Research Paper An enquiry into how counselling psychology in the UK is constructed as a profession within discipline-orientated publications

Abstract

BackgroundThis paper examines how those within counselling psychology are constructing the profession within pertinent publications.MethodologyCritical discursive psychology was applied to texts within Counselling Psychology Review and Counselling Psychology Quarterly over the time period of 2007 to June 2009.FindingsThe four interpretive repertoires discerned were: ‘Opponent to the medical model,’ ‘Saviour of the people’, ‘Maturation’ and ‘Alliance to others’.ConclusionTogether these position the profession as viable contenders within the psychological arena and a voice against the political enhancement of the medical model which is constructed as context and value-free. Thus not only is the power of CBT and all it represents challenged but such a position moves towards ethical empowerment of the client. The analysis also tracked the development of socially constructed processes that position a group as having achieved the construction of a profession.