Experiences of Visiting a Medium After the Death of a Loved One

An IPA Study By: Danielle Fitzhenry { Supervised by: Dr. Lois de Cruz Research Question

 Aims/Focus: 1. To understand the  What are the experience of visiting a medium in order to experiences of communicate with a individuals who have deceased loved one. attempted to make 2. To evaluate the impact this contact with a deceased experience on the grieving loved one through the process. use of a medium? 3. To find out what prompted the individual to seek help from a medium 4. To look at the similarities and differences between the medium/client relationship and the therapeutic relationship Influences

 Interest in the grieving process  Interest in the paranormal and spiritual  ‘Long Island Medium’ Theresa Caputpo Where does counselling come in?

 Continuing Bonds- “Attachments to the deceased that are maintained rather than relinquished.” (Worden, 2009, p. 3)  “Mediums perceived their work as a type of alternate therapy similar to counselling”(Osborne & Bacon, 2015, p. 294) Literature

 “ The client is concerned, not with her own feelings with which counsellors work, or her spiritual state with which clergy work, but with the deceased, and that is why she went to a medium. “ (Walter, 2008, p. 48)  Evenden et al. (2013) suggests that the medium offers a “direct link” to the deceased that a counsellor cannot, and that this link is a “positive tool” used to aid the client in developing healthy grieving strategies. (Evenden, Copper, & Mitchell, 2013)  “ Traditional grief counselling approaches, with a focus on the client’s acceptance of separation and integration of loss, may be ineffective. Conversely, therapeutic approaches that incorporate a continuing bonds perspective exhibit positive results for the bereaved.” (Beischel, Mosher & Boccuzzi, 2015, 189) Methodology & Philosophy

 My intended  Hermeneutic methodology for this  Phenomenological project is qualitative.  My research will be  A qualitative method received and analysed will allow for a data set under these rich in detail. philosophical assumptions. Data Collection & Analysis

 Participants will be individuals over the age of eighteen who have visited a medium in relation to the death of a  Data will be analysed loved one. using interpretive phenomenological  For this project the analysis as outlined by sample will be 3 to 5 participants who are self Smith, Flowers & nominated. Larken (2009).  I plan to gather data using semi-structured interviews. Reflexivity

 A bracketing interview before the start of the research which will be recorded.  Visit to a medium to receive a reading which will be recorded.  Regular reflective journal keeping throughout the research process. A Measure of Quality

 Contextualisation  Theoretical triangulation  Consideration of  Data triangulation opposing data Ethical Considerations

 This project will be carried out within the BACP ethical framework (2004) as laid out by Tim Bond in Ethical guidelines for researching counselling and psychotherapy, and the BACP ethical framework (2015).  Anonymity: Pseudonyms will be provided for the participant and deceased loved one. Any identifying information such as locations, will be deleted from the transcript.  Data Protection: Raw data will be stored on an encrypted usb drive and printed transcripts used for analysis will be anonymised, marked confidential and stored in a locked box. Raw data will be seen only by the researcher and the supervisor. All raw data will be destroyed after the final mark is given for the project.  Consent: Participants will receive full disclosure about the project through the use of an information sheet which will be provided before their arrival at the interview. Signed consent forms will be used to provide proof of informed consent. Participants have the right to withdraw from the study until August 1, 2016.  Duty of Care: Participants will receive a note of thanks containing the contact information for the researcher, supervisor and three to four charity organizations who offer free counselling and listening services. Creative Synthesis

 A way of giving back  Participant input and consent  By placing the research in a creative context it re-humanizes the research process. References

 Beischel, J., Mosher, C. & Boccuzzi, M. (2015) Assisted after death communication during readings with psychic mediums: a continuing bonds perspective. Omega: an international journal for the study of dying, death, bereavement, suicide, and other lethal behaviours, 70(2), pp. 169-194.  Bond, T. (2004) Ethical guidelines for researching counseling and psychotherapy. Rugby: British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy.  Evenden, R., Cooper, C. & Mitchell, G. (2013) A counseling approach to mediumship: adaptive outcomes of grief following an exceptional experience. Journal of Exceptional Experiences and Psychology, 1(2) pp. 12-19.  Franchi, J. (2014) n.d. Retrieved December 2, 2015 from longislandpress.com.  Osborne, G. & Bacon, A. (2015) The working life of a medium: a qualitative examination of mediumship as a support service for the bereaved. Metal Health, Religion & Culture 18(4), pp.286-298.  Smith, J., Flowers, P., & Larkin, M. (2009) Interpretative phenomenological analysis: theory, method and research. London: Sage publishing Ltd.  TLC. (2014, Aug 28th) Is He Ok? Long Island Medium [video file] From: Douglas, W. (2011- Present) Long Island Medium [TV Series]. New York: Magilla Entertainment. Retrieved November 28, 2015, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qrtbksu4E44  Walker, T. (2013) n.d. Retrieved December 2, 2015 from Binarytatoo.com.  Walter, T. (2008) Mourners and Mediums. Bereavement Care, 27(3), pp. 47-50.  Worden, J. (2009) Grief counselling and grief therapy. 4th ed. New York: Springer Publishing Company.