Client-Identified Impacts of Helpful and Hindering Events in Psychotherapy: A Qualitative Meta-analysis. (18th August 2022)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Ladmanová, Michaela; Řiháček, Tomáš; Timulak, Ladislav
• Is Part Of: Psychotherapy research. Volume 32:Number 6(2022)
• Page Start: 723
• Page End: 735
• Publication Date: 2022-08-18
• Subjects: significant events -- helpful events -- hindering events -- qualitative meta-analysis; Psychotherapy -- Periodicals; Psychotherapy -- Research -- Periodicals; Psychotherapy -- Periodicals; Psychothérapie -- Périodiques; Psychothérapie -- Recherche -- Périodiques; 616.891405
• DOI: 10.1080/10503307.2021.2003885
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1050-3307

Abstract

Abstract: Objective: Understanding the client perspective is important for the provision of psychotherapy. The significant events paradigm, within which clients report on the most significant events of a therapy session immediately after the session, represents a useful means to explore clients' in-session experience. Method: The aim of this study was to investigate what types of client-identified impacts are reported in qualitative studies on helpful and hindering events in psychotherapy. Seventeen primary studies focusing on client-identified helpful and hindering events were identified through database searches and subsequent manual searches. The data were subjected to qualitative meta-analysis. Results: The descriptions of event impacts were classified into 12 helpful (e.g., gaining a new perspective on the self; feeling heard, understood, and accepted; and feeling engaged in the therapeutic process) and eight hindering (e.g., lacking guidance from the therapist and feeling emotionally overwhelmed) impact meta-categories. Conclusion: The findings provide an update to a previous meta-analysis by identifying several new categories of helpful event impacts and by categorizing hindering event impacts.