SEPI Research Committee

The Research Committee fosters and encourages research on psychotherapy integration, administers the Award Program, and organizes the Research Consultation Program in collaboration with the Program Committee.

Barbara Hannigan

Co-Chair

Barbara Hannigan is a Chartered Counselling Psychologist, and Fellow with the Psychological Society of Ireland (PSI). Associate Professor and Director of Clinical Practice for the D. Couns.Psych at Trinity College Dublin (TCD), she is actively involved in clinical training and psychologists’ professional development. She co-founded Pro Psychology Consult with Prof Tim Trimble, providing expert psychological reports for the Irish Legal System. In her private practice, Barbara offers integrative therapy for individuals and couples, alongside supervision for psychologists. Previously she served as Consultant Psychologist to The Irish Defence Forces, Cadet School, to redesign the academic syllabus in Leadership, and Management.  As a researcher, she often uses a "life-story" approach to explore themes of trauma, inclusive practice, and therapist’s professional development. Her current work explores the personal lives of World-Renowned Master Therapists, to understand how their unique life experiences influence their professional mastery. Whether working with people from marginalized groups, trauma survivors, or elite leaders, her integrative approach remains committed to seeing the whole person through the lenses of empathy, compassion, and empowerment. Based in Dublin, Ireland, Barbara balances her professional pursuits with a busy home life. She is at her happiest spending time with her family and their lively "menagerie," which includes a collection of horses, dogs, and a cat.

Jonathan Egan, Ph.D.

Co-Chair

Jonathan Egan is the principal psychology manager of the University Hospitals Group in Limerick, Ireland. Previously he was a deputy director of the doctorate in clinical psychology program in the University of Galway from 2012-2023.  He trained in Affect Phobia Therapy (APT) with Kristin Osborn (Stockholm).  He is also training as a trainer of McCluskey’s Exploratory goal corrected psychotherapy, which addresses adults exploration of the effect of their attachment system on well-being.  His peer reviewed research addresses how APT integrated with McCluskey’s model of adult attachment styles can account for people’s wellbeing when somatoform and psychoform dissociation, attachment style and ability to meet one’s closeness needs and affect expression can explain a significant proportion of the variance accounting for depression, anxiety, stress, somatisation and psychological overlays across chronic health conditions. Hard-wired defences such as dissociation appear to mediate the relationship between the restorative attachment system and a person’s physical and psychological well-being