Professional identity among counselling psychology doctoral students: A qualitative investigation

Abstract

Counselling psychology has always had an interest in exploring its professional identity. This may be due to diverse multidisciplinary influences on counselling psychology. While diversity and multiplicity can be considered a hallmark feature of the profession, it can also be a source of stress for doctoral students. This study explores counselling psychology doctoral students’ perceptions of their professional identities. It is guided by two research questions: (a) What experiences and conditions do counselling psychology doctoral students perceive as contributing to their professional identities? (b) What experiences and conditions do counselling psychology doctoral students perceive as hindering their professional identity? We developed a semi-structured interview protocol and interviewed 10 graduate students who had completed their first year of doctoral study. A variation of the consensual qualitative research method was used for data analysis. Seven categories of experiences that fostered professional identity and four categories of experiences that hindered professional identity were identified. These findings have implications for the practice of counselling psychology within the larger mental health delivery system as well as for the training of counselling psychologists, including counselling curriculum and counselling supervision.

Keywords:

• professional issues
• professional identity
• counsellor training
• qualitative research

Acknowledgments

This study is a part of a larger project funded by the Social Science and Research Council of Canada.