Research bites
This issue’s papers focus on recent research into counselling and psychotherapy with people who have experienced trauma
Key principles for trauma-focused therapy
In the UK, CBT is generally recommended for symptoms of post-traumatic stress as there is a lack of evidence for a personcentred approach to trauma-focused work. This paper sought to identify key principles for early stage trauma-focused work within person-centred therapy and emotion-focused therapy. Transcripts of therapy sessions for four selected cases were analysed to identify the structure of sessions and the principles applied. The study found four facilitative principles: development of a therapeutic relationship; supporting the client to identify their experiences of trauma; helping the client to understand how traumatic experiences contribute to their current difficulties; and providing empathic responses to instances of client self-agency. The research indicates these principles may provide an alternative approach for early work with traumatised clients.
Read more: Murphy D et al. Identifying and developing therapeutic principles for trauma-focused work in person-centred and emotion-focused therapies.
Refugees and trauma
Research highlights the importance of flexible therapeutic boundaries with refugees and asylum seekers who have experienced trauma. This paper aimed to clarify the meaning of flexible boundaries and how to adapt and apply these therapeutically. A thematic synthesis of 21 papers exploring psychologist, psychotherapist and counsellor experiences of implementing flexible boundaries with this population was conducted. Three major themes developed: changes to therapeutic practice and therapeutic intervention; re-conceptualisation of therapy as ‘clinical-political’ and re-conceptualisation of therapist identity; and careful monitoring of personal boundaries. The flexible boundaries captured under these themes have been shown to enhance the effectiveness of therapeutic interventions and strengthen therapeutic alliance when working with refugee and asylum seekers who have experienced trauma.
Read more: Davoren N et al. Refugees and asylum seekers who have experienced trauma: thematic synthesis of therapeutic boundary considerations.
Trauma-sensitive mindfulness
This study explored clients’ experiences of taking part in a trauma-sensitive mindfulness and compassion group intervention. Seventeen clients were interviewed one month after completing the intervention. The researchers found that clients reported three main changes as a result: becoming empowered; a new relationship to themselves and their body; and gaining more freedom in relationships and life. They also identified four mechanisms that contributed to positive change: gaining understanding and hope from a new perspective; accessing tools to facilitate agency; new possibilities opening up from moments of awareness; and change facilitated by life circumstances. The researchers concluded that dealing with trauma was an ongoing process involving moments of meaning that might include feeling love or managing a triggering situation.
Read more: Wästlund M et al. Clients’ experiences with a trauma-sensitive mindfulness and compassion group intervention: a first-person perspective on change and change mechanisms.
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In the spotlight
'Specialist sexual violence services should be commissioned for women's prisons'
Dr Kate O’Brien is Associate Professor at the Centre for Research into Violence and Abuse, Durham University.
Isabel Owens is CEO of the Rape and Sexual Abuse Counselling Centre (RSACC), Darlington and County Durham. They talk to us about the evaluation of the Believed Project – an innovative counselling intervention for women in prison.
Can you tell us about the Believed Project?
It’s a specialist 20-week counselling intervention delivered by RSACC in HMP Low Newton, a 360-capacity women’s prison, established as a pilot in response to the high numbers of women disclosing past sexual violence in the prison. RSACC is part of the Rape Crisis network in England and Wales, founded on a feminist approach to supporting women survivors of violence and abuse, and underpinned by an understanding that being believed and validated is key. After an initial pilot, the project received funding until March 2026.
What did the research evaluation find?
Women stressed the importance of feeling comfortable, being able to connect with their counsellor, develop a human relationship, feel safe and open up. We also found that for many women the educational and consciousnessraising aspect of the counselling experience had a powerful impact on them. For most this was the first time they understood that their past relationships were abusive and defined by coercive control. All emphasised that this was the first time in their lives that they had felt believed, and their accounts of sexual violence and abuse accepted and validated. We found that engagement with the Believed Project had a positive impact on women’s sense of selfworth, confidence and decision making, helping them feel in control and hopeful for the future.
What’s next?
We made several recommendations in the report, including that specialist womencentred sexual violence services should be commissioned for women’s prisons. These should include specialist counselling designed to be long-term and flexible, delivered by experienced counselling staff. The Believed Project provides a clear and workable model for such specialist services.
• For more about the Believed Project, see Durham University website.