Registered counsellors' experiences of their professional career development

[摘要] English: This study aimed at exploring the experiences of registered counsellors in their professional career development. In order to contextualize and ground the study, two models were used as theoretical lenses, namely, Skovholt and Ronnestad's phases of counsellor/development model (2003) and Stoltenberg and Delworth's integrated developmental model (1987).A qualitative research approach with a multiple case study design was used to gain a deeper understanding of the participants' experiences. Six participants who were busy or have recently completed their registered counselling internship, were purposively chosen to participate in the study. Six semi-structured interviews and one focus group were conducted. Thematic analysis was used to analyse the data. Ethical considerations included informed consent and confidentiality. Data was secured by using password-protected files and destroyed upon completion of this study.Research findings indicated that the participants' experiences involved mainly two themes which strongly related to the developmental models. These themes related to supervision practices and feelings of incompetence. Other themes identified from the data related to passion for psychology, self-awareness and identity integration, and coping mechanisms.Overall this study shed light on the experience of becoming a registered counsellor from a professional and personal perspective. The study was found to be valuable in considering how registered counsellors in South Africa develop during their training and their involvement in mental health care services.

[发布机构] University of the Free State