Perceptions of change process and key events in psychotherapy by psychologists in private practice: a qualitative study

Abstract

In literature, change process has been used to determine how change occurs in psychotherapy and how the client progresses from one point to another during and until the termination of therapy. Many researchers have explored change process to understand contributors to change and improve the understanding of the process. These studies were undertaken either from a theoretical perspective or the client's point of view. However, no studies have been done to determine how psychologists view change process and how certain key events might play a role in psychotherapy. This study aimed to answer the following question: How do psychologists perceive change process and key events in psychotherapy? The study undertook to interview psychologists in private practice with more than five years' experience and determine how they perceived change while working with clients. The research was done from a qualitative perspective. A total of 12 participants participated in the study, half of which were in academics or in private practice or both and the other half being involved in private practice only. The participants took part in semi-structured interviews, which were transcribed and analysed using thematic analysis. Five main themes were uncovered, namely 1) client variables, 2) psychologist variables, 3) therapeutic relationship variables, 4) therapeutic technique variables; and 5) change constructs related to key events. The findings revealed that psychologists focus mainly on the abovementioned themes in perceiving how change occurs during psychotherapy and that certain key events take place while undergoing the process of change. The results were, therefore, beneficial in understanding change process from the psychologist's perception.