Papers by Amanda Lecouteur
Family Process, Jun 15, 2023
Research on the gendered division of household work in western political economies often neglects... more Research on the gendered division of household work in western political economies often neglects its emotional dimensions. This conceptual paper draws on concepts of emotion work and feminist care ethics to explore gendered and intersecting divisions of emotions and emotional work in couple relationships and their implications for couple therapy. Although emotion work has been studied in workplace settings, less attention has been paid to inequalities in the privatized realm of interpersonal relationships, including romantic and filial ones. Women and feminine partners' culturally presumed expertise in emotions typically positions them as carrying primary responsibility for managing emotions in intimate relationships. Couple therapy is an important site of interaction that can both support and, potentially, disrupt the invisibility and gendering of emotion work in intimate relationships, thus shedding light on recurring patterns of women's subordination and exploitation. We conclude by advancing suggestions for addressing gendered and intersectional dimensions of emotion work in therapy practice.
Anz Journal of Surgery, Sep 2, 2022
BackgroundThere are limited opportunities for surgeons to engage in active learning programs once... more BackgroundThere are limited opportunities for surgeons to engage in active learning programs once they achieve Fellowship, especially for non‐technical skills such as communication. This study aims to address this gap by evaluating a peer‐based coaching program in non‐technical skill using video‐recorded patient consultations from a routine outpatient clinic.MethodsStandard outpatient consultations between consultant surgeons and patients were video recorded. The surgeon viewed the videos with a peer‐coach (senior surgeon) who helped identify areas of strength and areas for improvement. To test the effect of the coaching session, outpatient consultations were recorded roughly 1 month later. Pre and post‐coaching videos were assessed using the Maastricht History‐Taking and Advice Scoring – Global Rating List (MAAS), a common tool for evaluating non‐technical skills in clinicians.ResultsA total of 12 surgeons consented to participate. Coaching significantly improved MAAS scores (mean difference = −0.61; 95% CI (−0.88, −0.33); P < 0.0001). Surgeons were generally positive about the experience. All found the method of learning suitable, and most thought the process improved their skills. Most thought that coaching would improve patient outcomes and the majority thought they would participate in ongoing coaching as part of their employment.ConclusionThis supports the concept of surgical coaching as an effective tool to improve communication skills and the quality of surgical consultation. The next step is to expand beyond a voluntary cohort and link surgical coaching to improved patient outcomes.
Discourse & Society, Sep 1, 2008
Recent discursive research suggests that contemporary racism is typically accomplished in terms o... more Recent discursive research suggests that contemporary racism is typically accomplished in terms of subtle, flexibly managed and locally contingent discussion of the `problems' associated with minority groups. This study contributes to this work by focusing on the ways in which a particular formulation: `the possibility of change' was repeatedly implicated in descriptions of two `riots' that received widespread media attention in Australia: one involving Indigenous, and the other involving non-Indigenous, community members. Data were drawn from a corpus of newspaper articles, television and radio interviews, and parliamentary debates. Analysis demonstrated how, in respect to the event involving Indigenous Australians, `change' was repeatedly represented as an outcome that was not achievable. By contrast, descriptions of problems within the non-Indigenous community regularly represented `change' as an achievable outcome. We discuss how discourses around `the possibility of change' can thus be seen as another identifiable practice in terms of which `modern' forms of racism are regularly accomplished in media discourse.
InPsych: The Bulletin of the Australian Psychological Society Ltd, Jun 1, 2007
The article discusses the different factors that contribute in generating students' interest ... more The article discusses the different factors that contribute in generating students' interest in learning. There is a need to do more to build on the foundation of student interest that exists in psychology.
Qualitative Research in Psychology, Nov 18, 2013
This article uses conversation analysis to examine Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) interactio... more This article uses conversation analysis to examine Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) interactions with clients diagnosed with depression. The analysis explicates some routine conversational practices used by therapists in CBT to involve or co-implicate clients in the decision-making process regarding behavioural change. The article illustrates how the co-implication of clients in plans for behavioural change involves complex, therapist-guided sequences of interaction. Instances of co-implication are compared to those where therapists propose their own suggestions for change, resulting in different interactional consequences. The demonstration of therapists' use of systematic turn structures to co-implicate clients in the therapeutic process offers an interactional specification of the therapeutic relationship of collaborative empiricism that is encouraged in CBT practice and also shows how this relationship unfolds in the moment-to-moment interaction of therapy.
Journal of university teaching and learning practice, 2009
Family Process, May 4, 2017
The persistence of gender inequality in postindustrial societies is puzzling in light of a pletho... more The persistence of gender inequality in postindustrial societies is puzzling in light of a plethora of changes that destabilize it, including shifts in economy, legislation, and the proliferation of feminist politics. In family relations, such persistence manifests as a disconnect between couples aspiring to be more egalitarian yet continuing to enact traditional gender roles and hierarchies. There is an emerging consensus that gender inequality persists because of people's continued reliance on sexist ideology or gendered assumptions that constitute women as innately distinct from and inferior to men. Sexist ideology changes its form to accommodate to changing socioeconomic conditions. Contemporary forms of sexism are old ways of legitimizing male power articulated in new and creative ways, often by incorporating feminist arguments. To effectively recognize and address "new sexism," scholars and practitioners require new, innovative research frameworks. Our objective in writing this article is twofold. First, we seek to advance discursive (i.e., focused on language in use) approaches to the study of sexism. Second, we present the results of a discursive analysis of "new" sexist discourse in the context of couple therapy. The study provides preliminary evidence that, despite endorsing egalitarian norms, couples studied continue to rely on gender binaries and remain entrenched in old-fashioned patterns of gender inequality.
Feminism & Psychology, Dec 5, 2010
Psychological research and popular discussion around domestic violence/intimate partner abuse hav... more Psychological research and popular discussion around domestic violence/intimate partner abuse have focussed on broad features of descriptive accounts such as victim precipitation, excusing of aggressors, and minimizing or denying the violence. Few studies have examined the finer detail of how such matters are routinely invoked in talk, and how they are regularly built in ways that make their authors appear credible and warranted. This study uses a discursive psychological approach to examine the talk of men recruited from domestic violence counselling groups who participated in one-on-one interviews about their violent/abusive behaviour. The analytic focus is on instances of situated identity categorization in these men’s accounts that involved the consequential moral assessment of self and partner in ways that justify or warrant violence/abuse. Routinely, in these men’s talk about their abused partner, subtle and particular categorizations associated with being a woman were worked up sequentially to depict her as having breached the normative moral order. These warranting practices were evident in the talk of both men who denied, and who overtly acknowledged, the wrongness of their violent/abusive actions. The findings raise important issues for understanding how commonsense reasoning around the causes of domestic violence and its justifiability is sustained, as well as having practical implications for theory, prevention and treatment.
Family Process, Aug 10, 2022
Couple and Family Psychology, Jul 27, 2023
Discourse Studies, Feb 1, 2017
This article examines how third-party complaints were responded to by counsellors on a men's rela... more This article examines how third-party complaints were responded to by counsellors on a men's relationship-counselling helpline. Much prior conversation analytic research has shown that third-party complaints in institutional settings are embedded in other activities and treated as secondary to the main interactional business. As such, complaints are routinely responded to with a shift to a new, institutionally relevant activity (e.g. the reason for the call/visit). In the context examined here, however, the third-party complaints constituted callers' reasons for call. We show that, as in many other institutional contexts, counsellors do not, commonly, affiliate with callers' complaints in the sense of displaying a similar stance towards a described third party. However, unlike in other settings that have been examined, counsellors' responses did not result in an immediate shift away from callers' complaints. This was primarily because, following counsellors' non-affiliative responses, callers regularly engaged in work to pursue affiliation.
De Gruyter eBooks, Apr 24, 2023
Psychology of Sport and Exercise, Mar 1, 2011
... possibly the most important aspect of intra-team interaction ([Carron and Hausenblaus, 1998],... more ... possibly the most important aspect of intra-team interaction ([Carron and Hausenblaus, 1998], [Dale and Wrisberg, 1996], [Sullivan and Feltz, 2003] and [Yukelson, 1993 ... talk used to direct a team-mate (1) to move to a certain area of the court (eg, 'Go left'); (2) to 'mark' a specified ...
BMC Medical Education, Aug 30, 2014
Background: The aim of this project was to explore the process of change in a busy community dent... more Background: The aim of this project was to explore the process of change in a busy community dental clinic following a team development intervention designed to improve the management of student supervision during clinical placements. Methods: An action research model was used. Seven members of a community dental clinic team (three dentists, two dental therapists, one dental assistant and the clinic manager), together with the university clinical placement supervisor participated in the team development intervention. The intervention consisted of two profiling activities and associated workshops spread six months apart. These activities focused on individual work preferences and overall team performance with the aim of improving the functioning of the clinic as a learning environment for dental students. Evaluation data consisted of 20 participant interviews, fourteen hours of workplace observation and six sets of field notes. Following initial thematic analysis, project outcomes were re-analysed using activity theory and expansive learning as a theoretical framework. Results: At project commencement students were not well integrated into the day-today clinic functioning. Staff expressed a general view that greater attention to student supervision would compromise patient care. Following the intervention greater clinical team cohesion and workflow changes delivered efficiencies in practice, enhanced relationships among team members, and more positive attitudes towards students. The physical layout of the clinic and clinical workloads were changed to achieve greater involvement of all team members in supporting student learning. Unexpectedly, these changes also improved clinic functioning and increased the number of student placements available. Conclusions: In navigating the sequential stages of the expansive learning cycle, the clinical team ultimately redefined the 'object' of their activity and crossed previously impervious boundaries between healthcare delivery and student supervision with benefits to all parties.
International Journal of Eating Disorders, Sep 1, 1998
To identify the variety of versions of bulimia constructed by participants, to suggest functions ... more To identify the variety of versions of bulimia constructed by participants, to suggest functions and consequences of these constructions, and to examine the sociocultural ideologies evident in participants&#39; discourse. Ten women and one man were interviewed about their experiences of bulimia. Transcribed interviews were analyzed using a discourse analytic approach. Five dominant ways of talking about bulimia were identified: Individuals were constructed as victims of bulimia, women were constructed as victims of social stereotypes, bulimia was constructed as a damaging action one performs on oneself, bulimia was constructed as a personality trait of individuals, and bulimia was marginalized as abnormal and disgusting. Sociocultural ideologies evident in participants&#39; accounts included the valuing of individual will-power and self-mastery and the construction of a mind-body dichotomy entailing the need to control the latter. The analysis emphasizes the importance of considering the sociocultural context within which psychological problems occur.
International Review for the Sociology of Sport, Sep 30, 2021
Commentators are reported to describe male and female players in different ways across a range of... more Commentators are reported to describe male and female players in different ways across a range of sports. The present study examines televised commentary on men's and women's games in the Australian Football League during the inaugural season of the women's professional competition. A two-phase thematic analysis was applied to television commentary on 10 men's and 10 women's Australian Rules football games. Semantic thematic analysis of the broad descriptive categories used by commentators for men's and women's matches indicated greater similarity than had been reported for televised commentary of other sports like tennis, in line with recent reports of progress towards greater gender equality in sports media reporting. Although technical descriptors were used slightly more frequently in describing men's play, there were no major differences in frequency for a number of other descriptive categories (mental, physical, personal or tactical) that have previously been observed as discriminating commentary on men's and women's sport. More in-depth, discursive thematic analysis did indicate some specific patterns of difference: terms, features and details used in commentary resulted in a greater focus on women's athletic weaknesses, and negative aspects of their skills and mentality. Identification of subtle linguistic features that minimise the athleticism and accomplishments of female players suggests that continued examination of media reporting on women's increasing involvement in traditional male sports can contribute important insights for promoting gender equality.
Text & Talk, 2014
Arrangement-making is understood to be a 'closing-relevant action' (Schegloff & Sacks 1973), but ... more Arrangement-making is understood to be a 'closing-relevant action' (Schegloff & Sacks 1973), but little attention has been given to how people arrive at mutually acceptable plans for the future. Telephone conversations between clients and staff of Community and Home Care (CHC) services were studied to identify how arrangements for future services were made. A recurrent sequence was observed in which clients were informed of future arrangement and were prompted to reply with 'response solicitation' (Jefferson 1981). Response solicitations were observed at two points: either tagged to the end of an informing, or following a recipient's response to the informing. We show how response solicitations are routinely used in instances where recipients have some discretion in relation to the arrangement under discussion. They are a means by which an informing party can display to their interlocutor that they, as recipient, have some discretion to exercise in the matter. These findings are discussed with reference to prior research on arrangement-making in other settings, which suggests the general nature of this practice.
European Journal of Oncology Nursing, Aug 1, 2021
PURPOSE Helplines are increasingly used to provide information and support for people affected by... more PURPOSE Helplines are increasingly used to provide information and support for people affected by cancer, and the distress routinely associated with diagnosis and treatment is a major focus for those providing such care. Little is known, however, about how the Distress Thermometer (DT), a widely used tool for the assessment of patient/carer distress on cancer-support telephone helplines, is introduced and used in such settings. METHOD Using the method of conversation analysis, we present a qualitative analysis of DT use in actual telephone interactions by looking closely at how particular practices shape interaction on a cancer helpline. Specifically, we examine how oncology-trained nurse call-takers used the DT, in situ, as a tool for assessing callers, as well as examining how callers responded to this brief screening tool. RESULTS Our findings show how particular positioning of the DT in the call, and particular forms of its delivery, tend to generate brief responses from callers that avoid topicalization of distress, and tend not to be associated with referral to support services. CONCLUSIONS Implications for successful integration of the DT as a screening tool in cancer- and other health-helpline interactions, as well as for effective training of users, are discussed.
Health Communication, Nov 22, 2019
Women's involvement in decision-making around antenatal care is an issue of ongoing debate and di... more Women's involvement in decision-making around antenatal care is an issue of ongoing debate and discussion. Most research on the topic has used interview and focus group methods to examine women's perspectives. The present study uses a different kind of evidence. By analyzing recordings of actual antenatal consultations, this paper presents a preliminary exploration of model-of-care talk in a hospital setting where a policy of woman-centered care underpinned practice. Conversation Analysis was used to examine how model-of-care pathways were introduced by midwives and discussed with women in consultations. Drawing on interactional work on deontic (i.e., the rights and responsibilities of speakers to determine courses of action) and epistemic (i.e., speakers' claims to knowledge) orientations, this paper offers an account of how woman-centered care is accomplished in a hospital setting. The findings demonstrate how midwives routinely relied on their epistemic knowledge regarding women's health to invoke a "normal" categorization that worked to position midwifery-led care as an appropriate pathway. Examination of model-of-care talk also demonstrated how authority to choose a pathway was typically managed so as to reside with the woman. Talk that topicalized epidural forms of pain management were also examined, as institutional policy around where birth could occur in the hospital system under study restricted women's options (a planned epidural precluded woman access to midwifery-led care during delivery). The findings demonstrate the various ways in which midwives created opportunities for woman-centered care in an institutional setting in which there were logistical restrictions on women's choices.
Communication in medicine, Sep 17, 2013
Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) is an internationally recognised method for treating depressi... more Cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) is an internationally recognised method for treating depression. However, many of the techniques involved in CBT are accomplished within the therapy interaction in diverse ways, and with varying consequences for the trajectory of therapy session. This paper uses conversation analysis to examine some standard ways in which therapists propose suggestions for behavioural change to clients attending CBT sessions for depression in Australia. Therapists' proposal turns displayed their subordinate epistemic authority over the matter at hand, and emphasised a high degree of optionality on behalf of the client in accepting their suggestions. This practice was routinely accomplished via three standard proposal turns: (1) hedged recommendations; (2) interrogatives; and (3) information-giving. These proposal turns will be examined in relation to the negotiation of behavioural change, and the implications for CBT interactions between therapist and client will be discussed.
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Papers by Amanda Lecouteur