Psychological well-being in therapists who are members of the UK Complex Trauma Institute
- Dzmitry Karpuk
- Dec 16, 2025
- 1 min read
Updated: Jan 15
Article type: Research Article
Authors: Alison Kelly-Delaney¹; Dzmitry Karpuk²; Jonathan Egan³
Affiliations: ¹Independent Clinical Practice, United Kingdom; ²Complex Trauma Institute, United Kingdom; ³Independent Researcher, Ireland
Corresponding Author: Alison Kelly-Delaney, alisonekd@hotmail.com
Published: 15 December 2025
Abstract
Therapists working within the role of professional caregiving for survivors of trauma can experience an impact on their health and well-being. The emotionally demanding nature of the role can lead to implications for professional quality of life and the manifestation of body-centred countertransference (BCT). These implications may be exacerbated when the therapist has personal experiences of childhood trauma and an insecure attachment style. The aim of the present study was to examine the relationship between childhood trauma and therapist outcomes of burnout and BCT. A cross-sectional survey of 192 trauma therapists was carried out online, wherein participants completed a number of self-report measures. Hierarchical regression analyses were conducted. Results indicated that psychological distress and insecure attachment styles predicted trauma therapists’ reported scores of burnout, as measured by the Professional Quality of Life Questionnaire. BCT was significantly predicted by anxiety, psychoform and somatoform dissociation, and childhood emotional abuse. The study findings and clinical implications are discussed, and suggestions for future research are indicated.
Keywords: body-centred countertransference; attachment; childhood trauma; burnout
© 2025 The Author(s).
Published by the Complex Trauma Institute under the Creative Commons
Attribution–NonCommercial–NoDerivatives 4.0 International Licence (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0)
Published in: Perspectives on Complex Trauma
Volume 6, Issue 1 (2025)
ISSN 2635-0807
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