Posttraumatic growth among Turkish-speaking counselling clients in London

: a mixed methods exploration of effects of culturally-sensitive therapy provided at a community counselling service

Abstract

Experience of posttraumatic growth (PTG) (i.e. positive changes) has been reported after different adverse life events, in some cases including migration and acculturating to the host culture. Although some research evidence points to the possibility of facilitating PTG in psychological therapy, there is little research into the effects of the therapy available to migrant/refugee populations in the UK. This research investigates the post-trauma experience of the Turkish-speaking population residing in the UK, and the contribution of short-term culturally-sensitive therapy in a UK city counselling service, with a consideration of positive indicators (i.e. PTG, meaning in life).

A mixed methods research design was employed. Firstly, descriptive and inferential statistics were used in a clinical effectiveness study to analyse any changes in posttraumatic stress, PTG, meaning in life, depression and generalised anxiety in a therapy (N=22) and a waiting list group (N=50), measured at baseline, and subsequently after 6 and 12 weeks. The second study involved an interpretative phenomenological analysis of three semi-structured interviews conducted with three clients who had completed their course of therapy.

No significant change was observed by the quantitative outcome measures in PTG or other outcome variables after therapy, whereas the IPA analysis indicated positive changes through therapy, including some PTG areas that had previously been identified in literature, with the exception of improvements in relationships. Issues discussed include the possible inadequacy of the quantitative outcome measures in accurately reflecting the experience of the current population, as well as the possible limited effectiveness of the available therapy resources in complex cases. The issue of isolation as a minority ethnic group was also raised, which can be addressed by policies targeting immigrant acculturation. Overall, this research contributes to the awareness of the post-trauma and therapy experiences of the Turkish-speaking minority ethnic groups in the UK, and encourages therapy practice that could be more tailored to take into account the specific context of this particular demographic.

Date of Award	17 Dec 2019
Original language	English
Awarding Institution	University of Roehampton
Supervisor	Elias Tsakanikos (Supervisor), Orla Parslow-Breen (Supervisor) & Diane Bray (Supervisor)