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Title: Aiming to Fully Understand How We Heal: Treatment and Assessment Protocol Development for Clinical Research on Performance-Specific Social Anxiety Disorder
Contributor: Stephanie E. Hall (author), Richard Bradshaw (thesis supervisor), Marvin McDonald (second reader), Bill Acton (third reader), Trinity Western University SGS (Degree granting institution)
Discipline/Stream: Counselling Psychology
Abstract: The purpose of this project was to develop assessment and treatment protocols for clinical research on performance-specific Social Anxiety Disorder (SAD). The treatments used were Observed and Experiential Integration (OEI; a trauma-root-focused therapy), and Breathing, Relaxation, Autogenics, Imagery, and grouNding (BRAIN; a trauma-symptom-focused therapy). Similarities between trauma and anxiety symptoms suggest a traumatic cause of SAD. Both trauma-root-focused and trauma-symptom-focused treatments resulted in improvements in: (a) narrow-spectrum symptoms of speaker confidence and public speaking behaviour. In response to trauma-root-focused treatment: (a) broad-spectrum symptoms of general anxiety and depression improved, and (b) psychophysiological reactivity to past traumatic social experiences was reduced. Diverse types of measurements (self-report, behaviour sampling, and psychophysiological measures) will be helpful for understanding (a) broad-spectrum, (b) narrow- spectrum, and (c) psychophysiological symptoms. Results of descriptive analyses supported the existence of traumatic origins of performance-specific SAD.
Publication Year: 2017

Title: Between Two Worlds: Stories of Professional Identity Construction in Asian Canadian Lawyers
Contributor: Esther E. Tangsoc (author), Deepak Mathew (thesis supervisor), Derrick W. Klaassen (thesis supervisor), José F. Domene (third reader), Trinity Western University SGS (Degree granting institution)
Discipline/Stream: Counselling Psychology
Abstract: Professional identity is a key aspect of our overall sense of identity; however, there has been limited research on professional identity construction for minoritized groups. This study sought to understand the process of professional identity construction in Asian Canadian lawyers, an underrepresented population within the Canadian legal profession. Seven participants shared their stories of becoming and working as lawyers. Using a narrative method and thematic content analysis, five main themes arose from hearing and analyzing these stories, including (a) battling alienation from the profession, (b) encountering barriers to career advancement, (c) managing family expectations and responsibilities, (d) finding a sense of belonging, and (e) feeling empowered as a lawyer. The findings from this study shed light on the unique concerns Asian Canadian lawyers face in navigating their professional identity development, as well as the mental health burdens Asian Canadian lawyers carry in addition to typical work-related stressors.
Publication Year: 2022

Title: Beyond the Barriers: Women's Voices in Litigation Abuse Following Intimate Partner Violence
Contributor: Nicole Kragt (author), Deepak Mathew (thesis supervisor), Marvin McDonald (second reader), Kaori Wada (external examiner), Trinity Western University SGS (Degree granting institution)
Discipline/Stream: Counselling Psychology
Abstract: Litigation abuse occurs when a perpetrator utilizes a range of tactics to continue to abuse, harass, and control their victim through the courts. The research question for this study was: what are the voices present in the experience of litigation abuse following intimate partner violence for women? Seven women who experienced litigation abuse following intimate partner violence volunteered to participate in this study. The listening guide methodology was used to explore voices related to the women’s experiences. Two categories of voice emerged within all narratives: voices of apprehension and voices of freedom. This study explores litigation abuse through a counselling psychology research lens and contributes to counselling theory and practice by introducing the beyond the barrier model. Furthermore, increased knowledge will contribute to a greater awareness, improve therapeutic interventions, and generate community responses to support victims of litigation abuse.
Publication Year: 2021

Title: Beyond the beach body: How gym culture influences eating disorder recovery
Contributor: Danielle K Raymond (author), Janelle L Kwee (thesis supervisor), Marvin MacDonald (Co-supervisor), Faith Auton-Cuff (Co-supervisor), Andrea LaMarre (external examiner), Trinity Western University SGS (Degree granting institution)
Discipline/Stream: Counselling Psychology
Abstract: Eating disorders (ED) are serious illnesses. Those struggling with EDs often engage in gym exercise and may encounter or work with a variety of fitness professionals, placing both fitness professionals and gyms in a position to identify, intervene, and perhaps even help prevent EDs. Most fitness professionals in Canada do not receive formal education, training, or guidelines on how to identify EDs or on how to navigate issues that arise when faced with gym members who are struggling with these illnesses. This enhanced critical incident technique (ECIT) study interviewed 10 adult women in ED recovery to better understand which aspects of their gym experience helped their recovery and which aspects hindered their recovery. Participants supplied 115 incidents which were organized into one of 13 themed categories. The results of this study will be used to inform education, training, and guidelines on EDs in the fitness industry.
Publication Year: 2022

Title: Connections and tensions among siblings in the presence of autism spectrum disorder : parental perceptions of the impact of the family system on sibling relationships
Contributor: Kristy Dykshoorn (author), Marvin McDonald (thesis supervisor), Lily Dyson (second reader), Catherine Costigan (external examiner), Trinity Western University SGS (Degree granting institution)
Discipline/Stream: Counselling Psychology
Abstract: The connections and tensions between siblings may impact the development and well-being that children with ASD and their typically developing (TD) siblings experience. Parenting style and parental stress are two factors that impact a caregiver's ability to effectively foster positive relationships. Finally, the interplay between sibling relationships, caregiver characteristics, sibling involvement in intervention, and success in ASD intervention is of interest. Primary caregivers (N = 108) completed an online questionnaire and a hierarchical multiple regression was conducted. Results indicated: 1) Parenting stress explains 12% of the variance found in the warmth and closeness of sibling relationships; 2) Sibling involvement and success in ASD intervention cumulatively contributes to 13.5% of the variance found in the warmth and closeness of sibling relationships; and 3) warmth and closeness uniquely explains 7% of the variance of success in ASD intervention. Limitations, practical implications, and future research direction will be discussed.
Publication Year: 2013

Title: Critical factors influencing paternal involvement : fathers’ experiences of negotiating role responsibilities
Contributor: Marvin Bravo (author), Janelle Kwee (thesis supervisor), Marvin McDonald (second reader), Trinity Western University SGS (Degree granting institution), Richard Young (external examiner), Marvin McDonald (second reader)
Discipline/Stream: Counselling Psychology
Abstract: This qualitative study uses the Enhanced Critical Incident Technique (ECIT) to explore incidents fathers report to be helpful or hindering to their parental engagement. Eight fathers were interviewed with 206 reported incidents. From the 206 incidents, 132 were identified as helpful (HE); 47 as hindering (HI); and 27 as wish list (WL) items. All incidents were assigned to one of the following categories (a) positive and negative role models, (b) Mother-Father Relationship (d) Father's Religion/Spirituality (e) Responsibility (f) Attachment (g) Personal Decision (h) Characteristics of Children (I) Reflective Parenting (j) Societal Influence (k) Father's Characteristics, and (l) Extended Family Influence. Fathers also provided 29 recommendations for effective paternal engagement. Research findings indicate major themes of responsibility, engagement, and father-mother dyad as important factors determining paternal involvement. Additionally, participants frequently referred to a confluence of factors impacting their involvement, which they navigate within a myriad of social roles.
Publication Year: 2013

Title: Death Ends a Life, Not a Relationship: Family Bereavement, Relational Grieving, and Continuing Bonds
Contributor: B. Tammy Bartel (author), Derrick W. Klaassen (thesis supervisor), Janice W. Nadeau (second reader), Lauren J. Breen (external examiner), Trinity Western University SGS (Degree granting institution)
Discipline/Stream: Counselling Psychology
Abstract: This study explored the complex, multifaceted, relational dimensions of grieving in the family unit. Three bereaved families, who had lost a child participated in a family conversation and individual processing interviews. The guiding research question was, “how do bereaved families grieve together and continue a relationship with their deceased child?” Data were collected using the qualitative action-project method (QA-PM). This unique methodology offered a glimpse into how these families engaged with each other in their joint grieving actions. Data analysis was informed by action theory, family systems theory, and an instrumental case study approach. Family grieving processes were identified for each family and commonalities included turning towards their grief, sharing the pain, experiencing both joy and sorrow, participating in mourning events, ongoing rituals and remembrances, recognizing different individual grieving styles, and a shared, enduring connection to their deceased child that connected them to each other. The findings from this study demonstrate the importance of recognizing the interpersonal dimensions of the grieving process, and the family as a resource in this process.
Publication Year: 2016

Title: Educators' Perspectives of Youth-Led Implementation of the FRIENDS For Life Program: A Critical Incident Study
Contributor: Nathan T Bartz (author), Marvin McDonald (thesis supervisor), Robert Lees (thesis supervisor), Annette Vogt (external examiner), Trinity Western University SGS (Degree granting institution)
Discipline/Stream: Counselling Psychology
Abstract: This study examined the viability of a newly piloted implementation model of the FRIENDS for Life anxiety prevention program. In Chilliwack, British Columbia, a collaborative community initiative piloted an implementation model of the FRIENDS for Life program, which involved the inclusion of high school students as chief implementers of the FRIENDS program to local elementary school populations. The purpose of the study was to answer the question of what helps and hinders the implementation of FRIENDS when high school students are the implementers. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with five educators who were asked about their experiences with the FRIENDS program, what helpful and hindering incidents they observed, and to provide a wish list for future improvements. Results suggest that a youth-led FRIENDS implementation model is a viable model of program delivery and worth consideration for future development and refinement.
Publication Year: 2018

Title: The Embodied Experience of Meaning for Women Living with Chronic Pain
Contributor: Julia K Martin (author), Derrick Klaassen (thesis supervisor), Janelle Kwee (second reader), Diane LaChapelle (external examiner), Trinity Western University SGS (Degree granting institution)
Discipline/Stream: Counselling Psychology
Abstract: Chronic pain is a leading cause of disability worldwide and incurs exorbitant costs for healthcare systems annually, yet research is limited in this area. This research was developed to explore the embodied experience of meaning for women with chronic pain. The study was guided by the experiences of ten women living with chronic pain and the feminist and relationship-centered methodology of the Listening Guide was used to uncover their unique voices in harmony and dissonance. Data analysis pointed to two groups of voices: voices of suffering (i.e., voices of oppression, unknown, loss, self-criticism, disconnection from others, and disconnection from self), and voices of strength (i.e., voices of endurance, growth, tenacity, connection to others, connection to self, and “the more”). Overall, the women in this research are closely connected to their experience of meaning and are constantly navigating what makes life worthwhile to them even while chronic pain is present.
Publication Year: 2021

Title: Embodiment of spirituality and sexuality : women’s lived experience of resilience to sexual shame
Contributor: Kelsey Dawn Schmidt Siemens (author), Janelle Kwee (thesis supervisor), Derrick Klaassen (second reader), Stephanie Martin (external examiner), Trinity Western University SGS (Degree granting institution)
Discipline/Stream: Counselling Psychology
Abstract: Due to the prevalence of sexual shame among Christian women, this study was designed to better understand the lived experiences of sexual shame resilience and embodiment. Five young, married women were selected for inclusion based on their immersion in Christian culture during adolescence and for their experiences of working through sexual shame. In order to understand the meaning of these women’s experiences, a hermeneutic phenomenological method was employed. Through participant’s narratives, four categories of themes emerged (religious messaging around sexuality, experiences of sexual shame, healing experiences, and experiences of embodied sexuality). When participants were able to work through their sexual shame, they were able to embrace and find freedom in their sexuality. This study’s findings are consistent with Brown’s (2006) Shame Resilience Theory. The clinical implications of these findings are discussed in terms of the need to provide appropriate support for women struggling with sexual shame.
Publication Year: 2015

Title: Going Through A 24-Hour Box: How Women’s Experiences of Childbirth Shape Their Embodied Sense of Self
Contributor: Neeta Sai (author), Dr. Janelle Kwee (thesis supervisor), Dr. Mihaela Launeanu (second reader), Dr. Keren Epstein-Gilboa (external examiner), Trinity Western University SGS (Degree granting institution)
Discipline/Stream: Counselling Psychology
Abstract: Women’s experiences of childbirth are understood primarily in terms of role change and physical or cognitive impacts. This study adopted a holistic, embodied perspective to explore how women’s childbirth experiences shape their embodied sense of self. Six women’s childbirth experiences were analysed using Gilligan’s (1982) Listening Guide method, adapted by integrating Längle’s (1993) Existential Analysis framework of the Four Fundamental Motivations. The analysis uncovered women’s voices of fulfillment and suffering as dynamic interplay suggesting that positive birth experience led to positive embodied sense of self while negative birth experience (e.g., disrupted embodiment) led to negative sense of self. These findings indicate that childbirth and motherhood can empower women to grow and be strong even in spite of possible traumatic or negative birth experience. This study has important implications for promoting a holistic understanding of the role of women’s subjective experiences of childbirth in shaping their embodied sense of self.
Publication Year: 2018

Title: Grieving in Community: Accompanying Bereaved Parents
Contributor: Marnie C Venema (author), Derrick W Klaassen (thesis supervisor), Janelle L Kwee (second reader), Richard A Young (external examiner), Trinity Western University SGS (Degree granting institution)
Discipline/Stream: Counselling Psychology
Abstract: This study explored relational grieving in community through examining how community members grieve with bereaved parents after the death of a child. Three bereaved parent couples and their community members were interviewed together using the qualitative action-project method (QA-PM) to examine their shared grieving actions. Data was analyzed through top-down and bottom-up processes to understand the shared intentions of their grieving actions together. The findings of this research elicited thick descriptions of relational grieving at a community level. Four main assertions of how communities grieve with bereaved parents emerged including: (a) selflessly offering emotional and practical support, (b) engaging in and honouring vulnerability, (c) holding the complexity of grieving, and (d) fostering remembrance of the deceased child together. The novel descriptions of relational grieving in community contributed to the growing area of relational bereavement research. The theoretical, empirical, and clinical implications of this study were discussed.
Publication Year: 2019

Title: Grieving Together: An Ethnography of Relational Grief in Community
Contributor: Benjamin J Bentum (author), Derrick W Klaassen (thesis supervisor), Janelle Kwee (second reader), Terry Lynn Gall (external examiner), Trinity Western University SGS (Degree granting institution)
Discipline/Stream: Counselling Psychology
Abstract: In this study community relational grief was researched by addressing how community members reciprocally interacted during bereavement. A focussed ethnography was used to address the research question which was, how does a religious community grieve the deaths of members together? Data analysis used the constant comparative method and was presented back to the community in a performance ethnography for confirmation and further data collection. The result was a contextually situated description of how this community grieved the deaths of community members. The four main themes were that community members: (a) shared a desire to care for the bereaved, (b) assessed relational proximity to the bereaved and the deceased to inform action according to role expectations, (c) grieved together, being impacted and impacting each other reciprocally, and (d) grieved, and interacted, according to their own unique characteristics and experiences. Implications for bereavement theory, research and practice were discussed.
Publication Year: 2017

Title: HOW THE HEALER BECOMES: EXPERIENCED FEMALE PSYCHOTHERAPISTS’ DEVELOPMENT OF VOICE
Contributor: Hannah L. Raine (author), Janelle Kwee (thesis supervisor), Hillary L. McBride (second reader), Judith V. Jordan (external examiner), Trinity Western University SGS (Degree granting institution)
Discipline/Stream: Counselling Psychology
Abstract: Research indicates that therapists’ congruent presence impacts therapeutic alliance and outcomes, yet there remains a need for relational feminist understandings of therapist development of congruence. This study, grounded in a constructivist paradigm, seeks to further our understanding of this phenomenon utilizing the listening guide. Nine female psychotherapists participated in this study to answer the following research question, How do experienced female therapists experience their development of voice? Participants spoke in voices of connection, resistance, and disconnection. Three additional voices were identified regarding participants’ views of their professional role. Five participants joined in a follow-up focus group. Being embodied served as a primary means through which all five participants connected to their voice as therapists. Voices of disconnection facilitated growth when participants connected with themselves relationally. Relationships that facilitate therapist development should be characterized by a relational openness to all voices within the developing therapist, which was associated with supervisors’ embodied presence.
Publication Year: 2021

Title: Integrating Attachment Processes in an Adopted Child with Lifespan Integration Therapy: A Hermeneutic Single Case Efficacy Design
Contributor: Carlee E Lewis (author), Janelle L Kwee (thesis supervisor), Marvin J McDonald (second reader), Joanne Crandall (external examiner), Trinity Western University SGS (Degree granting institution)
Discipline/Stream: Counselling Psychology
Abstract: In this study, the efficacy of Lifespan Integration therapy (LI) for addressing attachment processes with adopted children in middle childhood was investigated. A Hermeneutic Single Case Efficacy Design (Elliott, 2002, 2015) was used to gather quantitative and qualitative data from an adoptive parent-child dyad who were experiencing LI for the first time. A 12-year-old male received bi-weekly LI therapy sessions, and data was collected throughout the therapy process. The adoptive mother was used as a resource in facilitating a more secure attachment. Client change and the contribution of LI to client change were adjudicated by experts who concluded that change occurred and was due to LI. Changes in internal attachment processes and the attachment bond between the parent and child of this dyad were observed. This case provides evidence that attachment disruptions can be repaired in middle childhood and that attachment processes can be targets in interventions beyond early childhood.
Publication Year: 2017

Title: Integrating Ego Identity in an Adult Third Culture Kid with Lifespan Integration Therapy: A Reflexive Hermeneutic Single Case Efficacy Design
Contributor: Sharon M Macfarlane (author), Janelle Kwee (thesis supervisor), Marvin McDonald (second reader), Jose Domene (external examiner), Trinity Western University SGS (Degree granting institution)
Discipline/Stream: Counselling Psychology
Abstract: Research findings support the presence of psycho-social challenges for third culture kids (TCKs) given their characteristic lifestyle. Structured as a self-experimentation Hermeneutic Single-Case Efficacy Design (auto-HSCED), I investigated the use of Lifespan Integration (LI) therapy in addressing ego identity fragmentation as conceptualized through an Eriksonian and neo-Eriksonian model. This project sought to answer: Can LI be efficacious in addressing ego identity fragmentation in an adult TCK? Initial outcomes did not meet HSCED standards for significance, however, further investigation revealed evidence of decontextualization and reductionist therapy formulations and analysis processes. These were remediated through intersectional analysis with the use of metasynthetic principles which enabled a re-interpretation of results within a broader intersectional framework. The subsequent proposed refinement of study conclusions argued that outcomes met the threshold for significance and for demonstrating LI efficacy in producing client ego identity change. This project also provided a first-hand account of my therapeutic journey.
Publication Year: 2019

Title: Intensive family therapy with at-risk youth : a preliminary critical incident study
Contributor: Giselle Tranquilla (author), Robert Lees (thesis supervisor), Marvin McDonald (second reader), Faith Auton-Cuff (external examiner), Trinity Western University SGS (Degree granting institution)
Discipline/Stream: Counselling Psychology
Abstract: Multisystemic Therapy (MST) has been established as an effective treatment approach to working with at-risk youth. The Intensive Family Therapy Project followed the basic tenets of MST and adapted them to a rural community setting in British Columbia. The Project was designed to work with young offenders and their families in addressing delinquent behavior from a holistic perspective. This study used the Critical Incident Technique to examine what clients found helpful and unhelpful about the treatment program. Nine interviews were conducted involving six families. Data from the interviews was classified into seven categories, 26 subcategories. Results indicate participants found involvement in the project was more helpful than hindering, as indicated by the higher rate of positive incidents. Clients' voices identified Intensive Family Therapy as a valuable treatment approach and results indicate the potential for adapted forms of MST to be applicable, relevant and effective in working with these families.
Publication Year: 2013

Title: Intergenerational voices : exploring body image transmission in the mother-daughter dyad
Contributor: Hillary Lianna Sommers McBride (author), Janelle Kwee (thesis supervisor), Marvin McDonald (second reader), Marla Buchanan (external examiner), Trinity Western University SGS (Degree granting institution)
Discipline/Stream: Counselling Psychology
Abstract: Due to the prevalence of body-dissatisfaction and disordered eating among North American women, this study was designed to better understand the development of young women’s healthy body image, and how their mothers may have contributed to their embodiment. Five motherdaughter dyads were selected for inclusion based on the young adult daughter’s healthy body image. In order to best understand the participants, and empower them through the telling of their own stories, the qualitative feminist method the Listening guide was employed. Through participants’ narratives, voices were identified which spoke of the body (voices of idealized femininity, silencing, functionality, acceptance, embodiment, and resistance) and of relationship (voices of comparison, differentiation, and connection). In these voices, the mother participants spoke about their mothers, themselves and their daughters, while the daughter participants spoke about their mothers, themselves and the daughters they had or imagined they may one day have. The daughters spoke most in the voices of embodiment and resistance, demonstrating how they had come to love their bodies and resist dominant cultural narratives. Mothers were found to have taught their daughters about health and stewardship of the body. The mothers were able to do this in spite of their own body-dissatisfaction. Through relational safety and connection mothers non-judgmentally supported their daughters in non-appearance related domains, while also celebrating their daughter’s beauty.
Publication Year: 2014

Title: Intergenerational Voices of Adoption
Contributor: Vanessa Bork (author), Janelle Kwee (thesis supervisor), Krista Socholotiuk (second reader), Hubert Van Puyenbroeck (external examiner), Trinity Western University SGS (Degree granting institution)
Discipline/Stream: Counselling Psychology
Abstract: Little is known about adoptees experiences through adulthood. Individuals sometimes make sense of their heritage, and come to understand and express themselves in their unique voices, through storytelling. Five mother-child(ren) dyads and triads participated. The mothers had been adopted in infancy and raised by an adoptive family. Their biological child(ren) had grown up aware their mother was an adoptee. The feminist relational method of the listening guide (Gilligan, Spencer, Weinberg, & Bertsch, 2003) was employed to hear the adoption stories passed from one generation to the next. Parent and adult child(ren) were interviewed together to witness the relational dynamics of their story. Interviews were analyzed for the different voices. The findings suggest parents passed down stories of positive adoption experiences through voices that were both embracing of adoption and sometimes cautious. The children spoke from voices of embrace and curiosity. Both generations stated the meaningfulness of co-constructing family adoption narratives.
Publication Year: 2019

Title: A journey with self-compassion : exploring self-compassion within the context of the Christian faith
Contributor: Genevieve Kalnins (author), Derrick Klaassen (thesis supervisor), Janelle Kwee (second reader), Terry L. Gall (external examiner), Trinity Western University SGS (Degree granting institution)
Discipline/Stream: Counselling Psychology
Abstract: Despite the spiritual roots of self-compassion, the impact of spirituality on the development of self-compassion has not been widely explored. The listening guide method and autoethnography were combined to explore the lived experience of self-compassion from a Christian faith perspective. The participant co-researchers’ narratives revealed three categories of voices. The voices of shame and criticism included oppression, internalized oppression, and judgment. These voices appeared as the participants discussed what makes self-compassion difficult. The voices of love and acceptance included connection, unity, openness, and warmth. Together, these voices were used as participants discussed their experiences of self-compassion. Finally, the voices of resistance included the voices of struggle and advocacy. These voices appeared to facilitate the development of self-compassion. This study offers a deeper understanding of the natural development of self-compassion and of how the Christian faith may facilitate or hinder self-compassion. Implications for counsellors, pastors, and future research are discussed.
Publication Year: 2015