An exploration and comparison of the student placement experiences of UK and German psychotherapist trainees.
Research on trainee psychotherapists’ experiences during mandatory training placements remains limited. Additionally, comparative research on psychotherapy training across different countries is scarce. This study investigated the experiences of psychotherapy trainees in counselling placements in the UK and Germany. With the use of semi-structured interviews, three trainee psychotherapists from the UK and three trainees from Germany shared their lived experiences in placements. Then, the data was analysed through interpretative phenomenological analysis, revealing eleven group themes, with 15 subordinate group themes, that illustrated the various experiences of trainee psychotherapists in placement. Themes broadly included experiences of challenges in placements, personal and professional development, supervision, experiences of placement characteristics and conditions, as well as country-specific reflections. Findings addressed implications for training placements, such as improved regulation of placement supervision, thorough placement induction processes, and enhanced supportive and well-monitored placement environments. They highlighted similar experiences of therapeutic work and supervision, and systemic differences to the environments in psychotherapy placements between the UK and in Germany. Based on these insights, recommendations for future research on psychotherapy training placements in more countries, and with improved comparability of placement parameters are provided.
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