Title:
A phenomenological exploration of mental health counseling, religion, and spirituality in Rural Iowa
Author:
Diane D. Walsh
Thesis Advisor:
Jill Snodgrass
Committee Member:
Joseph A. Stewart-Sicking
Committee Member:
I. Tucker Brown
Committee Member:
L. Mickey Fenzel
Committee Member:
Stephen Fowl
Degree Granting Institution:
Loyola University Maryland--College of Arts and Sciences
Place:
Baltimore (Md.)
Publisher:
Loyola University Maryland
Date Created:
2019
Type of Resource:
text
Genre:
thesis
Language:
eng
Format:
application/pdf
Physical Form:
electronic
Digital Source:
born digital
Abstract:
Understanding rural cultures is an issue of multicultural competence in mental health counseling. Rural cultures are distinct from non-rural cultures, and individuals living in rural areas are often religious. As such, mental health counselors in rural areas need to understand how to appropriately integrate clients’ religion and spirituality into their clinical work. This study utilized interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA), a qualitative research method, to uncover how counselors living and working in rural Iowa experience issues of religion and spirituality as related to counseling. Ten participants offered insight into their lived experiences. The following three superordinate themes emerged from the research: (a) Experiences of Clinical Practice in Rural Iowa, (b) Participants’ Personal Experience with Religion and Spirituality, and (c) Addressing Religion and Spirituality in Mental Health Counseling. Results indicate that the culture of rural Iowa impacts clinical work, including how religion and spirituality are addressed. Participants’ own personal experiences with religion influenced how they do or do not integrate religion and spirituality in counseling. Moreover, although religion and spirituality are viewed as an integral part of holistic well-being, they are rarely addressed in counseling. These results were analyzed through the lens of multicultural competence in counseling, and implications for counselor educators and pastoral counselors are given. Suggestions for future research are posited as well.
Degree:
Doctor of Philosophy
Level:
Doctoral
Discipline:
Pastoral Counseling and Spiritual Care
Restrictions on Access:
Author has given permission to make this work available online.
Use and Reproduction:
The authors of theses and dissertations are the copyright owners. Loyola Notre Dame Library has their permission to store and provide access to these works. Transmission or reproduction of materials protected by copyright beyond that allowed by fair use requires the written permission of the copyright owners. Permission is required to use materials for which Loyola Notre Dame Library, Loyola University Maryland, or Notre Dame of Maryland University hold copyright. In addition, the reproduction of some materials may be restricted by terms of gift of purchase agreements, donor restrictions, privacy and publicity rights, licensing and trademarks. Works not in the public domain cannot be commercially exploited without permission of the copyright owner. Responsibility for any use rests exclusively with the user.
Accessibility:
LNDL is currently working to ensure our dissertations and theses are accessible. Portions of this document may not be fully accessible. A fully accessible version can be produced upon request by contacting [email protected]
Identifier:
WalshD-19
