Psychology's role in surf therapy and the use of non-traditional spaces and activities by clinical psychologists
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Date
2026-05-12
Authors
Fawsitt, Feargus
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Publisher
University College Cork
Published Version
Abstract
Clinical psychology is primarily practiced in clinic settings, but clinical psychologists are often required to leave the clinic room to provide therapeutic interventions. When they do, areas of research around conducting therapy in nature, assertive outreach, and psychologically supported activities such as surf therapy may be able to provide guidance. Incorporating knowledge from clinical psychology into such interventions has the potential to enhance client outcomes. In order to explore the concept of psychologically informed, non-clinic-based interventions, this thesis focuses on two areas, study one looks at what can clinical psychology contribute to surf therapy interventions and study two asks what are the experiences and perspectives of clinical psychologists when they leave the clinic room to practice. Study One is a scoping review of surf therapy interventions incorporating psychologically informed components. The results of the review suggest that incorporating psychological theory is potentially beneficial but a theory of change linking them to outcomes is lacking. The included studies also provided little detail on the theory informing as well as the practicalities of these elements. Future research would benefit from more detailed reporting of intervention methodology to facilitate replication and inform clinician practice. Study Two involved conducting semi-structured interviews with clinical psychologists in Ireland to garner their perspectives and experiences of working outside of clinic rooms. Seventeen clinical psychologists took part, and the data was analysed using reflexive thematic analysis. Four main themes emerged with several subthemes. The four themes were: “What!?, leave the sanctity of my clinic space?” Traditional spaces as safe, “We’ve KPIs to hit” Organisational pressure, Enhancing therapy and Wherever you are, you’re still a psychologist. Each theme provides insight into the clinician identified barriers and facilitators to practicing outside of the clinic space, as well as the potential benefits and professional issues involved. These findings demonstrate how clinical psychology can be taken beyond clinic rooms and be used to reach a wide range of clients who may struggle with traditional clinic-based talk therapies.
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Keywords
Psychology , Surf therapy , Walking therapy , Assertive outreach , Clinical psychology
Citation
Fawsitt, F. 2026. Psychology's role in surf therapy and the use of non-traditional spaces and activities by clinical psychologists. DClinPsych Thesis, University College Cork.