Reflecting on qualitative survey psychotherapy research: A feminist phronetic case study

Authors

  • Elizabeth Peel Loughborough University Author

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.24377/EJQRP.article3116

Keywords:

Qualitative survey, Reflexivity, Insider-Outsider positions, Feminism, Phronetic research

Abstract

This reflective commentary offers a case study of being an experienced qualitative researcher conducting psychotherapy research as a novice practitioner. I focus on the blending of insider-outsider positions, drawing on a feminist phronetic approach which entails prioritising the particular and the context-specific. In so doing, I foreground the importance of thoroughly reflecting on research processes as a mechanism for linking research to practice. This case study also highlights that, rather than understanding insider-outsider positionality in dichotomous terms, a beyond binary approach can allow for different configurations of the professional self to inform praxis. Moreover, this reflection elucidates the advantages and disadvantages of qualitative survey methods, an underutilised but fruitful method for conducting psychotherapy research.

Downloads

Download data is not yet available.

References

Acres, D. (2016). Configurations of self: ‘The gang inside’. In C. Lago, & D. Charura (Eds.), The person-centred and psychotherapy handbook: Origins, developments, and current applications (pp. 70-80). Open University Press.

Ahmed, S. (2017). Living a feminist life. Duke University Press.

BACP. (2018). Ethical framework for the counselling professions. BACP. https://www.bacp.co.uk/events-and-resources/ethics-and-standards/ethical-framework-for-the-counselling-professions

BACP. (2019). Ethical guidelines for research in the counselling professions. BACP. https://www.bacp.co.uk/events-and-resources/research/publications/ethical-guidelines-for-research-in-the-counselling-professions/

Blundell, P., Oakley, L., & Kinmond, K. (2022). Who are we protecting?: Exploring counsellors’ understanding and experience of boundaries. European Journal for Qualitative Research in Psychotherapy, 12, 13-28.

Bondi, L., & Fewell, J. (2016). The power of examples. In L. Bondi, & J. Fewell (Eds.), Practitioner research in counselling & psychotherapy: The power of examples (pp. 22-47). Palgrave.

Bondi, L., & Fewell, J. (2017). Getting personal: A feminist argument for research aligned to therapeutic practice. Counselling & Psychotherapy Research, 17(2), 113-122. https://doi.org/10.1002/capr.12102

Braun, V., & Clarke, V. (2013). Successful qualitative research: A practical guide for beginners. Sage.

Braun, V., & Clarke, V. (2019). Reflecting on reflexive thematic analysis. Qualitative Research in Sport, Exercise and Health, 11(4), 589-597. https://doi.org/10.1080/2159676X.2019.1628806

Braun, V., & Clarke, V. (2022). Thematic analysis: A practical guide. Sage.

Braun, V., & Clarke, V. (2023). Is thematic analysis used well in health psychology?: A critical review of published research, with recommendations for quality practice and reporting. Health Psychology Review, 17(4), 1-24. https://doi.org/10.1080/17437199.2022.2161594

Braun, V., & Clarke, V. (2024). Supporting best practice in reflexive thematic analysis reporting in palliative medicine: A review of published research and introduction to the Reflexive Thematic Analysis Reporting Guidelines (RTARG). Palliative Medicine, 38(6), 606-616. https://doi.org/10.1177/02692163241234800

Braun, V., Clarke, V., Boulton, E., Davey, L., & McEvoy, C. (2021). The online survey as a qualitative research tool. International Journal of Social Research Methodology, 24(6), 641-654. https://doi.org/10.1080/13645579.2020.1805550

Breen, L. J. (2007). The researcher 'in the middle': Negotiating the insider/outsider dichotomy. The Australian Community Psychologist, 19(1), 163-174.

Bukamal, H. (2022). Deconstructing insider–outsider researcher positionality. British Journal of Special Education, 49, 327-349. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-8578.12426

Cameron, R. (2020). Working with difference and diversity in counselling and psychotherapy. Sage.

Chandler, C.K. (2017). Animal-assisted therapy in counselling (3rd ed.). Routledge.

Dance, A. (2019, July 4). The benefits of having a dog in the therapy room. Counselling Directory. https://www.counselling-directory.org.uk/memberarticles/the-benefits-of-having-a-dog-in-the-therapy-room

Dell, C.A. (2024, February 21-22). Trauma and welfare -necessary considerations for visitors, therapy dogs and handlers. Dementia in a Multi-Species World.University of the West of Scotland. https://multispeciesdementia.org/2024/03/20/dementia-in-a-multi-species-world/

Dhont, K., Hodson, G., Leite, A.C., & Salmen, A. (2020). The psychology of speciesism. In K. Dhont, & G. Hodson (Eds.), Why we love and exploit animals: Bridging insights from academia and advocacy (pp. 29-49). Routledge.

Dwyer, S. C., & Buckle, J. L. (2009). The space between: On being an insider-outsider in qualitative research. International Journal of Qualitative Methods, 8(1), 54-63. https://doi.org/10.1177/160940690900800105

Frith, H., & Capdevila, R. (2022). A feminist companion to research methods in psychology. Open University Press.

Gubrium, J.F., & Holstein, J.A. (Eds.) (2003). Postmodern interviewing. Sage.

Hallowell, N., Lawton, J., & Gregory, S. (2005). Reflections on research: The realities of doing research in the social sciences. Open University Press.

Harding, R., & Peel, E. (2007). Surveying sexualities: Internet research with non-heterosexuals. Feminism & Psychology, 17(2), 277-285. https://doi.org/10.1177/0959353507076563

Hartwig, E.K., & Smelser, Q.K. (2018). Practitioner perspectives on animal-assisted counselling. Journal of Mental Health Counseling, 40(1), 43-57. https://doi.org/10.17744/mehc.40.1.04

Hayfield, N.,& Huxley, C. (2015). Insider and outsider perspectives: Reflections on researcher identities in research with lesbian and bisexual women. Qualitative Research in Psychology, 12(2), 91-106. https://doi.org/10.1080/14780887.2014.918224

Jowett, A., Peel, E., & Shaw, R. (2011). Online interviewing in psychology: Reflections on the process. Qualitative Research in Psychology, 8(4), 354-369. https://doi.org/10.1080/14780887.2010.500352

Kanuha, V.K. (2000). “Being” native versus “going native”: Conducting social work research as an insider. Social Work, (45), 439–447.

Kitzinger, C., & Wilkinson, S. (1996). Theorizing representing the other. In S. Wilkinson,& C. Kitzinger (Eds.), Representing the other: A feminism & psychology reader (pp. 1-33). Sage.

Levinson, B.M. (1962). The dog as a “co-therapist”. Mental Hygiene, 46, 59–65.

Lorde, A. (1984). Sister outsider: Essays and speeches. Crossing Press.

Mearns, D., & Thorne, B. (2000). Person-centred therapy today: New frontiers in theory and practice. Sage.

Mearns, D., & Thorne, B. (2013). Person-centred counselling in action (4th ed.).Sage.

McBeath, A. (2020). Doing quantitative research with a survey. In S. Bager-Charleson, & A. McBeath (Eds.), Enjoying research in counselling and psychotherapy (pp. 175–193). Palgrave Macmillan.

McBeath, A., Bager-Charleson, S., & Abarbanel, A. (2019). Therapists and academic writing: “Once upon a time psychotherapy practitioners and researchers were the same people”. European Journal for Qualitative Research in Psychotherapy, 9, 103-116. https://doi.org/10.24377/EJQRP.article2981

McPherson, A. (2020). Dissertation to published article: A journey from shame to sharing. European Journal for Qualitative Research in Psychotherapy, 10, 41-52. https://doi.org/10.24377/EJQRP.article2996

Peel, E. (2010). Pregnancy loss in lesbian and bisexual women: An online survey of experiences. Human Reproduction, 25(3), 721-727. https://doi.org/10.1093/humrep/dep441

Peel, E. (2025). An antidote to “Armageddon and potential doom”: Accounts of canine-human companionship during Covid-19. Qualitative Research in Psychology, 22(1), 56-80. https://doi.org/10.1080/14780887.2024.2364321

Peel, E. (under submission a). Revisiting the canine co-therapist: Qualitative survey of therapists’ perspectives. Counselling Psychology Quarterly.

Peel, E. (under submission b). Posthumanist counselling theory: A contemporary reconceptualization of person-centred theory. Person-Centred & Experiential Psychotherapies.

Peel, E. (under submission c). Seeing species in the therapeutic encounter. Feminism & Psychology.

Peel, E., & Newman, H.J.H. (2020). Gender’s wider stakes: Lay attitudes to legal gender reform. Feminists@Law, 10(2). https://doi.org/10.22024/UniKent/03/fal.953

Peel, E., Parry, O., Douglas, M., & Lawton, J. (2006). ‘It’s no skin off my nose’: Why people take part in qualitative research. Qualitative Health Research, 16(10), 1335-1349. https://doi.org/10.1177/1049732306294511

Peel, E., & Slocombe, F. (2022). Dog talking and walking survey: Findings summary. Loughborough University: Unpublished Report. https://wellbeingdog.wordpress.com/2022/10/31/survey-findings-summary/

Proctor, G., & Napier, M.B. (Eds.). (2004). Encountering feminism: Intersections between feminism and the person-centred approach. PCCS Books.

Riggs, D.W., & Peel, E. (2016). Critical kinship studies: An introduction to the field. Palgrave Macmillan.

Terry, G., & Braun, V. (2017). Short but often sweet: The surprising potential of qualitative survey methods. In V. Braun, V. Clarke,& D. Gray (Eds.), Collecting qualitative data: A practical guide to textual, media and virtual techniques (pp. 15-44).Cambridge University Press.

Wilkinson, S. (1988). The role of reflexivity in feminist psychology. Women’s Studies International Forum, 11(5), 493-502. https://doi.org/10.1016/0277-5395(88)90024-6

Yip, S.Y. (2024). Positionality and reflexivity: Negotiating insider-outsider positions within and across cultures. International Journal of Research & Method in Education, (47)3, 222-232. https://doi.org/10.1080/1743727X.2023.2266375

Downloads

Published

24-07-2025

Issue

Section

Articles

How to Cite

Peel, E. (2025). Reflecting on qualitative survey psychotherapy research: A feminist phronetic case study. European Journal for Qualitative Research in Psychotherapy, 15, 41-49. https://doi.org/10.24377/EJQRP.article3116

Similar Articles

21-30 of 105

You may also start an advanced similarity search for this article.