Fox, Claudie. (2011) Working with clients who engage in self-harming behaviour : experiences of a group of counsellors. British Journal of Guidance & Counselling, Vol.39 (No.1). pp. 41-51. ISSN 0306-9885

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Abstract

This study aimed to explore the experiences of a group of counsellors regarding working with clients who engage in self-harming behaviour, in order to gain an understanding of what it is like to work with this client group. A series of six individual, semi-structured qualitative interviews were carried out, which were then transcribed and analysed using thematic analysis. Counsellors’ experiences were characterised by a number of themes, including the nature of self-harm, in terms of severity and vividness of description, stopping self-harm, incorporating social norms and therapeutic outcome, and organisational issues around balancing expectations from the agency, managing risk, and the counsellors’ own working. Findings suggest that working with clients who self-harm raises significant challenges for counsellors in relation to organisational policy and/or context, the impact that working with this client group may have on the therapist themselves, while the issue of stopping self-harm, and how this might be communicated to the client, raises implications for the therapeutic relationship. Here, the supervisory relationship may offer an invaluable resource.

Item Type:	Journal Article
Subjects:	B Philosophy. Psychology. Religion > BF Psychology
Divisions:	Faculty of Science > Psychology
Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH):	Parasuicide, Counselor and client, Qualitative research
Journal or Publication Title:	British Journal of Guidance & Counselling
Publisher:	Routledge
ISSN:	0306-9885
Date:	2011
Volume:	Vol.39
Number:	No.1
Page Range:	pp. 41-51
Identification Number:	10.1080/03069885.2010.531383
Status:	Peer Reviewed
Publication Status:	Published
Access rights to Published version:	Restricted or Subscription Access
Version or Related Resource:	Fox, C. (2009). Working with clients who engage in self-harming behaviour : experiences of a group of counsellors. Conference paper presentation at the British Psychological Society Division of Counselling Psychology Conference, Warwick, 9th-11th July, 2009. http://wrap.warwick.ac.uk/id/eprint/40641
Related URLs:	Related item in WRAP
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URI:	http://wrap.warwick.ac.uk/id/eprint/40637

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