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    Investigating decision-regret and distress among psychologists impacted by client suicide : a thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirement for the degree of Doctor of Clinical Psychology at Massey University, Auckland, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2022) Marshall-Edwards, Shoni
    Background: Mental health professionals are tasked with making critical decisions about their client’s care. It is thus unsurprising that client suicide has been described as a distressing experience among professionals. Significant emotional, cognitive, and professional impacts have been reported which include psychological distress, shock, self-blame, guilt, and absenteeism. Due to the variability of impacts reported across the literature, a novel theoretical approach to understanding the impact of client suicide on psychologists was implemented using two decision-regret theories. Methods: A quantitative cross-sectional survey design was used to measure the impact of client suicide on psychologists. By using structural equation modelling, the following factors were investigated: regret, distress, self-blame, supervisory support, and beliefs about suicide preventability. Additionally, two regret theories were tested which included the following variables as predictors on regret: decision-regret, decision justification, decision-process quality, and intention-behaviour consistency. Control models were tested to control for carefully selected confounding variables, and a supplementary qualitative analysis was included investigating the factors related to coping following client suicide. A sample of 248 psychologists from New Zealand, Australia, Canada, United Kingdom, and the United States of America was included in this study. Results: The results identified statistically significant relationships between the following predictor variables on regret: decision-justification, decision-process quality, and beliefs about suicide preventability. Additionally, a significant moderate positive relationship was evidenced between regret (as the predictor) and distress. The qualitative analysis indicated that high-quality supervisory support and understanding the predictive limitations in assessing suicide risk were important factors in coping with client suicide. Additionally, factors identified that were related to poor coping included judgement, counter-factual thinking and blame, and confidentiality limitations preventing seeking support from loved ones. Conclusions: The present study demonstrates support for two factors which appear to influence regret levels: decision-justification and decision-process quality. Additionally, this study also evidenced regret as a significant moderate predictor of distress, highlighting the role that regret may play in influencing a range of affective states among psychologists following client suicide. The findings of the present study highlight the need for the development of robust support structures that acknowledge the impact of client suicide.
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    How do psychologists maintain their professional competencies? : voices from the field : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Educational Psychology at Massey University, Palmerston North, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2018) Brennan, Jenny
    This research explored how five psychologists in Aotearoa New Zealand maintained their professional competencies throughout their careers. Using a qualitative approach, and drawing from social constructionism and phenomenology, the collective case study research design facilitated the exploration of participants’ experiences of maintaining their mandatory competencies required to practice as psychologists, through semi structured interviews. The research found that the participants identified themselves as reflective and evidence-based practitioners, with a strong sense of personal responsibility towards maintaining their competencies. The challenges they faced in maintaining the competencies and the solutions to mitigate the challenges were all centred around the workplace. Based on the findings the key suggestions made include: Aligning policies and procedures in all psychologists’ workplaces with legislation and evidence based practice; aligning continuing competence programmes with performance planning; building leadership and cultural supervision, and making high quality supervision accessible throughout the profession; better access to professional information and new research in the field; adopting a coaching and mentoring approach to professional learning and development; and legitimising the valuable collegial support that psychologists relied upon to maintain their competencies. These suggestions are also well supported by the literature in helping psychologists to practice psychology competently in order to ensure public safety.
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    The career perceptions of educational psychology students and professionals : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Educational Psychology at Massey University, Albany, New Zealand
    (Massey University, 2016) Seymour, Jacqueline N
    Contemporary career literature indicates that careers are becoming less traditional. Two new careers concepts are that of the boundaryless and protean career orientations. Career adaptability is also essential for individuals to maintain personal flexibility and the ability to cope. The current study used an online survey to investigate whether or not these new concepts of career applied to educational psychology students and practicing educational psychologists. Quantitative results from the survey indicated that both students and professionals held boundaryless and protean attitudes. Late-career psychologists and psychologists working outside the Ministry of Education held more boundaryless attitudes. A high degree of career adaptability was also found, especially in terms of career agency, and with students reporting higher levels of perceived support than did professionals. Quantitative data from the survey were consistent with these findings. Overall, it appeared that participants combined contemporary career attitudes with aspects of the traditional career. They understood the hierarchical opportunities available to them but also favoured innovative new endeavours.
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    The prevalence and perceived effects on psychological practice of prior exposure to mental illness and/or psychological trauma in psychologists : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Psychology at Massey University
    (Massey University, 2002) Boyland, Sheila Laraine
    One hundred and fifty-six participants comprising registered psychologists and postgraduate psychology students responded to a mail survey requesting information on their experiences prior to undertaking their postgraduate study in psychology. Clinical and counselling psychologists/students were compared with psychologists and students specialising in other areas of psychology. The clinical/counselling group differed significantly from the comparison group in a number of ways. Clinical/counselling participants were more likely to report prior exposure to mental illness and some types of psychological trauma, as well as a greater number of these experiences. The influence of prior exposure to mental illness and/or traumatic events on the decision to study psychology, and the perceived effects of these experiences on future psychological practice, were investigated with mixed results. Motivators to enter the field of psychology were also investigated and clinical/counselling participants were more likely to have been motivated by dysfunctional reasons than the comparison participants. Additionally, the findings of this study suggest that psychology students with psychological problems may be fearful of disclosing these for fear of negative consequences. It is also suggested that, in general, psychologists and postgraduate psychology students in New Zealand may not be entirely satisfied with their education with regard [to] self-care and self-reflection issues. The results are discussed in terms of effects on psychological practice, and specific issues regarding the education of postgraduate psychology students are raised. Recommendations for further research are suggested.
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    The risk and protective factors for the development of compassion fatigue and burnout in psychologists : a thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Psychology at Massey University
    (Massey University, 1999) Tomkins, Sharon Heather
    The present study examined how both individual and organisational factors combine in different ways to produce risk and protective factors for the development of compassion fatigue and burnout. The reason for undertaking research into secondary traumatic stress disorder in psychologists is because there seems to be an increase in psychologists leaving the field of psychology due to increased stress and burnout. Several variables were examined, including an investigation between risk and protective factors for the development of compassion fatigue and burnout. These included work settings i.e., public institutions and private practices, full time and part time work, life satisfaction, work locus of control, and intention to quit the field, along with several demographic variables, such as gender. The compassion fatigue and burnout variables correlated with many of the protective and risk factors. Public institutions, external work locus of control, poor life satisfaction, and full time work, all predicted a higher risk of developing either compassion fatigue/burnout or both. The results indicated that compassion fatigue and burnout should be considered as a concern for practitioners, mental health organisations and trainers of future psychologists.
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    Developing a more bicultural psychology : academic discourses of resistance : a thesis submitted in partial fulfulment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts, Massey University
    (Massey University, 1996) Waldegrave, Tony
    Psychologists through-out the world, have found themselves under increasing pressure to reflect upon the suitability of the psychological theory they present, for the contexts in which they operate (Sue, 1993). In New Zealand this concern is manifested in a call for the development of a more bicultural psychology. This recognises the poor performance of Maori in academic and professional psychology, and draws attention to issues of bicultural partnership prescribed by a document of constitutional significance in New Zealand, the Treaty of Waitangi. Despite disciplinary intention to develop more biculturally, successive surveys have found that the movement toward this goal has been slow. Such findings prompted the present study, which considers whether conditions are conducive to the provision of the recommended changes. Issues of bicultural development were discussed with ten non-Maori psychology lecturers, from two New Zealand universities. A discourse based analysis of the transcripts was undertaken. This drew attention to procedures by which lecturers made sense of Maori concerns and the discipline's responses. The participants discourses were found to resist Maori concerns for bicultural development. This was achieved by undermining the validity of concerns, by claiming Maori were unfairly treated, by presenting current performance in a positive light, or by drawing attention to difficulties of being able to respond productively. These discourses used Pakeha values of legitimacy as commonsense rationale to resist changes. This process of legitimisation was determined to provide a barrier to the bicultural development of the discipline because it asserted monocultural control of a bicultural process. Attempts to account for Maori psychological needs and to capture the 'spirit and intent' of the Treaty of Waitangi would therefore work to accommodate Maori perspectives which could be legitimised by Pakeha values. On this basis it is argued that bicultural development is dependant upon the establishment of a dynamic of mutual accountability, on space being made for Maori values and the ability of Pakeha to assume an active role to facilitate ideological and systemic reflexivity, among students who may not otherwise have had this opportunity.
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    Psychologists' intentional use of reflection as a tool for inquiry : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Education, Massey University
    (Massey University, 2010) Rae, Andrew James
    A growing body of research indicates that reflective thinking is an important element of professional practice. At the heart of the concept of reflective thinking is the belief that professionals must maintain an open mind to different perspectives in order to challenge their own knowledge, values, beliefs and understandings of any situation they encounter. The present study examined how Ministry of Education, Special Education MOE (SE) psychologists use reflective thinking in their practice, how the use of reflective thinking can be enhanced, the effect of enhancing reflective thinking on practice, and the effect of the psychologist’s reflective thinking on the services they provided to nominated clients. The study was undertaken in two phases. Phase 1 involved identifying individual and organisational factors that enhanced or restricted reflective thinking by psychologists. This phase involved a literature review and a questionnaire completed by MOE (SE) psychologists. The questionnaire identified the factors that psychologists believed enhanced or restricted their use of reflective thinking. Phase 2 used an action research approach to examine the effect of providing scaffolding to assist psychologists to engage in reflective thinking, the influence of reflective thinking on their practice, and the outcomes of their reflective thinking for nominated clients. This phase of the study involved two psychologists working through three cycles of action research and completing weekly reflective journal exercises, based on the Gibbs (1988) model of reflective thinking. Additional data on the psychologists’ reflective thinking processes and their practice were collected through semi-structured interviews with the psychologist, parents/caregivers, and classroom teacher who were involved with a nominated student. The results of Phase 1 identified the factors that the MOE (SE) psychologists believed enhanced and restricted their reflective thinking processes. A thematic map of the key factors identified as enhancing reflective thinking was developed and the concept of reflective thinking used in the questionnaire was defined as: An adaptive metacognitive and emotional process, which is facilitated through social dialogue, within the context of multiple environments that support, value, and promote opportunities for reflective thinking. The results from Phase 2 found that when appropriate scaffolding was put in place to enable opportunities for reflective thinking at the individual, peer, and organisational level, the psychologists’ reflective thinking could be rapidly enhanced. This was observed within a relatively short timeframe of only twelve weeks. The study found that through providing opportunities to engage in reflective thinking, psychologists were able to reflect at different levels depending on the situation. In addition, that psychologists’ reflective thinking influenced their future thoughts, actions, beliefs, and emotions, which lead to a more client focused service.