The Administrative and Educational Functions in Supervision:

The purpose of the study was to examine the compatibility of the administrative and the educational supervisory functions. Social work supervisors who perform both the admininistrative and the educational function were compared to those whose function is almost entirely educational, as regards role conflict and ambiguity. Higher role conflicts experienced by the first group led to the conclusion that the administrative and the educational functions are basically incompatible. For better performance of these important functions, the authors recommend their separation.     

Supervision of Lesbian,Gay, and Bisexual Social Work Students by Heterosexual Field Instructors

Abstract

This paper describes findings from a qualitative study of lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) student-heterosexual field instructor dyads. Each dyad was assessed for its level of agreement in characterizing the student's experience in field placement. Disagreements were common, with more than half of the dyads having 2–5 areas of disagreement. The following factors seemed to impact the level of student-field instructor agreement: the field instructor supervisory style, the quality of the student-field instructor relationship, field instructor comfort with addressing LGB development and practice issues, the student's perception of the agency climate as gay-friendly, and the student's level of disclosure and stage in coming out.     

Field Supervision in a Conflict Zone: Jewish Israeli Supervisors,Arab Israeli Field Students

This qualitative study explores the feelings, thoughts, and perceptions of Jewish Israeli social work field supervisors regarding Arab Israeli social work trainees, against the background of the ongoing violent political conflict in the region. Two key findings emerge from analysis of the supervisors' comments. One is of the supervisors' sympathetic awareness of the many difficulties that these trainees encountered. The other is that the supervisors themselves experienced considerable difficulties in the dyad. Along with ample quotes and discussion, this article offers detailed practical suggestions both for education and supervision.     

Supervision in social work in Aotearoa New Zealand: Challenges in changing contexts

In this article, I report on clinical supervision policy and practice within the profession of social work in Aotearoa New Zealand. I begin with an overview of New Zealand with reference to selected social and cultural considerations which impact on social work as a profession. Starting from a premise that supervision is an essential component of professional social work, the mandate for supervision and aspects of education for supervisors are explored. The importance of both cross-cultural and indigenous approaches to supervision within Aotearoa New Zealand is examined with reference to local literature. Developments in supervision policy and practice reflect many of the challenges faced by social work in the political and sociocultural context.     

A Discussion of Professional Issues of Hospital Social Workers in Saudi Arabia

Health care has evolved rapidly in Saudi Arabia, based on a Western model of service that incorporates multidisciplinary professional teams. Social work practice forms part of patient care. Within the cultural context of Saudi Arabia, social work education is developing and so too is the role of the practitioner in the hospital system. However, little is known about how social workers are integrated into the hospital setting. This study explores how Saudi social workers perceive their role and how they describe their practice. A quantitative methodology was employed using a self-administered questionnaire design. Analyses showed a number of perceived limitations that precluded effective performance in practicing social workers; these included difficulties related to updating job skills, followed by a perceived deficiency in current supervisory support.     

Reflective Supervision for the Green Social Worker: Practical Applications for Supervisors

Reflective supervision asks supervisors to focus on the themes expressed by supervisees and to examine meaning and relational content. However, supervisors may not be aware of how to facilitate this type of interaction at various levels of clinical development. This article integrates the ideas of developmental stage models and reflective supervision and discusses the implementation of reflective supervision to new social workers specifically. These concepts are applied to case vignettes to provide practical application for supervisors in implementing reflection throughout their work with new social workers with the goal of increasing reflective content early in the process.     

Self-Disclosure of Sexual Orientation in Social Work Field Education: Field Instructor and Lesbian and Gay Student Perspectives

ABSTRACT

In-depth interviews were conducted with lesbian and gay recent MSW graduates (n = 6) and experienced field instructors (n = 8) to explore sexual orientation–related challenges in social work field education. Data were analyzed using techniques from grounded theory and NVivo qualitative software. Self-disclosure emerged as a central theme in the establishment of a positive learning environment for lesbian and gay students in field education, including the benefits of student self-disclosure to learning, the responsibility of the field instructor, and the role of the agency context. Schools of social work may benefit from training and sensitizing field instructors to develop competence in providing educational experiences for LGBT students.     

Social work supervision in Malta: A specialism in the making

ABSTRACT

The leitmotif for this piece is the development of social work supervision in Malta as a specialism. As background, I present concentric circles of influence on supervision. I first consider Malta’s geo-socio-cultural context, then the professional status of social work, followed with a focus on supervision. I next introduce the supervisors and review pertinent research studies, followed by supervisor education and supervisory practices, and then propose recommendations for future practice and research. Finally, I ask: Can social work supervision in Malta be considered a specialism in the making? My answer is yes, but it is at a rudimentary stage of development.     

How Goal Orientation Match Between Social Workers and Their Supervisors Impacts Social Workers' Job Satisfaction

Abstract

Social workers' perceptions of their supervisors' dispositional goal orientations towards learning and performing act as powerful situational influences—in interaction with their own goal orientations— to affect social workers' job satisfaction. Social workers perceiving their supervisors' goal orientation to align with their own will experience greater job satisfaction. Supervisors cognizant of supervisees' goal orientations are more able to provide individually motivating tasks, support, and rewards. Such inquiry offers a promising direction for improving the work conditions of social workers. An increase in job satisfaction should be correlated with an increase in improved client outcomes and reduction in social worker turnover.     

A Further Review of the Development of the Child and Youth Care Profession in the United States

The author conducts a follow-up to a review of the development of the child and youth care profession in the United States that he conducted 11 years ago (Krueger, 1991a). He concludes that child and youth care is still an emerging profession, but that a shift in direction is needed to move the field forward.     

Community Youth Development Professionals: Providing the Necessary Supports in the United States

This paper explores the educational opportunities available to community youth development professionals in the United States. Given the complexity of the needs of today’s young people, it is both timely and prudent to increase the type, quality, and quantity of educational experiences available to community youth development professionals. Researchers, practitioners, policymakers, and funding agencies have all begun to explore the importance of providing educational opportunities to community youth development professionals. The findings of this investigation indicate a need for a comprehensive multidimensional educational system to provide community youth development professionals with the knowledge and skills essential to successfully meet the challenges they encounter in their daily work.Support for the work on this article has come from multiple sources. The authors wish to thank the National 4-H Council, United States, for their funding of this research. In addition, the authors wish to acknowledge of the support they received from the Agricultural Experiment Stations and Extension Services related to children, youth, and families of the University of Arizona and The Pennsylvania State University.     

In the Front Line: The Impact of Specialist Training for Hospital Physicians in Children at Risk on Their Collaboration With Social Workers

Until recently, dealing with children at risk in Israeli hospitals was almost exclusively the domain of medical social workers. Suspected cases of abuse or neglect must be identified in real-time, during the child’s short stay in the hospital, and the decision of whether or not to report the case, and to whom (law enforcement or welfare authorities), must be made. The recognition that effective treatment also demands the involvement of physicians led to the development of an intensive training program for hospital-pediatricians. The current study, based on in-depth interviews with the doctors who participated in the program and the social workers who work with them at 14 hospitals in Israel, examined the impact of the training on cooperation between the two groups, seeking to determine whether the doctors’ increased familiarity with the social work profession enhanced team-work.

Phenomenological analysis of the interviews revealed several themes, indicating greater collaboration between the doctors and social workers. However, the participants also noted increased friction between the two groups. Possible explanations and practical recommendations for enhancing the potential effectiveness of such collaborations are offered. The study has implications for designing similar training programs as well as for improving the dynamics between the two professions.     

Interprofessional Supervision in Social Work and Psychology: Mandates and (Inter) Professional Relationships

Supervision of practicing professionals has grown as a major vehicle for the assurance of clinical competence of health and social services professionals in New Zealand with a consequential increase in the demand for competent supervisors. Interprofessional supervision (IPS) has increased as a means of addressing the gap. The literature suggests there is potential for IPS to improve functioning in multidisciplinary teams and enhance clinical work, but it is relatively under-researched. This article reports on a study of psychologists and social workers (N = 243) practicing IPS. The study explored the rationale for seeking IPS and the perceived advantages and limitations for the supervisor and supervisee alike. Professional mandates may limit IPS but its development as a practice suggests that guidance is needed to ensure it meets the aspirations of its practitioners.     

Student Process Recording in Practice with Children

ABSTRACT

Written process recording (PR) is a traditional means of teaching social work practice in field agencies. However, schools of social work and field supervisors do not sufficiently differentiate the process of recording adult sessions from the process of recording sessions with children. Social work students and their supervisors are sometimes uncertain about how PR of child interviews should be written. This study examines the experiences of four supervisory pairs (students and supervisors) who wrote and used PR of child sessions in field supervision. The four pairs were drawn from different social work field practice settings, a residential treatment center, two outpatient mental health services, and a public school. The findings of interviews reveal four key points: (1) PR reflects a stage-wise learning process; (2) students' strong emotions are revealed in PR; (3) PR provides opportunities to teach theories and techniques relevant to a child perspective; and (4) outcome-driven expectations do not negate the usefulness of PR. These findings are useful for students and supervisors interested in practicing with children.     

Towards authentic supervision of social workers in South Africa

ABSTRACT

Supervision of social workers has been practiced in South Africa for more than half a century. A process of authentication was reinvigorated at South African tertiary institutions in 2015 to decolonize university curricula. This process included dismantling of Western-dominated theories—also in social work supervision practice. The authentication of supervision is expounded in this article as steps in a process model devised with the aim to compose determinants and a definition of social work supervision in South Africa, in order to engender future nationally relevant inquiries into the ongoing development of an authentic body of supervision knowledge and practices.     

Reliability and Validity of the Psychotherapy Supervisor Development Scale: A Meta-Analytic Evaluation

Abstract

All therapists at some point struggle with sexual and loving feelings in therapy relationships. Due to the absence of core curriculum on the resultant treatment issues, the psychotherapy supervisor or consultant may be the primary clinical teacher around these complex clinical situations. A safe, shame-free, trustworthy supervisory relationship provides the arena for open dialogue, self-revelation, and deep clinical exploration of these issues.     

The Power of Mutual Aid in the Educational Process: A Seminar for New Field Instructors of Trainees

ABSTRACT

The promotion of mutual aid has special value to seminars for new supervisors of trainees. Sharing the benefits, potential strains, and demands in the assumption of this role facilitates a smooth progression toward increased professional competence. This socialization process is enhanced by the provision of adequate support through the processes of mutual aid. Challenges and obstacles to mutual aid in these seminars relate to the intrinsic difficulties regarding fears of discomfort and exposure, desire for an expert to emerge, and challenges in maintaining a balance between didactic teaching methods and mediation of group processes that promote mutuality, collaboration, and reciprocity. Illustrations provide guidance to seminar facilitators, create a foundation for understanding these processes, and promote recognition of opportunities for the enhancement and maximization of mutual aid.     

The Health Education Centre: a new approach to professional support and development in Australia

In 1989 a new concept emerged in the provision of professionalsupport for health workers with the development of the HealthEducation Centre, Barwon South Western Region. The Barwon SouthWest Region includes Geelong (Victoria's largest regional city)and the predominantly rural south western half of the Stateto the South Australian border. Unique in Victoria (and Australia),it is funded by the Health Department and recognizes the needfor ongoing support for health workers in a changing and complexfield. The Centre offers assistance to all health workers (witha particular focus on workers in small hospitals, communityhealth centres and community based agencies) through on goingprogramme development and consultancy, in- services, networkingand information. This paper examines the Health Education Centre's approach toits role. Beginning with an overview of the changing role ofhealth care and health workers, it explores the impact of newpolicy directions and the inadequacy of workers' educationalbackground to meet the challenges that these policies present,resulting in an implementation gap between policy and practice.The paper advocates the adoption of a professional model forprofessional development rather than a technical one, and suggestthat health workers need to be exposed to different educationalexperiences in order to close the implementation gap betweenpolicy and practice. The paper concludes with an overview ofthe Health Education Centre's response to its target group andoutlines its model of professional development which is basedon the principles and strategies advocated by the Ottawa Charter.     

The Heart of Social Work: Best Practitioners Rise to Challenges in Field Instruction

ABSTRACT

Field, as the “signature pedagogy,” is the heart of social work education. However, field education has encountered challenges both in academia and in agencies that serve as field placements. This study explores the ways in which best practitioners in field instruction—10 field instructors who won the Heart of Social Work Award through the Council on Social Work Education—are rising to the challenges of supervising social work interns. These include (a) teaching a wide variety of skills of assessment and intervention, (b) balancing the teaching of these skills with the encouragement of reflection, (c) teaching interns to connect theory and practice, (d) developing an integrative model of supervision, (e) applying research to practice, (f) showing appropriate support to interns, and (g) upholding the mission of field education in the face of fiscal retrenchment and pressures for accountability. Findings of the study show that field instructors are responding with impressive energy and creativity to these challenges and also suggest the need for greater collaboration between field instructors and schools of social work.