability Equality Training (DET) within counselling courses would ameliorate the problem, I believe that disabled people would be most empowered by a counselling approach which recognises the potential for oppression within the counsellor‐client relationship. One solution may be the creation of a new counselling approach (disability counselling) which includes the social model of disability as one of the foundations. An alternative solution may be found within the emerging counselling approaches that treat counselling as a social and political process and place emphasis on developing comprehensive anti‐discriminatory practice.     

Outcomes in clients transitioning from in-person counselling to telehealth counselling with trainees

The onset of the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic necessitated a rapid transition of mental health services from in-person to telehealth counselling. Despite the far-reaching impact of this transition, we know little about the impact of this transition on outcomes for clients working with counsellor trainees. The present study utilised longitudinal data collected from a counselling training centre at a major U.S. university to compare client ratings of depression, anxiety and working alliance across 1) in-person services delivered (i.e. pre-pandemic) and 2) telehealth services delivered after the pandemic began (i.e. intra-pandemic) among the same group of clients. Results support our hypothesis that changes in clients' self-reports would be generally equivalent across in-person and telehealth services. Depression and anxiety symptoms decreased, and working alliance tended to increase during both in-person and telehealth care; however, these trends were only statistically significant during telehealth services. Limitations related to sample size (N = 15 clients; up to 17 sessions per client) and low statistical power are discussed. Nonetheless, this study supports the growing body of literature supporting the efficacy of telehealth counselling services. We provide suggestions for future telehealth research and discuss implications for counsellor training.     

Fibromyalgia: Predicting openness to counselling referrals

Fibromyalgia (FM) is a chronic pain condition that can negatively impact on all aspects of patients’ lives. The purpose of this study was: first, to explore the biopsychosocial factors that may contribute to adjustment to FM symptoms; second, to investigate how referrals to counselling related to patients’ ratings of their relationship with their physicians; and, last, to examine if self-reports of illness distress, emotional problems, and practical problems can predict who will be open to counselling referrals. For this cross-sectional study, data from 190 people were collected through an online survey. Statistical analysis revealed that emotional problems reported were the best predictor of variance in illness distress and contentment scores. Further, results indicated that referrals made in accord with patients’ perceptions that they would benefit from counselling may have a positive influence on how patients rate their relationships with their physicians. Finally, self-reported scores of illness distress, number of emotional problems, and number of practical problems accurately predicted who would be open to counselling referrals in 67% of cases. Research results provide support for addressing emotional issues to facilitate adjustment to FM symptoms, and for use of psychosocial measures to determine when patients with FM will be open to counselling referrals.     

Applying the principles and techniques of solution-focused therapy to career counselling

Career counselling aims to help clients become more effective agents in solving problems in their vocational aspects of life. To achieve this goal, theorists and practitioners are called upon to form useful helping approaches that can help clients in a more efficient and effective manner. This article proposes an alternative model toward this end by considering and adopting principles and techniques from the solution-focused therapy in career counselling practice. After a very brief introduction of the basic features of the solution-focused counselling, the paper reviews some key theoretical principles of the solution-focused therapy, and connects these principles to career counselling context. It then illustrates several solution-focused counselling techniques that are particularly applicable to career counselling intervention.     

Understanding the role of hope in counselling: Exploring the intentional uses of hope

In this paper we look at various conceptual models of hope and research evidence for the integral role that hope plays in counselling. We recognize hope as a dynamic process during which counsellor and client interact in ways that can be mutually influencing and we review research that explores this reciprocal process. A model for the intentional use of hope in counselling that recognizes both implicit and explicit approaches is offered. Metaphors for hope-work that position and re-position both counsellor and client in ways that may foster hope are explored. Finally, we provide suggestions for initiating conversations in which hope can be an explicit therapeutic focus.     

Adventure based counselling,individual counselling and object relations: a critical evaluation of a qualitative study

Adventure based counselling is a short-term experiential psychotherapeutic approach, which utilises adventurous activities and being in natural environmental in order to facilitate therapeutic change in clients. The present paper critically appraises the results of a qualitative study that investigated how clients with self-reported anxiety and depression experienced participating in an innovative counselling intervention with combined individual counselling with such an adventurous outdoor transaction. Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis, as described by Smith and Osborn (2008), was used in order record and analyse the experiences of four male and six female students who were treated at the Teesside's University Counselling Service. Interviewees perceived the counselling sessions as offering a safe therapeutic space within which they could unveil their anxieties and achieve inner healing, whereas the outdoor transaction as providing an experiential venue for achieving personal change. Interviewees felt that without the outdoor transaction the therapeutic significance of the counselling process would not have reached its full potential. Likewise, without the individual counselling, the outdoor transaction would just have an entertaining event and not a venue for personal change. These findings are discussed in relation to object relations theory.     

Some ethical concerns about counselling research

The whole approach of counselling researchers to ethics may be assumed to have been improving in recent years, especially with the BACP research guidelines (Bond, 2004 Bond, T. 2004. Ethical guidelines for researching counselling and psychotherapy. Counselling and Psychotherapy Research, 4(2): 4–9. [Taylor & Francis Online] [Google Scholar]), with its focus on trustworthiness and on the researcher engaging with ethical issues. In this paper we share our concerns about the background to ethical decision making for researchers today followed by our specific concerns for counselling researchers namely: why do counselling research at all?; research that hurts participants; the impact of research on the therapeutic process; restrictive notions around what is data; the politics of funding and informed consent revisited.     

The experiences of counselling for persons with ME

A number of studies have evaluated counselling interventions for people with myalgic encephalitis, but few report client perceptions in any detail. This study seeks to explore client perceptions using a qualitative methodology. A sample of 25 individuals with myalgic encephalitis were interviewed about their experiences in counselling. The interviews were transcribed and subjected to thematic analysis using grounded theory principles. The analysis showed that people with myalgic encephalitis endure significant changes to their lives, often involving great loss and trauma. After seeking help through counselling, participants had experienced a wide variety of approaches and there were positive and negative perceptions of each. Other perceptions related to therapist characteristics and the way in which interventions were carried out. Recommendations for practitioners are given.     

Applying psychodynamic insights in brief counselling

Abstract

After a review of the place of brief work in the psycho-dynamic tradition, this paper explores how three psychodynamic insights may be of use in brief counselling. Using case examples drawn from work with employment problems, the paper discusses the activation of healing/developmental processes through brief counselling. The ‘significant emotional experience’ which is seen as important is analysed in terms of work with the transference and the punitive superego.     

The client as expert: Researching hindering experiences in counselling

This paper identifies the importance of valuing clients’ experiences when seeking to understand hindering experiences in counselling. Since the research literature reports that client perceptions of counselling are better predictors of outcome than counsellor ratings, client viewpoints are critical to furthering understanding of hindering experiences. Clients are generally reluctant to share negative experiences and a discussion regarding the difficulty in soliciting these experiences is presented. Examples of the process of conducting a client-oriented investigation into hindering experiences convey some of these difficulties. Several implications for counselling practice are addressed: (1) the need for counsellors to notice and repair hindering experiences, (2) the value of attending to the quality of the relationship, (3) the need for counsellors to cultivate flexibility and responsiveness, and (4) the use of methods to encourage clients to share their unspoken experiences.     

Young clients' narratives of the purpose and outcome of counselling

This study explores how adolescent clients construct the purpose and outcome of counselling. A narrative analysis was performed on interviews with 22 clients (aged 16–18) who had used a school-based counselling service. The aim was to identify the purpose and outcomes that participants attributed to their counselling experience. The analysis identified four narrative forms that young clients used to describe counselling. These included ‘transformative’, ‘supportive’, ‘pragmatic’ and ‘disappointed’ narratives. Each narrative form constructed a different purpose and outcome for counselling. Engaging with clients' narratives about the purpose and intended outcome of counselling may allow counsellors to better match their expectations and approach to fit with their young client or to work with them to co-construct more flexible narratives that support helpful outcomes.     

Evolution,depression and counselling

In this paper a framework of evolutionary psychology is used to develop a model of depression. In this model depression is seen as not normally a biochemical illness or disorder, but instead as usually due to the person becoming trapped within a psychologically activated but unwanted and inappropriate suite of natural emotions, with the activation coming from a perception of a major decline in personal usefulness that can include failure, guilt, shame or perceived rejection. A neuropsychological observation that supports this model is described. The implications of the model for counselling with depressed clients are outlined in terms of a multi-dimensional approach, oriented around perceived usefulness. It is predicted that clients receiving such counselling will recover more rapidly and be less likely to suffer a relapse than those receiving just drugs or a form of counselling that covers fewer dimensions.     

The experience of counselling for UK egg providers

Objective

The aim of this study was to address current gaps in knowledge regarding the appropriateness and quality of counselling provided to egg donors in the UK.

Methods

The present study used a cross-sectional, qualitative design. Semi-structured interviews were carried out with 29 UK egg donors to explore their experiences of egg donation and the counselling received.

Results

Of the 29 participants, 24 had received counselling. The remaining five did not receive counselling because they were either not accepted as a donor (n = 4) or were offered, but chose not to take up the session (n = 1). The findings are presented in relation to five themes: feeling supported via counselling; feeling well-informed; welcoming an individualised approach; the counselling setting; and thinking about the future.

Conclusion

Egg donors in this study had varying experiences of counselling offered to them as part of the egg donation process in the UK.

Implications

The findings indicate that there are some aspects of counselling in the UK that could be improved, including the routine offering of counselling throughout the egg donation process and the tailoring of counselling to meet egg donors' individual needs.