The phenomenology of disaster psychosocial assistance (DPA) in the Philippines: Defining counselor roles and developing counselor competencies

This study explored the experiences of twenty-three participants (three counselors, five community organizers, and fifteen survivors) in providing and/or receiving disaster psychosocial assistance (DPA). The purpose of this study was to describe DPA in the Philippines, and the counselor roles and competencies for DPA. The qualitative design and the descriptive phenomenological psychological method were the method and the analysis used in this study, respectively. As an off-shoot of this study, a proposed training program in developing counselor competencies for DPA was offered. The purposive sampling method was adopted in selecting the participants of this study. Three interview guides were developed, translated in Filipino, and field- tested by the researcher to gather reliable and accurate data. In-depth face-to-face interviews were conducted. The taped interviews were transcribed verbatim and analyzed using the descriptive phenomenological psychological method by Giorgi and Giorgi (2003). The results of this study defined DPA as the direct assistance given to disaster survivors and disaster workers in order to promote or restore equilibrium and well-being in their ways of thinking, feeling and behaving to the normal levels before the disaster they experienced. Six counselor roles for DPA were found in this study, namely, counselor, evaluator, educator, net-worker, consultant, and spiritual support. Nine counselor competencies resulted, described in three categories, namely, beliefs and attitudes, knowledge and skills, and spiritual competencies. The results of Phase One of the study and the review of related literature, journals, and manuals on disaster and DPA became the bases for designing the Proposed Training Manual in Developing Counselor Competencies for DPA in the Philippines.