Patients’ Experiences of Psychotherapy for Psychological Distress Attributed to Attendance at Boarding School “The Denial, Shame, and Privilege Double Bind”
type: CreativeWork
description: Background: ‘Boarding school syndrome’ is a term used to describe psychological distress linked to the experience of attending boarding school. Psychotherapy has been used to treat patients who relate their psychological distress to attending boarding school, however there is little evidence of research into the therapeutic process and patient experience. Aim: This study aims to investigate adults' experiences of psychotherapy who have experienced psychological distress related to attending boarding school. It makes an original contribution to the literature by providing in-depth analysis with a qualitative methodology and expands the understanding of participants' experiences of psychotherapy. Method: A qualitative approach was used to investigate in depth the experiences of participants who had experienced psychotherapy. Twelve participants took part in semi-structured interviews. Interviews were analysed using thematic analysis. Results: A total of six themes and corresponding eighteen sub-themes were developed from the data: (1) A therapist who provides validation of the boarding school distress experience in the therapy process after emotions are shut down in boarding school; (2) Finding oneself in therapy after the loss of identity in boarding school; (3) The double bind of denial, shame, and privilege as a barrier to therapy, and overcoming this barrier by recognising and accepting the boarding school distress; (4) A therapeutic process of transforming relationships after loss of intimacy in relationships in boarding school; (5) Trauma based therapeutic and specialist interventions and expert therapist to process the boarding school trauma; (6) Acceptance from others through group therapy and online forums. Conclusion: Overall, participants reported that therapy can be complex and challenging, which appears to relate to the double bind of denial, shame, and privilege. The distress from the boarding school experience is often denied in childhood and in society…
abstract: Background: ‘Boarding school syndrome’ is a term used to describe psychological distress linked to the experience of attending boarding school. Psychotherapy has been used to treat patients who relate their psychological distress to attending boarding school, however there is little evidence of research into the therapeutic process and patient experience. Aim: This study aims to investigate adults' experiences of psychotherapy who have experienced psychological distress related to attending boarding school. It makes an original contribution to the literature by providing in-depth analysis with a qualitative methodology and expands the understanding of participants' experiences of psychotherapy. Method: A qualitative approach was used to investigate in depth the experiences of participants who had experienced psychotherapy. Twelve participants took part in semi-structured interviews. Interviews were analysed using thematic analysis. Results: A total of six themes and corresponding eighteen sub-themes were developed from the data: (1) A therapist who provides validation of the boarding school distress experience in the therapy process after emotions are shut down in boarding school; (2) Finding oneself in therapy after the loss of identity in boarding school; (3) The double bind of denial, shame, and privilege as a barrier to therapy, and overcoming this barrier by recognising and accepting the boarding school distress; (4) A therapeutic process of transforming relationships after loss of intimacy in relationships in boarding school; (5) Trauma based therapeutic and specialist interventions and expert therapist to process the boarding school trauma; (6) Acceptance from others through group therapy and online forums. Conclusion: Overall, participants reported that therapy can be complex and challenging, which appears to relate to the double bind of denial, shame, and privilege. The distress from the boarding school experience is often denied in childhood and in society…
author: Emerson-Smith, Mairi
language: en
keywords: BF Psychology, H Social Sciences (General), Q Science (General)
date published: 2021-09
date modified: 2026-07-24T02:18:43Z
provider: University of Essex
publisher: Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations
type: WebPage
source organization: University of Essex