Date of Award
5-12-2024
Degree Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
Department
Counseling & Human Services
Advisor(s)
Derek Seward
Subject Categories
Education
Abstract
The understanding of professional identity development, theoretical orientation development, and mentorship is evolving in counselor education training. Although continuous efforts to understand these phenomena are made, the interplay of professional identity development, theoretical orientation development, and mentorship is not explored yet. Studies must be conducted on the intricate patterns between these three phenomena critical to counselor preparation and training. This study marks an endeavor to unravel the intricacies of professional identity development, theoretical orientation development, and mentorship. Specifically, this qualitative research explores the professional identity development experiences of practitioners who adhere to a specific theoretical orientation—classical Adlerian—and undertake mentorship-style psychotherapy training—classical Adlerian depth psychotherapy. This study used an interpretative phenomenological analysis approach to understand the lived professional identity development experiences of five self-identified classical Adlerian practitioners. The findings present the five participants’ individual experiences of developing a sense of professional identity, learning theory to counseling and psychotherapy, and engaging in a mentorship-style of training. In addition, findings indicated four patterns that emerged across the participants: (a) The appeal of Adler’s theory and philosophy; (b) Adler’s original writings; (c) Classical Adlerian? Or Adlerian? and (d) Classical Adlerian mentorship: A unique learning experience. Findings provide insights into information for the classical Adlerian training and practitioner education in the domains of professional identity development, theoretical orientation development, and mentorship. Several recommendations for future research are offered.
Access
Open Access
Recommended Citation
Qu, Xiaoxuan, "The interplay of professional identity development, theoretical orientation development, and mentorship: An interpretative phenomenological analysis of classical Adlerian practitioners" (2024). Dissertations - ALL. 1892.
https://surface.syr.edu/etd/1892
