Thesis (Ph.D.--Social Work))--Victoria University of Wellington, 2001.

This thesis explores the concept of vicarious traumatisation in sexual abuse counsellors, and the theoretical framework of constructivist self-development theory (as presented by McCann and Pearlman, 1990). In addition the thesis examines the relationships between vicarious traumatisation and related concepts and the theoretical frameworks that sexual abuse counsellors see as useful in their work. The research used qualitative methods including focus groups and interviews with counsellors and interviews with those who had significant personal relationships with the counsellors. The research suggests there are ways social workers and therapists can develop awareness of vicarious traumatisation on multiple levels, and shows the importance of workers choosing from a wide range of theoretical approaches, and integrating these into their practice. These approaches provide a way for workers to connect with themselves and thus foster effective connections with clients, colleagues and those with whom they have personal relationships. Maintaining relationships is a primary theme of the research: doing so protects workers from a fragmenting sense of disjuncture, which is a key experience of sexual abuse counselling.

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