The Use of Intuition In Psychotherapy: A Phenomenological Inquiry

Abstract

The purpose of this qualitative study was to gain insight into the phenomenon of clinical intuition from the perspective of two therapists. It was driven by the following research question: How do therapists experience their use of intuition in the context of psychotherapy? The study adopted a hermeneutic phenomenological orientation and was structured using a revised version of Pietkiewicz and Smith's (2014) Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis. To achieve its aims, semi-structured interviews were conducted with two experienced psychotherapists, capturing their lived experiences of their use of intuition in a psychotherapeutic context. The resulting themes and subthemes from the analysis were compiled and reported as individual narrative accounts, structured around four areas of inquiry: (a) relevant background information, (b) understandings of intuition and its origins, (c) its use in clinical practice and perceived outcomes, and (d) its educational and professional development. The two accounts showed both overlap and divergence, while each account remained internally consistent across these four areas of inquiry. A broader interpretive, literary, and philosophical discussion was interwoven into the presentation of the findings, providing deeper insights within the immediate context. These findings reaffirm the context-dependent and idiosyncratic nature of clinical intuition and may inform therapists' reflective engagement with their own intuitive capacity, while also contributing to its professional development and stimulating broader discourse on its safe and effective use.