Reflective Practice in Psychotherapy and Counselling

"This is a rigorously edited book that maintains consistency throughout, I found the concluding chapter 'reflections on reflections' particularly useful. This book captures what is current in reflective practice neatly charting its dissemination from education theory into the different therapy schools. Reflective practice is effectively illustrated within the different therapeutic schools. I will be recommending this book to other members of the multidisciplinary team where I work." BMA Medical Book Awards 2010 - Highly Commended in the Psychiatry Section

Reflective Practice has become established as an essential feature of practice in psychotherapy and counselling in the UK, Europe, USA and some other parts of the world. However, the writing on reflective practice is arguably fragmented and scattered, and much of it is highly theoretical and abstract.

This book draws together conceptual and ethical issues regarding reflective practice, including the meaning and development of the orientation. More importantly, it connects theory to day-to-day practice in psychotherapy and counselling, addressing issues such as:

What does reflective practice look like, in practice?

How do we develop the skills in carrying it out?

What ways does it assist practice?

The book offers an exploration of reflective practice within different models of psychotherapy and counselling: CBT, psycho-dynamic and narrative, systemic family therapy, narrative and community approaches. Throughout, it employs a range of illustrations from a variety of clinical contexts to illustrate reflective practice in action. These include work with; children and families, adult mental health, trauma and abuse, learning disability, youth offending and bereavement and loss.

The mix of theoretical background along with practical examples and exercises will be key for students and practioners in the fields of psychotherapy and counselling. The book will be a spur to readers to challenge dominant assumptions and modes of clinical practice and help them fulfil the compulsory requirement for a reflective practice element in their training.

Jacqui Stedmon is Academic director of the Clinical Psychology Programme at the University of Plymouth. In this role she has fostered the development of reflective practices in the context of teaching and training, including the use of problem based, experiential, and distance learning. She has worked for many years as a paediatric psychologist within local services for children's mental health. She is a qualified family therapist and enjoys drawing on a variety of other orientations to inform her therapeutic work.

Together with colleagues, she co-founded, and currently acts both as Trustee and Clinical Director for, Jeremiah's Journey, a Plymouth-based charity that provides a service for bereaved children and their families. She is researching children and young people's narratives of grief and loss, particularly how their meaning-making resources may be linked to family attachment styles and resilience.

Rudi Dallos is Professor of Clinical psychology and Programme Director of the D.Clin. Psychology training programme at the University of Plymouth. He also teaches on qualifying systemic family therapy courses, an intermediate family therapy course and conducts a variety of guest lecturing. He offers extensive clinical and research supervision, especially in areas related to this proposed publication. He has published a range of book , most recently, Formulation in Psychology and Psychotherapy (2005) , Working Systemically with Families, 2003, Researching psychotherapy and Counselling, 2005, An Introduction to Family Therapy (2005 2nd edition) and Interacting Stories: Narratives, Family Beliefs and Therapy (1997)