Abstracts Category : Other

Trainee Counselling Psychologists Experiences of Workingwith Clients from Different Ethnic/Religious Backgrounds toThemselves

by Jasmine Shailendra Patel

Background and objectives: Despite the large amountof research around counselling psychology and working with culture,ethnicity and religion, literature has mainly focused on clientsexperiences of therapy. We know little about trainee counsellingpsychologists and how they experience working with clients fromdifferent ethnic and/or religious backgrounds. The objective ofthis study was therefore to explore UK-based trainee counsellingpsychologists and their experiences of working with clients fromdifferent backgrounds and to also explore educational implicationstrainee counselling psychologists identify when working withclients from different backgrounds. Therefore, following the aim ofthis study the two research questions, which will be, explored areaas follows: 1. How do trainee counsellingpsychologists experienceworking with clients from different ethnic/religious backgrounds?and 2. What educational implications are identified by traineecounselling psychologists when working with clients from differentethnic/religious backgrounds to themselves? Method and analyses: Aqualitative design was used within project. Semi-structuredinterviews were conducted with twelve UK-based trainee counsellingpsychologists who had experiences of working with clients fromdifferent ethnic/religious backgrounds. A systematic review of theliterature was conducted in order to inform the research and toalso produce a coding template, which was used to analyse thefindings of this thesis. The interview material was analysed usingthematic analysis. Analysis: The findings from the first researchquestion revealed eight major themes, which were extracted from thecoding template, these themes included: challenges, exploration,relationship, clients perspective, appropriateness, competency,sense of self and emotional responses. These eight major themeswere extracted via the coding template and expanded further as theinterviews were analysed. The interviews provided a richerunderstanding ofthese themes and they are introduced and outlinedin depth in turn. Following the first researchquestion, the secondresearch question concentrates on educational implicationsidentified by trainee counselling psychologists. These findingsyielded a total of four main themes, which included: course input,practical experience, personal experience and reflectivity. Thesethemes are also outlined and explored further in the discussion ofthis thesis. Conclusions: The research enabled, for the first time,an insight into trainee counselling psychologists reportedexperiences of working with clients therapeutically who were fromdifferent ethnic/religious backgrounds. Some trainee counsellingpsychologists reported that rather than working with clients fromdifferent backgrounds, working with clients from similarbackgrounds posed to be quite difficult as well. More importantly,the idea of reflectivity and personal growth were key elementsidentified when working with differences in therapy. Traineesexpressed that their own sense ofAdvisors/Committee Members: HEBRON, JUDITH JS, Hanley, Terry, Hebron, Judith.