Sexually Abused Child Sex Offenders' Experiences of EMDR
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Sexually Abused Child Sex Offenders' Experiences of Eye-Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing: An Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis
IRAS ID
271803
Contact name
Lisa Wright
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Research and Development Department Mersey Care NHS Foundation Trust
Duration of Study in the UK
0 years, 9 months, 25 days
Research summary
The present study aims to explore the experiences of sexually abused child sex offenders’ experiences of completing Eye Movement Desensitisation and Reprocessing (EMDR) therapy and provide rich, in-depth insight that can be used to inform clinical practice when working with previously abused child sex offenders. EMDR therapy is an interactive psychological therapy used to treat trauma and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) using the patient’s eye movements (Shapiro, 1995). The research will explore how sexually abused child sex offenders make sense of their experiences of completing EMDR therapy on their own childhood sexual abuse memories.
The researcher will explore the research question with the belief that knowledge and understanding are developed by considering how we make sense of our own lived experiences. Therefore, the proposed study is a qualitative research design. As the research question for this study is experiential, data collection will involve semi-structured interviews. Interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA) will then be conducted to explore narratives expressed by participants and to better understand their personal experiences of receiving EMDR. The sample will consist of 4-10 male clients who have been convicted of sexual offences against children, have been sexually abused themselves, and have completed EMDR therapy from Mersey Forensic Psychology Service.REC name
North West - Greater Manchester West Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
20/NW/0010
Date of REC Opinion
20 Apr 2020
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion