TPC-Journal-V4-Issue4

The Professional Counselor \Volume 4, Issue 4 405 2013). For the purposes of this article, rural is defined according to the Office of Management and Budget geographic isolation definition, with rural counties constituting those with fewer than 50,000 people as well as counties not economically tied to densely populated counties. Bushy and Carty (1994) authored one of two articles specifically devoted to rural mental health counseling. The authors provided a solid foundation of rural mental health considerations, outlining the availability, accessibility and acceptability of services. The authors also described rural culture and its intersection with mental health, stating that utilization patterns are typically characterized by informal support systems versus social services. When rural residents do seek help, it is often because of crisis with higher associated incidents of depression, alcohol abuse, domestic violence, and child abuse and neglect. Erickson (2001) defined the multiple relationships inherent in rural counseling. She explored various problems with regard to dual relationships in rural settings, as well as an ethical decision-making model for use in such instances. Through a case study, Erickson applied her decision-making model and promoted adherence to ethical guidelines in spite of multiple relationship occurrence. The Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Educational Programs (CACREP) provides accreditation standards for licensed professional counselors. With CACREP as the industry hallmark for promoting competence through properly trained counselors, practitioners and leaders in the mental health field must take note of the lack of research and training for rural mental health counselors. The purpose of this qualitative phenomenological study was to identify the counseling experiences of licensed professional counselors working in rural settings in the Midwest region of the United States. From a critical theory perspective, this study asked the global question, “What is the experience of rural mental health counselors?” Three subquestions included the following: (a) How does the experience of working in a rural setting impact the counselor’s roles? (b) What are the contextual factors impacting counseling supervision in rural areas? and (c) What is the essence of the professional development of supervisors and supervisees providing counseling services in rural areas? Method Participants Participants were recruited via network selection or “snowballing” (Creswell, 2007), in which participants and other field contacts make referrals for participation. Participants were four women who met the following research criteria: They were licensed professional counselors (LPC) currently working in the counseling field in a rural setting as defined by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (2013). Participants lived in the Midwest region of the United States at the time of the interviews, recruited from Nebraska and South Dakota. All four women were Caucasian; three were in their mid-30s and one was in her mid-50s. Each participant’s amount of experience at her current work setting fell between 2 months and 10 years. Two participants had additional credentials in either art or equine-assisted therapy (see Table 1 for a demographic summarization of participants). Procedure The author and other doctoral students participating in a graduate-level qualitative research course developed 13 interview questions. Interviews were based on research questions and semistructured, allowing for both interviewees and the interviewer to spontaneously elaborate and provide further questions and information when necessary. The author conducted the interviews face-to-face with three participants; she conducted the fourth interview over the phone. The author used two digital recorders to audiotape all four interviews, which