An Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis on the Self-Therapy Experience of REBT Professional Therapists

The purpose of this study is to explore and elucidate the experiences of self-therapy of REBT professional therapists. Through this study, the self-treatment process of REBT counseling experts can be observed in detail and vividly, and its meaning can be considered. Additionally, the specific understanding of therapeutic factors discovered by research participants during the exploration of self-therapy experiences could be utilized as crucial concepts in the training of REBT professional therapists and in the application of REBT therapy. The data of this study collected through direct in-depth interviews were analyzed according to the Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) procedure proposed by J. A. Smith. In this study, a double interpretation process and a hermeneutical circulation process were adopted to explore how REBT professional therapists apply REBT to their problems and understand the meaning of such experiences in the counseling field, and add the meaning of the researcher to this. The results of the study on the self-therapeutic experience of REBT counselors were derived under the themes of “‘The practical application of self-therapy based on REBT principles,” “‘I am changing and becoming more mature,” and “Growing as an REBT professional therapist based on personal experiences with self-therapy.” Based on the results derived from this study, the therapeutic factors of REBT acquired through experience were discussed and suggestions were provided.