Therapeutic factors during a psychoeducational group intervention aiming to promote school adjustment in first grade students

The present study examined the therapeutic factors operating during a psychoeducational group intervention designed to promote school adjustment in first-grade students. The group members completed the Critical Incidents Questionnaire at home after every group session. The therapeutic factors were classified according to Bloch, Reibstein, Crouch, Holroyd, and Themen’s taxonomy, although additional categories of critical incidents were applied. Results showed that guidance and acceptance were the most valued therapeutic factors. Cognitive factors were reported more often than behavioral or emotional ones. In addition, the presence of the therapeutic factors was more intense during the beginning and middle stage of the program, gradually giving their place to other categories of critical incidents. Overall, the emergence of therapeutic factors appears to be affected by the program’s educational aspect. We suggest that a wider classification of factors is required to reflect the variety of critical incidents occurring during a psychoeducational group intervention.

Working relationally with clients who have experienced abuse: Exploring counselling psychologists’ experiences using ipa

Whilst much research has been conducted into the efficacy of and guidelines for technical interventions in the treatment of abuse, it is argued that a relational or process approach to therapeutic work should become more integrated into the use of technical interventions to aid therapeutic outcome. The study aims to explore counselling psychologists’ experiences when working with clients who have experienced abuse. Semi-structured interviews were conducted and analysed using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA). Six participants were recruited and asked to share their experiences of their therapeutic work with the client group. The research was given ethical approval by the ethics committee of the university. Three superordinate themes emerged from the data: ‘The Holding Environment’, ‘The Personal versus The Professional’ and ‘Internal Responses, External Communications’. These were supported by various subthemes within the accounts and were generated as a result of a double hermeneutic engagement with each interview transcript. This research contributes towards a deeper understanding of the processes involved in creating a therapeutic space for the work and the relational dynamics involved in providing therapy to clients who have experienced abuse. The dynamic process between empathising and ‘detaching’ in session, as well as counselling psychologists’ use of supervision, are highlighted as areas for further study.