The recently published Italian study suggesting women can only have clitoral, rather than vaginal, orgasms raises important questions about the medicalisation of female sexuality and sexual dysfunction. Many women would be happy to have an orgasm any old way, as University of Western Sydney researcher Jane Ussher points out, especially those who experience sexual difficulties. It's difficult to write about the topic of female sexuality without using negative language such as "female sexual dysfunction" or "failure" to orgasm. Much of what has been written about the female orgasm is based on phallocentric assumptions, such as that women "should" have orgasms through penetrative sexual intercourse with men. And if they don't achieve orgasm, there is something wrong with them. Many women have absorbed these culturally acceptable views and the ongoing medicalisation of female sexuality continually reinforces them.

Many social workers are expected to work with individuals and families who are dealing with life-limiting illnesses, yet during their university education they may not have been exposed to materials that address issues related to death and dying. The Social Work Department of University of New England in Armidale, Australia designed and delivered a palliative care teaching and learning session using publicly funded online materials. Themes emerging from questionnaire and focus group data analysis included appreciation for the importance and emotional demands of the materials, sensitivity and flexibility among educators who ideally have work experience in the field, expanding presence of social work philosophy in curriculum materials and exploring spirituality, and examining culture-informed practice in greater depth. Among the implications is the need for concerted efforts to teach about death and dying using high quality accessible materials, while ensuring social work values and approaches are reflected in the content.

Objective: Most rural and remote regions face chronic health workforce shortages. Strategies designed to redress this problem include Fly-In Fly-Out (FIFO) and Drive-In Drive-Out (DIDO) health services. The aim of this paper is to examine the opportunities and challenges involved in these forms of service delivery. Design: Detailed review of recent literature relating to FIFO and DIDO services in rural & remote Australia. Results: FIFO and DIDO have obvious short-term benefits for rural Australians seeking health care services in terms of increasing equity and accessibility to services and reducing the need to travel long distances. However, there are significant long-term disadvantages such as the potential for burnout among FIFO and DIDO health professionals who travel long distances and work long hours, often without adequate peer support or supervision. A further disadvantage, particularly in the use of visiting medical practitioners to provide generalist services, is the lack of development of a sufficiently well-resourced local primary health care system in small rural communities.Conclusions: Given the potential negative consequences for both health professionals and rural Australians, this paper cautions against the increasing use of FIFO and DIDO services, without the concurrent development of well-resourced, funded and staffed primary health care services in rural and remote communities.

One of PACJA's stated aims is to stimulate research in this field, by providing an online journal in which the findings of effectiveness and other research studies can be published. In this online journal, we intend to publish articles that contribute to the evidence base of psychotherapy and counselling in the form of theoretical essays, experiential reports, and empirical studies featuring quantitative, qualitative, or mixed-method approaches. PACJA encourages practitioners, researchers, students and educators (even if you have never published before) to submit articles for publication. The process is intended to be a supportive in order to mentor aspiring authors to contribute to the dissemination of knowledge in the counselling and psychotherapy field. The first edition lives up to PACJA's aims, with six differing articles of merit, a commentary relating theory to practice, and two book reviews.

This qualitative study explored the factors that help counsellors exposed to indirect trauma thrive personally and professionally, and sustain their engagement in trauma counselling work. The existing literature details the challenges of indirect trauma exposure in trauma work. However, the ways in which counsellors are able to derive rewards and maintain their engagement in trauma counselling work are less well recognised. The study used a grounded theory approach, with semistructured interviews conducted with 18 therapists. The study found four main interrelating themes: thriving in trauma work; navigating the empathic journey; empathic stamina and engaging in self-reflexivity; and sustaining interest and commitment. Important factors included attending to both the adverse and rewarding aspects of trauma work, having access to appropriate support structures, and incorporating variability and diversity in the work. This study extends the current understanding of the processes, practices, and strategies that promote the rewarding and sustaining aspects of trauma counselling work.

Research related to psychotherapy conducted in Australia and the United States indicates that Southeast Asians are not as receptive to mental health services as their Caucasian counterparts. Prior research has explored underlying factors that result in Asian clients’ reluctance to seek therapy as a viable option to ameliorate their psychological issues. Little is understood regarding whether traditional models of therapy are well suited for Vietnamese clients. In this study, 27 Vietnamese participants over the age of 18 were recruited from Australia and the United States. Using narrative inquiry methodology, participants were invited to discuss Vietnamese attitudes towards psychological distress, how cultural values affect their attitudes towards psychotherapy and its relevance for addressing their personal concerns and psychological problems. Findings from the study related to three main themes: the collectivist perspective of Vietnamese immigrants; the cultural rift between those that maintain traditional values and those that have assimilated to a Western, more individualist perspective; and Vietnamese ideas about psychotherapy. The importance of understanding the collectivistic culture of Vietnamese clients in the context of mental health services is discussed in detail. The mismatch between traditional, individualistic therapy concepts and clients who remain collectively oriented, despite exterior adaptations to Western culture, needs to be recognized. This research challenges the field of psychotherapy to re-examine whether Western therapy adequately fulfills the needs of Vietnamese clients and highlights the importance of collectivist considerations, hierarchical relationships, communications styles, and the cultural rift. Recommendations are made for adapting psychotherapy to better suit Vietnamese clients.

The analysis stage of a narrative inquiry project presents particular challenges. Finding the most suitable method of data analysis and presentation of the findings takes time and effort. It is important to make the most use of the data collected and to represent participants' narratives in a coherent and meaningful way. This paper reviews some of the analytic lenses used in narrative inquiry and explores some of the difficulties in representing narrative data. Using an example from a PhD study conducted into childhood sexual abuse, the researcher describes reasons for choosing a social constructionist approach, the intertwined processes of data analysis and writing up the thesis. Several data analysis processes were explored the process of analysis of narrativebiographical interviews was chosen (Rosenthal and Fisher-Rosenthal 2004). The practicalities of finding a suitable approach to data analysis are described. How this process could have been improved is examined, with the wisdom of hindsight.

This study explores the impact of the psychosocial development and attachment styles of individuals on subsequent partner selection and marital satisfaction among Korean couples. A sample of 100 co-habiting Korean married couples (N=200) and 100 couples planning to marry (N=200) were collected via convenience sampling, and this research focuses on heterosexual couples. Data were assessed using four psychological measures consisting of 162 questions, which solicited socio-demographic data, the degree of unfulfilled psychosocial tasks and psychosocial resources, the attachment styles and the quality of the couple's relationship. The data was analyzed using descriptive statistics: Chi-square, t-test, Mann-Whitney U test, ANOVA, and a Tukey post hoc analysis. The findings indicate that similarities exist between partners in partner selection in both married and planning to marry couples in their psychosocial development and attachment styles.

One of the aims of this research was to develop an understanding of the role mothers were perceived to play during the process of disclosure of child sexual abuse. Using narrative inquiry methodology, face-to-face in-depth interviews were conducted with 22 men and women who had an early sexual experience. Even though a mother's support and protection is known to be important, this study showed that many mothers were seen as unable to offer such support, which had an important influence on nondisclosure. The heterogeneity of perceptions of mothers among adults who experienced child sexual abuse and gender differences are described. Health professionals need to manage complex relational dynamics between adult survivors and their mothers.

This thesis presents a qualitative study of counsellors' experiences of indirect trauma exposure, the factors that facilitate counsellors to thrive personally and professionally, and sustain their engagement in trauma counselling work. The existing literature details the challenges of indirect trauma exposure in trauma work. However, the ways that counsellors are able to derive rewards and maintain their engagement in trauma counselling work are less well recognised. The current study examines these factors using a grounded theory approach, with semi-structured interviews conducted to explore the issues. The findings of this study demonstrate that multiple interrelating factors influence the impact of indirect trauma exposure on counsellors. These factors were conceptualised into a three-component model linked by the process of self-reflexivity. This model, termed the Self-Reflexive Model, refers to how counsellors manage the impact of indirect trauma experiences, and consists of three main components: 'developing perspectives'; 'empathic balance'; and 'sustaining capacity'. Under these three components, the model encompasses new insights about the influence of the subjective interpretation of indirect trauma experiences, the rewarding aspects of trauma counselling work, the strategies that maintain empathic boundaries, and the pivotal role of self-reflexivity. The model demonstrates an integrated perspective of these influencing factors, and how the risks and rewards of indirect trauma exposure can be effectively managed. This study builds on existing research about the impact of indirect trauma exposure, while offering greater insight into the processes, practices, and strategies that promote the rewarding and sustaining aspects of trauma counselling work. This information may be applicable to counsellors across different areas of practice that may experience indirect trauma exposure, regardless of whether they are employed in trauma specific or non-trauma specific roles. The findings provide important information for the counselling profession as increased knowledge of these issues will guide clinical practice, education and training, and address issues that influence the sustainability of counsellors in trauma counselling work.