Deciding what belongs: How psychotherapists in New Zealand attend to religion and/or spirituality in psychotherapy

Background The research presented in this paper aimed to explain how psychotherapists in New Zealand attended to religion and/or spirituality (RS) in the therapeutic process. Thirty‐three in‐depth interviews were conducted with 28 psychotherapists throughout New Zealand, exploring their thoughts abo...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Counselling and psychotherapy research 2019-09, Vol.19 (3), p.329-337
Main Authors: Florence, Helen Jane, McKenzie‐Green, Barbara, Tudor, Keith
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Dimensional analysis
grounded theory
Psychotherapy
religion
Religion & psychology
Spirituality
therapeutic process
Therapists
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Summary:Background The research presented in this paper aimed to explain how psychotherapists in New Zealand attended to religion and/or spirituality (RS) in the therapeutic process. Thirty‐three in‐depth interviews were conducted with 28 psychotherapists throughout New Zealand, exploring their thoughts about RS in psychotherapy. Method and Methodology Grounded dimensional analysis (a variant of grounded theory), underpinned by symbolic interactionism, was used to collect and analyse data. Findings The study found that participants made decisions about what belonged to psychotherapy regarding RS based on three perspectives; that psychotherapy is secular, that psychotherapy and RS are inextricably connected, and that psychotherapy and RS intersect episodically. Participants’ perspectives influenced their level of engagement of RS material when working with clients. The professional and personal outcomes of this process included expanding practice, maintaining the status quo and being seen to present as “legitimate.” Discussion Deciding what belongs is an iterative process and many participants adjusted their responses when faced with changing contexts and conditions. Implications This study was significant since it found that it was participants, namely the psychotherapists themselves, who actually decided what belonged at all stages of the process of attending to RS in therapeutic engagement.
ISSN:1473-3145
1746-1405
DOI:10.1002/capr.12220