Counseling Students’ Experiences with Reflecting Teams in Experiential Group Counseling Training

Reflecting Teams (RT) are used as an experiential andragogical approach in group counseling training, yet little research has examined how counseling students experience RT-based learning. Guided by a Participatory Action Learning and Action Research framework, this qualitative study explored master’s-level counseling students’ experiences participating in RTs during an experiential group course. Reflexive thematic analysis identified five themes: reflexive awareness, relational attunement and perceived growth, tension between structure and process, experiential skill development, and authenticity and vulnerability. Participants described RTs as relational learning processes that they perceived as supporting peer-based meaning-making, professional identity development, and tolerance for ambiguity in group facilitation. Implications for counselor education and experiential group training are discussed.