Feminist counselling practice in Australia: Who, where & how?

Abstract

Research examining feminist counselling in Australia is exceedingly limited, even though feminism has a central place in the development and delivery of sexual assault services and domestic violence intervention. This study aimed to offer a contemporary understanding of how feminist counselling is being practiced in Australia. A convergent mixed methods design was applied between June–August 2020 with mental health practitioners Australia-wide, whereby the FTB-R scale was utilised through an online survey (n = 62) and semi-structured in-depth interviews (n = 8) were conducted. Survey results indicate that whilst feminist counselling is still being practiced predominantly by women and for women, an intersectional framework is being applied with broader populations. Emergent themes of practice include advocacy and education, attending to power and client-centred practice. Results highlight the need for a model of feminist counselling in Australia to ensure its practice can continue within a system that seeks to suppress its efficacy.