Exploring the Lived Experiences of Parentified Individuals in Clinical Supervision During Counselling Training

Hi, I'm Gia, an MA student at Waverley Abbey College (Middlesex University), studying Counselling. I am researching how individuals who self-identify as having been parentified in early life experience and make sense of the clinical supervision they received during their counselling training.

My research question is: “What are people who self-identify as having been parentified in early life’s experiences of clinical supervision during counselling training?”

Participants
This study is seeking UK-based counsellors who meet the following criteria:

1. They are members of the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP), the Association of Christians in Counselling (ACC), or the National Counselling and Psychotherapy Society (NCPS).
2. They are counsellors who qualified 1-5 years ago and are based in the UK.
3. They self-identify as having experienced childhood parentification (please look to flyer for definition) and are open to exploring how these experiences have impacted their clinical supervision during their training.
4. Participants can share multiple supervisory experiences. However, they must have engaged in 1:1 supervision with the same supervisor for at least six consecutive months to ensure sufficient relational depth for exploration.

I am seeking 3-5 participants for this study.

What’s Involved?
If you wish to participate, you will be invited to a 60-minute 1:1 semi-structured interview at a mutually convenient time. The interview can take place via Zoom or in person (in a counselling room in Hartley Wintney, Hampshire - RG27).

During the interview, I will ask you specifically about your experiences of clinical supervision during your counselling training and how your early life experiences of parentification may have influenced these.

How to Participate?
If you're interested or would like further information, please contact me at giabird@waverleyabbeycollege.ac.uk.

After expressing interest, I will send you a detailed participation information sheet and consent form with further details.

We will then have a brief 10-15 minute screening call, where I will share my understanding of parentification, which focuses on the destructive kind, to ensure our understandings of the term sufficiently align.

Confidentiality
Your identity will be anonymised, and all interview materials will be treated confidentially.

You are under no obligation to take part in this research study and can withdraw at any point. If you are interested or would like more information, please contact me directly.

Please see flyer here.

Thank you for your time and consideration,

Gia