<p> This study explored the lived experiences of 10 counselors who work with traumatic-brain-injury (TBI) individuals on community reintegration. Constructivist self-development theory was used as the conceptual framework for understanding how exposure to traumatic topics affects the self-development of the therapist, leading to the manifestation of other issues in their lives. Data for this study was collected through in-depth interviews that asked counselors to describe their personal experiences of community reintegration counseling with TBI individuals. A transcendental phenomenological design was used to analyze data from counselor interviews. The outcome of the analysis revealed 10 themes: (a) counselors' satisfaction in knowing they are helping, (b) TBI individuals' memory impairment, (c) counselors' frustration with counseling, (d) countertransference, (e) counselors' knowledgeability about TBI population, (f) TBI individuals' family/caregiver support, (g) lack of community support and resources for TBI individuals, (h) TBI individuals' behaviors, (i) counselors` patience in counseling, and (j) family expectations of TBI individuals. These core themes highlighted a consensus among the counselors of feelings of satisfaction in helping, counselors' acceptance of clients, or both. The significance of these findings can benefit counselor education programs and best practice measures for working with this population.</p>
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:PROQUEST/oai:pqdtoai.proquest.com:3614148 |
| Date | 24 April 2014 |
| Creators | Browning, Tasha |
| Publisher | Capella University |
| Source Sets | ProQuest.com |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | thesis |
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