Background: Sexual abuse is a highly distressing traumatic experience that negatively affects the lives of sexual abuse survivors. The number of individuals who reported sexual abuse has increased, which makes it a public and global concern. As a result, survivors of sexual abuse turn to counselling to cope with the traumatic impacts. Counsellors, psychotherapists, and psychologists engage in deep and meaningful explorations of the sexual abuse in order to support survivors. However, very little is known about the impacts and coping strategies involved in this type of work. Objectives: The objective of this study, therefore, was to explore the experiences of UK-based counselling professionals who counsel survivors of sexual abuse. The research questions were as follows: 1. What is the impact of counselling survivors of sexual abuse? and 2. What self-care strategies and coping techniques have been beneficial when counselling survivors of sexual abuse? Method: An inductive qualitative design was used for the purposes of this study. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with twelve UK-based counselling professionals who provided counselling to individuals who had experienced sexual abuse. The collected data were then analysed using thematic analysis. Findings: The themes developed from the first research question revealed a number of ways in which counselling survivors of sexual abuse affected counselling professionals. Three main themes emerged from the data analysis: work-related impacts, impacts on personal wellbeing and relationship impacts. These themes encompassed a total of fourteen sub-themes. Another two main themes were developed when exploring participants' self-care techniques and coping strategies: holistic self-care and work environment selfcare. Both of these main themes incorporated twelve more sub-themes. These are introduced and outlined in depth in turn. Conclusions: This research has provided a unique insight into the impacts and coping strategies of UK-based counselling professionals working with survivors of sexual abuse. The findings suggest that the counsellors experienced a number of negative impacts, some of which were perceived as traumatic in nature. Further, the impacts were not limited to the counsellors themselves; partners, children, extended family, and friends were also affected by the work. Such far-reaching impacts of sexual trauma have not been sufficiently explored previously. Contrary to the negative tendencies expressed in the research literature, some of the findings indicate positive aspects, such as high job satisfaction and evolved personal growth. The findings of this study provide a rare insight into the useful self-care techniques and copings strategies specific for counselling survivors of sexual abuse. Although the strategies are similar to those used in other areas of counselling, they emphasize organisational and educational responsibilities to support counsellors' wellbeing. Suggestions are proposed for research, educational, organisational, and ethical developments.

Key Aim: The purpose of this study was to examine complex concerns and challenges encountered by counselling and psychotherapy trainers, and support them to deliver a consistent, relationship-centred learning approach within Higher Education (HE). Background: Counselling and psychotherapy training is central to regulating practice, however, studies conceptualising trainers’ concerns and challenges in the United Kingdom (UK) are sparse. Literature generally evaluates trainer challenges from a professional competence and/or gatekeeping perspective. Little evidence exists identifying problems connected with ‘professionalisation’. Aims and Objectives: The aim was to evaluate trainers’ multidimensional unease that can hinder working relationships. The intention was to: explore difficult patterns of behaviour and group dynamics in the ‘training alliance’; explore trainers’ perceptions and experiences when confronted with gatekeeping issues; collaboratively develop strategies to enhance trainers’ learning experience; examine the processes needed to sustain these strategies; and identify the lessons learnt to inform practice, education, and research. Approach and Methods: A qualitative, co-operative inquiry approach enabled trainers to question their situated and propositional knowledge, reconcile professional challenges, allay concerns about individual fitness to practice, and provide alternative responses to students, peers, and managerial hierarchies in HE and professional bodies. This approach has a political and social element, according with personal desire to make change. Thematic analysis uncovered new insights, expanded or modified principles and re-examine accepted interpretations during 8 inquiry sessions with 5 experienced trainers, and 3 associated workshops. A primarily iterative and inductive process of immersion, involved reflexive engagement, and sharing of data with trainer/practitioners. Findings: 6 overarching themes were identified: Trying to Make Sense of Significant Events; Negotiating Conflict and Incongruity in Training Groups; Navigating Inherent Challenges within Counsellor Training Teams; Teaching as a Never-Ending Challenge; Organisational Constraints and Challenges; and Contemplating Individual Connection in a Collaborative Context. Discussion and Conclusion: Findings supported previous research suggesting trainers require training, and that trainers’ concerns and challenges are interlinked; beginning with interpersonal challenges that subsequently impact on trainers’ professional and intra-personal sense of identity. Co-operative inquiry can benefit programme teams in terms of the co-construction of trainers’ realities and dynamic negotiation of meaning. Co-researchers’ knowledge and confidence in responding to potential conflict in training was enhanced. To achieve the best outcome, this knowledge needs implementing in practice; programme team involvement is a prerequisite, and support is required by professional bodies and HE to ensure ethical training practice in the face of student disgruntlement, management demands in HE and from professional accrediting bodies.

<p>I Sverige finns det idag ett stort antal yrken och en del av dessa är i en professionaliseringsprocess. Studie- och yrkesvägledaryrket är ett exempel på ett yrke i denna process. Syftet är att beskriva utvalda aktörers syn på studie- och yrkesvägledaryrkets avgränsningar, kompetens samt eventuella auktorisation i ett professionaliseringsperspektiv. En kvalitativ metod har använts och fem elitintervjuer har genomförts med representanter från Lärarförbundet, Lärarnas Riksförbund, Sveriges vägledarförening, Högskoleverket samt Skolverket. Samtliga respondenter ansåg att det finns specifika kompetenser som endast studie- och yrkesvägledare besitter men åsikten om vilka kompetenser detta är, gick isär. Majoriteten av respondenterna ansåg att studie- och yrkesvägledaryrket borde auktoriseras/legitimeras, dock inte alla. Avgränsningen mot andra yrken när det gäller arbetsuppgifter fanns det skilda meningar om. Den slutsats man kan dra av studien är att fackförbunden och Sveriges vägledarförening arbetar för professionalisering av studie- och yrkesvägledaryrket men utan en gemensam strategi. Yrket har inom olika områden kommit olika långt i sin professionaliseringsprocess.</p>

<p>The overall purpose of this thesis is to describe and analyse interpersonal behaviour in career counselling sessions. The importance of the relationship in counselling for the outcome of sessions has been acknowledged in earlier research. How the actual interaction process between client and career counsellor looks like has been sparsely investigated. The present research explores expected, experienced behaviours and self-image of 15 adolescent clients’ and counsellors’ dyads in career counselling. The research was guided by interpersonal theory and the model of structural analysis of social behaviour (SASB) developed by Lorna Smith Benjamin. The research focuses on four different aspect of interpersonal behaviour. First, the significance of different behaviours by the clients and the career counsellors related to session evaluation. Second, the significance of expected and experienced similarity in perceptions of self and other behaviours related to session evaluation. Third, differences of perceived behaviours and possible influence by self-image over the course of sessions and fourth, comparing the influence of positive and negative self-image to expected and experienced behaviours, perceived important events during session and session evaluation session by clients’. Results indicate the importance for clients to become close to the career counsellor in session, while the career counsellors’ encouragement of clients’ independency during sessions showed to be of less importance for the clients’. This pattern imply a difficult balance act for career counsellors between providing a safe and close relationship and promoting independence and exploration for the clients. Further, it was found that career counsellors had difficulties in identifying their own contributions to a positive session evaluation, indicating a problem for the career counsellors’ to make conscious adjustments of behaviours. The degree to which client and career counsellor agreed of their behaviours only mattered for experiences of the career counsellors’ behaviour when related to their evaluation of session. Only minor tendencies of influence by the career counsellors’ self-image of clients’ perceived differences in behaviours were found. Self-image played a significant role in how the clients’ expected and experienced behaviours, perceived important events in session and in their session evaluation. Clients’ with positive self-image showed consistently more positive perceptions on each of the involved variables.</p>

<p>SAMMANFATTNING</p><p>Syftet med studien är att undersöka hur problemlösningsprocessen fungerar när skolkuratorer arbetar med högstadieelever som har problem. De frågeställningar som formulerats utifrån syftet är:</p><p>* Hur får skolkuratorer kännedom om elever som har</p><p>problem?</p><p>* Vilka åtgärder vidtas under problemlösningsprocessen?</p><p>* Vad blir utfallet av processen?</p><p>* Vad gör en problemlösningsprocess lätt att genomföra, och</p><p>vad gör den svår?</p><p>* Hur påverkar samverkan med andra parter</p><p>problemlösningsprocessen?</p><p>Undersökningen bygger på kvalitativa intervjuer med fem skolkuratorer och syftar till att beskriva arbetssituationen så som den ser ut för några skolkuratorer. Uppsatsen utgår ifrån ett fenomenologiskt perspektiv då vi vill beskriva och förstå verkligheten utifrån aktörernas egna perspektiv. Den teoretiska ramen utgörs av rollteori och kommunikationsteori.</p><p>Sammanfattningsvis visar resultatet att det som i huvudsak påverkat om problemlösningsprocessen upplevts som lätt eller svår är tydligheten/otydligheten i kuratorns roll gentemot andra parter/myndigheter, elevens motivation och mottaglighet för samtal och slutligen hur samarbetet med föräldrar, pedagoger, socialtjänst, BUP, elevhälsoteam och elev fungerat. Våra slutsatser är bland annat att problemlösningsprocessen fungerar olika från fall till fall. Om den är lätt fungerar den oftast bra, är den svår fungerar den mindre bra. Problemlösningsprocessen ser vidare olika ut på olika skolor och det har visat sig att detta kan bero på att problembilden har sett olika ut från fall till fall.</p><p>Nyckelord: Skolkurator, problemlösning, samverkan, roll, yrkesroll</p> / <p>ABSTRACT</p><p>The purpose of the study is to examine how the problem solving process proceeds when school counselors work with junior high school students. Main questions of the study are:</p><p>* How does a school counselor find out that a student has</p><p>problems?</p><p>* What measures are taken during the problem solving</p><p>process?</p><p>* What is the outcome of the process?</p><p>* What makes a problem solving process easy to deal with,</p><p>and what makes it difficult?</p><p>* How does collaboration with other partners affect the</p><p>problem solving process?</p><p>This study is based on qualitative interviews with five school counselors. Its aim is to describe the working situation as some school counselors experience it. Our method is based on a phenomenological perspective, i.e. focus is laid upon description of the actors’ reality as they experience it. Role theory and communication theory is our theoretical frame of reference.</p><p>The result shows that what mainly affects the problem solving process, whether it is easy or difficult, is the counselor’s collaboration with other partners and the students’ motivation and ability to receive the counseling. Another important factor is the distinction/lack of distinction of the school counselor’s role against other authorities and partners. Our conclusions is among other things that the problem solving process functions in different ways depending on the students involved and their type of problems. If the case is easy the process functions well, if it is a difficult one the process seams harder to work through. It can also be said that the problem solving process functions in different ways in different schools, which can be explained by the variety of problems among the students.</p><p>Keywords: School, counselor, counsellor, problem solving, collaboration, role</p>

Thesis (M.A. (Pastoral))--North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, 2007.

The overall purpose of this thesis is to describe and analyse interpersonal behaviour in career counselling sessions. The importance of the relationship in counselling for the outcome of sessions has been acknowledged in earlier research. How the actual interaction process between client and career counsellor looks like has been sparsely investigated. The present research explores expected, experienced behaviours and self-image of 15 adolescent clients’ and counsellors’ dyads in career counselling. The research was guided by interpersonal theory and the model of structural analysis of social behaviour (SASB) developed by Lorna Smith Benjamin. The research focuses on four different aspect of interpersonal behaviour. First, the significance of different behaviours by the clients and the career counsellors related to session evaluation. Second, the significance of expected and experienced similarity in perceptions of self and other behaviours related to session evaluation. Third, differences of perceived behaviours and possible influence by self-image over the course of sessions and fourth, comparing the influence of positive and negative self-image to expected and experienced behaviours, perceived important events during session and session evaluation session by clients’. Results indicate the importance for clients to become close to the career counsellor in session, while the career counsellors’ encouragement of clients’ independency during sessions showed to be of less importance for the clients’. This pattern imply a difficult balance act for career counsellors between providing a safe and close relationship and promoting independence and exploration for the clients. Further, it was found that career counsellors had difficulties in identifying their own contributions to a positive session evaluation, indicating a problem for the career counsellors’ to make conscious adjustments of behaviours. The degree to which client and career counsellor agreed of their behaviours only mattered for experiences of the career counsellors’ behaviour when related to their evaluation of session. Only minor tendencies of influence by the career counsellors’ self-image of clients’ perceived differences in behaviours were found. Self-image played a significant role in how the clients’ expected and experienced behaviours, perceived important events in session and in their session evaluation. Clients’ with positive self-image showed consistently more positive perceptions on each of the involved variables.

I Sverige finns det idag ett stort antal yrken och en del av dessa är i en professionaliseringsprocess. Studie- och yrkesvägledaryrket är ett exempel på ett yrke i denna process. Syftet är att beskriva utvalda aktörers syn på studie- och yrkesvägledaryrkets avgränsningar, kompetens samt eventuella auktorisation i ett professionaliseringsperspektiv. En kvalitativ metod har använts och fem elitintervjuer har genomförts med representanter från Lärarförbundet, Lärarnas Riksförbund, Sveriges vägledarförening, Högskoleverket samt Skolverket. Samtliga respondenter ansåg att det finns specifika kompetenser som endast studie- och yrkesvägledare besitter men åsikten om vilka kompetenser detta är, gick isär. Majoriteten av respondenterna ansåg att studie- och yrkesvägledaryrket borde auktoriseras/legitimeras, dock inte alla. Avgränsningen mot andra yrken när det gäller arbetsuppgifter fanns det skilda meningar om. Den slutsats man kan dra av studien är att fackförbunden och Sveriges vägledarförening arbetar för professionalisering av studie- och yrkesvägledaryrket men utan en gemensam strategi. Yrket har inom olika områden kommit olika långt i sin professionaliseringsprocess.

SAMMANFATTNING Syftet med studien är att undersöka hur problemlösningsprocessen fungerar när skolkuratorer arbetar med högstadieelever som har problem. De frågeställningar som formulerats utifrån syftet är: * Hur får skolkuratorer kännedom om elever som har problem? * Vilka åtgärder vidtas under problemlösningsprocessen? * Vad blir utfallet av processen? * Vad gör en problemlösningsprocess lätt att genomföra, och vad gör den svår? * Hur påverkar samverkan med andra parter problemlösningsprocessen? Undersökningen bygger på kvalitativa intervjuer med fem skolkuratorer och syftar till att beskriva arbetssituationen så som den ser ut för några skolkuratorer. Uppsatsen utgår ifrån ett fenomenologiskt perspektiv då vi vill beskriva och förstå verkligheten utifrån aktörernas egna perspektiv. Den teoretiska ramen utgörs av rollteori och kommunikationsteori. Sammanfattningsvis visar resultatet att det som i huvudsak påverkat om problemlösningsprocessen upplevts som lätt eller svår är tydligheten/otydligheten i kuratorns roll gentemot andra parter/myndigheter, elevens motivation och mottaglighet för samtal och slutligen hur samarbetet med föräldrar, pedagoger, socialtjänst, BUP, elevhälsoteam och elev fungerat. Våra slutsatser är bland annat att problemlösningsprocessen fungerar olika från fall till fall. Om den är lätt fungerar den oftast bra, är den svår fungerar den mindre bra. Problemlösningsprocessen ser vidare olika ut på olika skolor och det har visat sig att detta kan bero på att problembilden har sett olika ut från fall till fall. Nyckelord: Skolkurator, problemlösning, samverkan, roll, yrkesroll / ABSTRACT The purpose of the study is to examine how the problem solving process proceeds when school counselors work with junior high school students. Main questions of the study are: * How does a school counselor find out that a student has problems? * What measures are taken during the problem solving process? * What is the outcome of the process? * What makes a problem solving process easy to deal with, and what makes it difficult? * How does collaboration with other partners affect the problem solving process? This study is based on qualitative interviews with five school counselors. Its aim is to describe the working situation as some school counselors experience it. Our method is based on a phenomenological perspective, i.e. focus is laid upon description of the actors’ reality as they experience it. Role theory and communication theory is our theoretical frame of reference. The result shows that what mainly affects the problem solving process, whether it is easy or difficult, is the counselor’s collaboration with other partners and the students’ motivation and ability to receive the counseling. Another important factor is the distinction/lack of distinction of the school counselor’s role against other authorities and partners. Our conclusions is among other things that the problem solving process functions in different ways depending on the students involved and their type of problems. If the case is easy the process functions well, if it is a difficult one the process seams harder to work through. It can also be said that the problem solving process functions in different ways in different schools, which can be explained by the variety of problems among the students. Keywords: School, counselor, counsellor, problem solving, collaboration, role

The Swedish school in today’s society is multicultural. One of the main questions is how to integratethese students in the Swedish society. The purpose with the study is to explore how schoolcounsellors’ work to promote the integration of multicultural students and what factors can influencethe integration of these students. To clarify this, the terms integration and multicultural are explainedand discussed.It is an qualitative study consisting of interviews. The interviewed informants are all school counsellors.These are specifically chosen based on that they work in schools with a high number ofmulticultural students. The work with integration has failed in Sweden, where it exists a separationbetween ”us” and ”them”, which makes them feel like outsiders. This separation also exists in theschool environment.Integration is a process in which Swedes and people with foreign background live together andwhere people understand each other and each others culture. A multicultural youngster is one who isgrappling to find himself between two cultures: who asks himself “who am I? and “who do I wantto be?” These school counsellors strive to work for an understanding between them and multiculturalstudents. An understanding for each others cultures and values. One factor that can hamperthe integration is if the student’s parents do not want their children to participate in classes whichare supposed to be against their religion or culture. Another factor that hampers the integration aresegregated schools and neighborhoods. In which these students never really participate in the Swedishsociety but live as they would in their homeland.