"How can I support you?” : a critical autoethnographic exploration of the domestic violence crisis line adviser experience : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Psychology at Massey University, Albany, Aotearoa New Zealand

Abstract

Over the past decade, telehealth and remote counselling have become integral components of Aotearoa New Zealand’s crisis response system (Large, 2025). This research explores the experiences of the family violence and sexual harm team who providing lifesaving support to survivors and their whānau via digital platforms, and how the structures of technological systems, organisational design, politics and governance shape the possibilities and limitations of care. While existing research on vicarious trauma, resilience and emotional labour acknowledges the personal cost of care work, few studies examine how cultural context, organisational design and systemic pressures influence the wellbeing of those delivering support remotely. Drawing on my own four years of practice on the Domestic violence support crisis line, I adopted a critical autoethnographic approach supported by semi-structured interviews with fellow practitioners. The study focuses on the emotional, organisational and transformational dimensions of remote psychosocial work. Guided by a critical realist ontology, I explore the material realities of remote crisis work and the intersecting political, social and cultural forces that both enable and constrain care (Bhaskar et al., 2017; Bhaskar & Hartwig, 2016). Using Reflexive Thematic Analysis, three themes were constructed from collected data: Carrying Fire and Confronting Shadows exploring the harm-fulfilment paradox in crisis work; Beyond The Headset delving into the organisational, systemic, political and cultural aspects that sustain or stifle advisers; and Everyday Alchemy: The Making of an Adviser that traces the advisers’ transformative process through which lived experience, reflection, and solidarity forge professional identity. This research positions remote crisis support, and those that perform it, as essential yet invisible labour within Aotearoa’s family violence response system. It calls for recognition of adviser’s expertise, protection of their wellbeing, and the creation of ethically responsive, culturally grounded and sustainably resourced systems of care.