The identity crisis in trainee counselling psychology research

Abstract

Content and FocusIn 2009, the threshold of registration for counselling psychologists in the UK was set at doctoral level, meaning that henceforth trainees in the field will generally be expected to produce a piece of doctoral - level research in order to qualify. Uncertainties and debates around counselling psychology’s identity, distinctiveness, and contribution have affected research produced by trainees, to the extent that doctoral candidates are often not meeting the doctoral criteria of extending the forefront of the discipline and being at the cutting edge of professional practice, as set out in the Framework for Higher Education in England and Wales.ConclusionsThe authors present a list of traps derived from their experience of supervising and examining doctoral research into which trainees, supervisees and examiners may fall in creating that body of research, and suggest ways of ensuring that trainee research work truly extends the forefront of and contributes to the practice of counselling psychology.