The enhancement of counsellor training through person-centred expressive therapy

Abstract

This qualitative study, within a constructivist paradigm, researches the experience of one cohort of trained counsellors in the Centre for Counselling Studies at the University of Durham. Person-Centred Expressive Therapy, as developed by Natalie Rogers, was introduced into a humanistic integrative course with a strong Person-Centred ethos. The literature search encompassed both counsellor training and the expressive arts. Data was collected through semi-structured individual interviews and a focus group and analysed thematically. A second set of data emerged from immediate audio-taped feedback and journal entries following three Expressive Therapy sessions. It was analysed thematically and presented as narrative, using an ethnographic approach of juxtaposing 'episodes' and 'positioning’. of counsellor training, including the experiential learning of theory.