Examination of therapists' handling of sexuality-related issues by using the vignette technique

The aim of the current thesis is to examine therapists' comfort levels in sexuality- related topics and the ways in which they address these topics through vignettes related to sexual dysfunction and sexual satisfaction. In addition, this study aimed to understand perceived competence and familial sex-positive and sex-negative attitudes in studying these issues. A qualitative study was conducted for this purpose. Fourteen therapists who graduated from psychology undergraduate and clinical psychology graduate programs and have been actively practicing psychotherapy for at least one and at most ten years participated in the study. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with the participants and the data obtained were analyzed using template analysis. As a result of the analysis, the therapists' comments were grouped under two overarching themes. These were named as (1) comfort and (2) handling styles. The first meta-theme, comfort, was defined as client characteristics, characteristics of the relationship between client and therapist, and therapist characteristics. The second meta-theme, handling styles, consisted of in the ekol filter and the tendency to pathologize or not pathologize. These dimensions were discussed within the framework of the relevant literature; the contributions and limitations and suggestions for future research were included.