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This qualitative study explored experiences of prematurely terminating adult individual therapy from the perspectives of therapists as clients in England. The aims of the study were to gain an overview of the experience of prematurely terminating therapy; to understand the experience of dissatisfaction when this is given as a reason for prematurely terminating therapy; and to inform and thus help improve practice. Rates of premature termination from counselling and psychotherapy remain high despite a considerable body of research into possible predictors of this phenomenon. Few studies have explored clients’ experiences of premature termination in depth. Clients often report dissatisfaction as a reason for premature termination, and this experience is under-researched. From practitioners’ perspectives, little is known about indicators of dissatisfaction, and how to manage premature termination if it occurs. The study was conducted in two stages. The purposeful sample were therapists who, as clients, prematurely terminated personal therapy after attending at least two sessions. Participants self-selected as having prematurely terminated therapy. Stage one used an online qualitative survey to gain an overview of participants’ experiences of premature termination, and the 40 usable responses were analysed inductively using thematic analysis. The survey was used to recruit participants for stage two. In stage two, six semi-structured interviews were carried out with participants who had prematurely terminated therapy for reasons of dissatisfaction. The data were analysed using interpretative phenomenological analysis. Overall, the major themes created were: feeling dissatisfied; client becomes unable to continue therapy; and communication about the premature termination. The findings confirm the importance of the working alliance in therapy, and illuminate how the alliance failed to develop in experiences of dissatisfaction. It is argued that understanding clients’ experiences could enable practitioners to recognise the presence of dissatisfaction, and adapt therapy, if appropriate, to minimise avoidable premature termination. The need for therapy to ‘add value’ was also identified. The findings indicate a failure by some therapists to act in a relational way when clients prematurely terminated therapy, thereby disrupting the dominant discourse about the importance of the therapeutic relationship. Clients’ needs at the point of premature termination were identified. The findings of this study are not generalisable but may be transferable. The study concludes that therapists’ management of how therapy ends is just as important as the management of how it begins, regardless of how it ends. This has implications for practice and training. Areas for further research are identified.

The purpose of this study was to examine the meaning of spirituality and spiritual experience to counselling psychologists, in order to address the lack of research into the psychologist’s spiritual belief systems. Interpretative phenomenological analysis was used to explore what six experienced counselling psychologists understood by spirituality and spiritual experience. The research also investigated what impact, if any, these experiences might have on their professional and clinical practices. Four super-ordinate themes were determined after analysing the interviews, based on material gained from the semistructured interviews. These were: Development of spiritual identity; Spiritual beliefs within personal life contexts vs spiritual beliefs and professional practice; Understanding, learning and uses of spiritual experience; and finally, Disclosure within a professional capacity. The participants placed great importance on their spiritual beliefs, which formed a fundamental part of their identity, informed their personal and professional value system, and guided them in some decisions made in sustaining difficult situations when working with substantial client suffering. This study concluded spirituality to be a deeply personal construct shaped and guided by the individual which is drawn upon in all aspects of life. Results revealed that participants are conscious of the value of spirituality and religious beliefs for their clients. Importantly, the all of the counselling psychologists have what they consider to be subtle or profound spiritual experiences within their lives and with two of the participants, in their therapeutic encounters. Furthermore, in the often absent professional exploration in their training institutions and most work contexts, including supervision they draw on their personal experiences when spiritual issues arise in their work with clients. Implications for training and future research in this under-examined field are briefly discussed.

This study is based on heuristic methodology and looks at counsellor/therapists’ experience of integrating Christian faith with their clinical practice. The researcher overtly includes her own material and documents her own internal process as part of the research journey. Some of this is achieved by the inclusion of portions of creative writing. The literature review covers a wide field, looking at the relationship between spirituality and counselling from both historical and contemporary writers. It includes both US and UK material and representation from both secular and Christian sources. It examines the ethics and the practicalities of integrating faith with practice. Interview material is presented from twenty-two practitioners, together with that of three named academics in the field. Initially three exemplars are described in their entirety, as representatives of different groups of counsellors within the whole sample. Four major themes of interest emerged from the academic interviews. These themes were: a) Attention to the spirituality of the counsellorb) Support for the counsellor working with the spiritual dimensionc) The effect of context, culture and language of the counsellingd) The effect of client’s spirituality on the counselling process. Material from all interviewees is discussed using these themes, in relation to the literature. Specific unmet needs of the practitioners are identified. Major findings were that although counsellors with a Christian faith generally agree with the concept of their spirituality being an integral part of their work, there is variation in the level of attention paid to this. The availability of support for this integration is often problematic. Most counsellors desired more ‘safe space’ to explore the issue. Following the heuristic process, a model linking the psychological and spiritual perspectives emerged. This has enabled the researcher to further reflect on her own integration journey. It has since been used in workshops to facilitate other practitioners in reflecting on their individual integration. Recommendations for further research are made. The limitations of the research are noted.