How Irish adolescents experience having a mother who is a humanistic integrative counsellor

Abstract

The objective of this research was to explore how Irish adolescents experience having a mother who is a Humanistic Integrative Counsellor. What are the experiences and attitudes of adolescents towards their mothers who are counsellors? 10 adolescents (5 male, 5 female) aged between 12 and 18 (mean age 13.7) whose mother is a Humanistic Integrative Counsellor participated in this study. 2 measures were used in interviewing participants (semi-structured interview and likert scale questionnaire). Irish adolescents' understanding of what counselling entails reflects the definitions of humanistic counselling provided by Corey (1996) and Clarkson (1995). They reported that their mothers' work did not have an adverse effect on their relationship. Whilst they perceived that their mothers interpreted their behaviour too much the adolescents liked the fact that their mother is a counsellor valuing her profession expertise and knowledge. Findings support previous research carried out by Farber and Golden (1998).