Professor Jane Clark

Biography

Associate Professor Jane Clark is Head of School for Health in the Faculty of Medicine and Health at the University of New England.  As Head of a multidisciplinary School which recognises the importance of an interdisciplinary approach to training, research and care delivery, she is deeply committed to improving the health and wellbeing of individuals, families and communities through collaborative partnerships with key stakeholders. As a previously practicing registered Counselling Psychologist, her career has involved both direct practice (in mental health and social care, psychology, counselling and clinical supervision), and teaching at the tertiary level. She has particular interests in the field of loss, grief and mourning as well as the interface between the personal and professional lives of  allied health professionals.

Qualifications

PhD (Counselling), Masters Health Studies (Loss and Grief), Grad. Dip. Counselling (with Distinction), Dip. Counselling and Psychotherapy, B. Arts (Psychology), Registered Psychologist. She is a past member of the Australian Psychological Society (APS) and the APS College of Counselling Psychologists.

Teaching Areas

Jane has taught at both undergraduate and postgraduate level across a range of units and UNE courses. Her teaching interests include the theory and practice of counselling, supervision and group work; child and adolescent counselling; trauma counselling; loss and grief counselling; and relationship counselling.

Research Interests

Jane's PhD, titled, "The Taboo of Client Suicide: Silenced Therapist Narratives", explored how therapists' stories in relation to their clients' deaths became disenfranchised.  In addition to the field of loss, grief and mourning, Jane's areas of interest include:

• The interface between the personal and professional lives of therapists
• The personal voice in professional practice
• Working creatively in therapy and supervision
• The therapeutic relationship
• Therapist’s use of self in therapy
• Counsellor training and supervision
• Reflexive practice
• Mental health and wellbeing

Publications

Refereed Journal Publications:

Harvey, K. & Clark, J. (2018) The impact of rurality on anxiety in secondary school students: A systematic review, Educational Review, published online 19th October, DOI: 10.1080/00131911.2018.1520690

Lykousis, A. & Clark, J. (2018). Integrating creative and expressive therapies within clinical supervision to foster supervisee personal and professional development: A review of the literature, Counselling Australia, Winter, vol. 18, no. 2, pp. 18-24.

Doherty, M., Conway, J, Clark, J. & Merritt, F. (2017). Should I stay or should I go? The Impact of a sense of control on young men’s therapeutic engagement, Counselling and Psychotherapy Research, vol. 17, no. 3, pp. 209-217.

Webber, A., Clark, J. & Kelly, D. (2016). Treating substance abuse and mental health issues as ‘mutually-exclusive’ entities: Best practice or an outmoded approach to intervention? International Journal of Mental Health Nursing, vol. 25, pp. 27-32.

Clark, J.L. (2014). Engaging in Ritual after Client Suicide: The Critical Importance of Linking Objects for Therapists, Bereavement Care: An International Journal for Those Who Care for the Bereaved, vol. 33, no. 2, pp. 70 -76.

Clark, J.L. (2013), ‘Poetic Re-narration of Disenfranchised Grief in Relation to Client Suicide’, Qualitative Inquiry, online publication Jun 18 2013, DOI: 10.1177/107780041389535.

Clark, J.L. (2009). Supervision After Client Suicide: Panacea or Pretense? Psychotherapy in Australia, vol. 16, no. 1, pp. 17–23.

Refereed Book Chapters:

Clark, J.L. & Hadfield, R.M. (2016). Stories of Constancy and Change: A narrative odyssey, Psychotherapy and Counselling: Reflections on Practice, (eds) Carolyn Noble & Elizabeth Day, Oxford University Press: Australia and New Zealand, pp. 246-257.

Merritt, S. & Clark, J. (2016). Metaphor in Counselling: Using Myth, Narrative and the Hero’s Journey to Facilitate Reflection, Insight and Transformation, Psychotherapy and Counselling: Reflections on Practice, (eds) Carolyn Noble & Elizabeth Day, Oxford University Press: Australia and New Zealand, pp. 234-245.

Clark, J. (2013). Glass Half Full: Transformative Narratives in the Wake of Client Suicide, Finding Opportunities in Crisis, (eds) Paulus Pimomo and Mary Ditton, Inter-disciplinary Press, Oxford, United Kingdom. ISBN: 978-1-84888-225-6, pp. 61–74.

External Profiles

• ORCid Profile