Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Wollongong, 2008. / Typescript. Includes bibliographical references: leaf 77-88.

The research literature reveals a widespread reluctance on the part of therapists to work with older people therapeutically as it is believed to be an unrewarding experience and of little benefit for this cohort. This is in contrast to empirical research which shows that therapeutic interventions can be effective and beneficial for older people. There is little literature that looks at the lived experience of therapists who work with older people and none from a counselling psychology perspective. It is therefore hoped that gaining a phenomenological understanding of the experience will provide insight and understanding into the lived experience of therapists who work with older adults. The research question was: 'What is the experience of working therapeutically with the older client?' A qualitative methodology, Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) (Smith and Osborn, 2003) was employed for both the conduct and the analysis of the research. Purposive sampling enabled the selection of seven participants for whom the research question was relevant. Semi-structured interview were carried out with three counselling psychologists and four therapists. The age range of the participants was 31-68 years; there were two males and five females. Three master themes emerged: (1) in respect of age - doing therapy differently; (2) the impact of the older client on the therapist; and (3) the reluctant therapist. A description of the master themes, and related constituent themes, is presented and discussed. Although these findings are consonant with the relevant research literature, the research is unique in capturing not only the therapist's lived experience but that of the counselling psychologist as well. It is therefore an important and significant contribution to the field of therapeutic work with older people and a vital addition to the counselling psychology literature. The results of the analysis and implications for counselling psychology are discussed.

Thesis (MA (Clinical Psychology))--University of Pretoria, 2003. / Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of North Texas, Aug, 2009. / Title from title page display. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M.S.)--University of Wisconsin--Madison, 1969. / eContent provider-neutral record in process. Description based on print version record. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Florida, 2004. / Typescript. Title from title page of source document. Document formatted into pages; contains 212 pages. Includes Vita. Includes bibliographical references.

This study explores the significance for practitioners of taking their therapeutic work outside of the traditional therapy room, typically into nature spaces, parks or gardens. Attention is paid to the notion of the therapeutic frame and relevant ecopsychology theory. While there is substantial literature around ecotherapy and the benefits of nature to wellbeing, there is relatively little concerning working as a psychotherapist outdoors. The purpose of this research therefore was to address the question of what it is like to take a therapeutic practice out of doors and the potential challenges. Eight semi-structured interviews were conducted with practitioners with experience of working out of doors with clients. Following van Manen’s (1990) hermeneutic phenomenology research methodology, five themes were found: boundaries and new frontiers, fitting in, what ‘they’ think, and who is it for (parts I and II). The research aim, to grasp the meaning of this unconventional practice from the practitioners’ perspective, was mirrored in the analysis which revealed that meaning for the participants is complex and concerns for the client as well as personal concerns were seen as fundamental to the experience. Relationships to and the presence of nature in the work were also recognised as significant and identified a tension around the unquantifiable experience of the ‘soulfulness’ of nature in the work versus the measurable elements of nature that have therapeutic benefit. The scarcity of practitioners working outdoors was attributed to a lack of indoor therapists’ understanding of the processes involved which was seen to impact upon participants’ experiences in their work outdoors. The emergent themes in this research emphasise for counselling psychology an on-going need to review therapeutic dogma, encompass the wider world in the context of therapeutic practice and expand current notions of mental health and psychopathology to engender greater pluralism in theory and practice.

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