Reflective practice and continuing professional development among qualified clinical psychologists

Reflective Practice (RP) and Continuing Professional Development (CPD) have become key concepts in the post-qualification education and training of healthcare professionals, linked to maintaining and improving competence and fitness to practice in a modernised health service. There is little empirical research about this in relation to clinical psychologists. This qualitative study explored how clinical psychologists experience RP and CPD and apply this to their professional practice. A focus group generated the topics for 16 semi-structured interviews with a diverse range of qualified clinical psychologists practising in a Strategic Health Authority Region in England. Using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis, four higher-order themes and associated sub-themes emerged: (1) clinical psychologists as reflective practitioners, including the understanding of reflection, influences on development, and reflection and professional identity; (2) the reflective space, including supervision, enablers and obstacles in reflective practice; (3) functions of CPD and reflection, including quality and enhanced service provision, safety and clinical governance, and professional requirements; and (4) linking reflection and CPD, including the link between reflection and action, reflective practice as CPD, and CPD and life-long learning. Seven second interviews were conducted for member-validation, and a final focus group was convened for triangulation and validation of the thematic analysis. The findings are related to the existing literature, and to learning theory and attachment theory. The relevance of this research is discussed in relation to clinical psychology practice and the implications for training and CPD. The importance of the present findings to the issue of the professional identity of clinical psychologists is outlined, and suggestions for future research are proposed

“Back to square one”: The experience of straddling adolescence and early adulthood in unemployed UK university graduates with common mental health issues

We investigated the experiences of unemployed university graduates with common mental health issues. After conducting semistructured interviews with 12 unemployed bachelor’s degree graduates with common mental health issues, we used interpretative phenomenological analysis to generate three superordinate themes: “fall from grace,” “vulnerability,” and “life on hold.” Our focus in this article is life on hold and its constituent themes: “stagnation,” “moving backward,” and “feeling left behind.” Graduates struggled to complete the broader structural life transition from university student to the adult world of work, experiencing a nebulous state of straddling adolescence and early adulthood. This undermined their sense of adult maturity, leaving them vulnerable to becoming entrenched in their mental health-related difficulties. We discuss these findings in relation to the developmental perspectives of life-course theory, status passages, and separation–individuation in early adulthood, which raise important issues for the applicability of life-course frameworks for these graduates, who are a disadvantaged minority group

Psychological variables and quality of life in women with endometriosis

Background Endometriosis is a common gynecological condition which has been found to have a detrimental impact upon women’s quality of life (QoL). This study investigated the impact of pain self-efficacy, health locus of control (HLOC), coping style and illness uncertainty on QoL in women with endometriosis. Method Two hundred and thirty women completed online questionnaires. Standard multiple regressions assessed the relationship between the psychological predictors and QoL. Results The psychological variables accounted for a statistically significant proportion of the variance (p < .0005) in scores across the four QoL domains. The model accounted for 55, 26, 10 and 32% of the scores in physical, psychological, social and environmental QoL domains, respectively. Pain self-efficacy made the largest unique contribution, followed by illness uncertainty. Conclusions Women’s perception of their ability to manage their pain and how uncertain they felt about their condition, were important factors in QoL, particularly in the physical domain

A fall from grace: an interpretative phenomenological analysis of unemployment in UK university graduates with common mental health issues

© 2021 The Authors. Published by Scientific Research Publishing. This is an open access article available under a Creative Commons licence. The published version can be accessed at the following link on the publisher’s website: https://www.scirp.org/journal/paperinformation.aspx?paperid=106733An exploratory investigation into the experiences of unemployed university graduates with common mental health issues (i.e., depression and anxiety) was conducted using Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis. Analysis of semi-structured interviews with 12 graduates in their twenties, all of whom had been unemployed between five and 24 months with common mental health issues, generated themes relating to ‘Loss of Expectation and Disorientation’, ‘Waste, Failure and Blame’, and ‘Stigma and Shame’. Participants had experienced a ‘Fall from Grace’ – a descent from a vaunted position of high-esteem and importance as university graduates, with seemingly bright prospects for a privileged future, into a lowly state of unemployment with mental health issues, leaving them feeling tarnished. These findings are discussed in relation to the literature on graduate unemployment, crisis and stigma, raising some practical issues for universities, including counselling services, and how they can better manage the transition to employment for their graduates

Reflective practice and continuing professional development among qualified clinical psychologists

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The experience of partner relationships for male survivors of childhood sexual abuse: a qualitative synthesis

Research has documented wide-ranging psychological impacts of childhood sexual abuse (CSA) for male survivors, but their experience of relationships is understudied. This qualitative review aimed to synthesize the qualitative literature concerning the experience of partner relationships for male CSA survivors. Electronic searches were conducted across PsycINFO, CINAHL, and PubMed, complemented by hand searches of references. Searches were limited to English-language peer-reviewed studies. Studies were included if they sampled adult male CSA survivors and reported qualitative data on their experience of partner relationships. Sixteen studies met the review criteria. Articles were quality-appraised using the Critical Appraisal Skills Programme qualitative checklist (2018), and narrative synthesis derived five themes: “sexual orientation confusion,” “sexual intimacy difficulties,” “the barrier of emotional intimacy,” “navigating agency,” and “healing and growth through love.” Key findings were male CSA survivors can face considerable barriers to relational intimacy; however, romantic relationships also offer a space to heal and experience post-traumatic growth (PTG). Clinicians should be aware of the diffuse impacts CSA can have upon male survivors’ intimate relationships. Helping survivors and their partners build a safe space in which to process CSA, reassert agency and relational boundaries, and express love and validation can support survivors toward PTG