‘Holding on to regret as a kind of enrichment’–a qualitative exploration of the role that work-related regrets play in therapists’ clinical practice
Journal article, Peer reviewed
Published version
View/ Open
Date
2023Metadata
Show full item recordCollections
- Department of Clinical Psychology [240]
- Registrations from Cristin [10708]
Original version
Counselling Psychology Quarterly. 2023, 37 (1), 137-154. 10.1080/09515070.2023.2191310Abstract
In this reflexive thematic analysis, we explore 17 psychotherapists’ accounts of work-related regrets. Based on individual interviews with experienced clinical psychologists, we report how they describe these regrets as emotionally intense experiences with potential for development. To communicate how participants view work-related regrets to impact on their clinical practice, we formulated an overarching theme called “holding on to regret as a kind of enrichment.” Three subthemes summarize different aspects of this process: (a) increased awareness; (b) working to accept and model fallibility; and (c) the process of making changes based on regret experiences. We discuss our findings in relation to theory and research, and explore methodological strengths and limitations.