Abstract

This study contributes to an understanding of the impact of the spirituality of therapists who actively integrate spirituality into their clinical practice. The study consisted of 7 female and 5 male licensed psychotherapists from Montana, Minnesota, Texas, and California, ranging in age from 49-75 years, with more than 15 years of clinical experience. Ethnic diversity included one African American, one Native American, and one Japanese American. Participants were asked to explore their lived-experience of psychospiritual integration rather than how they integrated spirituality in a therapeutic setting. None of the participants had been formally trained to include spiritual and religious components in a clinical setting. The goal of this study was to obtain a deep and robust description of PSI through a phenomenologically informed analysis of data from a single semi-structured interview with each participant. The resulting analysis conceptualized the PSI phenomenon as having 4 core themes: Universality and Transparency-the process by which spiritual events become integrated into one's life and by which mental-egoic structures evolve towards the transegoic and universal; Spirituality is the Basis of Everything---the teleological basis on which PSI is founded; Receptivity to That Which is Greater Than the Self---the method of engagement with the sacred and the role of the participants in the PSI phenomenon, including acts of surrender and openness; and Mystery and the Tolerance for the Unknown---the motivation behind PSI and its perpetuation. The sense of mystery is perceived as the basis of curiosity, creativity, joy, awe, wonder, grief, and loss. Tolerance for the unknown determines therapeutic interventions and the unfolding therapeutic process. The findings of this study contribute to the body of research on spirituality and psychotherapy assisting therapists to respond ethically and competently to the diverse spiritual needs of their clients