The experiences of those providing pastoral care in the Christian church community: Supporting people with their mental health and interacting with health professionals.

Abstract

This thesis comprises a literature review and a research report. The review provides a critical evaluation and summary of the qualitative literature pertaining to religious and spiritual issues in psychotherapy and counselling. Therapist and client perspectives are included. The findings are summarised thematically and the implications for research and practice are outlined.

The research study utilised Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis to explore the experiences of eight Christian clergy in providing pastoral care to support people with their mental health. It also explored their experiences interacting with statutory services in order to do this. Data were gathered using semi-structured interviews. Both lay and ordained clergy representing a variety of Christian denominations were included in the sample. The results are considered in relation to previous research and implications for research and practice outlined.