ROLE OF CBT IN STRESS MANAGEMENT & PROMOTING WELLNESS AMONG GEN Z IN CHENNAI: A THEMATIC ANALYSIS OF THERAPISTS’ EXPERIENCE

Abstract

Gen Z is a population cohort born between 1997–2012 (Pew Research Center, 2023). Deloitte’s Millennial & Gen Z Survey, 2021 for India states that Gen Z feel as anxious and stressed as their global average (46 percent). Fiama Mental Wellbeing Survey (2022) reported that Gen Z is more proactive in seeking professional help for their mental health. Around 47% of those surveyed in this age group reported seeking professional help. Understanding CBT for stress management from an experiential perspective of therapists can offer valuable insights that enrich our conception of the difference between theory and its practical application for the Gen Z population. Thus, the study aimed to understand the role of CBT in stress management and promoting wellness among Gen Z in Chennai from therapists’ perspective. A qualitative research method was adopted to the study and purposive sampling method was used to select the participants for the study. The sample size for the study was 8 therapists. The inclusion criteria included: (1) Psychotherapist who has worked with CBT for at least a year and (2) Active therapists who have experienced working with Gen Z to manage stress and promote wellness using CBT and/or its derivatives. The exclusion criteria: Those who are not certified CBT therapists from an accredited institution and CBT therapists who have not worked with Gen Z in Chennai. Semi-structured interview was conducted to collect the data from the participants. Interviews were audio-taped and transcribed during the study. Thematic analysis was used to interpret the collected data. 11 themes were drawn from the data: definition of stress, wellness, and common stressors, risk and protective factors, coping strategies, generational differences, techniques, clients’ expectations, type of therapy, flexibility of structure, therapists’ challenges, barriers to seeking help, and upcoming trends.