Feminist supervision and supervisee nondisclosure: The mediating role of the supervisory relationship

In this study, the authors investigated the predictive relationship between a feminist supervisory approach and supervisee nondisclosure, along with the potential mediating effect of the supervisory relationship. Among a sample of master’s-level counseling interns (N = 111), supervisees who perceived more feminist behaviors from their supervisor were more likely to rank the supervisory relationship as stronger and were less likely to report withholding information from their supervisor. Furthermore, the supervisory relationship partially mediated the link between feminist supervision and supervisee nondisclosure. Implications for supervisors and researchers are discussed.     

The Relationship Between Counseling Supervisee Attachment Orientation and Perceived Bond with Supervisor

Clinical supervisors are often at a loss to explain why some supervision relationships promote change while others are fraught with conflict. Supervisee attachment may help supervisors understand supervision relationships. This qualitative study used The Working Alliance Inventory and a modified Relationship Questionnaire to investigate the relationship between supervisee attachment orientation and perceived bond with supervisor over time and within and between experience levels. The participants were 117 Master's level counseling students receiving supervision. The results indicated no difference of attachment orientation for level of supervisee but did indicate a relationship between attachment orientation and perceived bond with the supervisor.     

Relationship Development in Supervisory Conferences:

An important component of supervision is the supervisory conference and the relationship that is developed between the supervisor and supervisee is critical in evaluating the success of the conference. Because relationships that are developed during the Entry Phase (first 5 minutes) are generally maintained for the duration of the conference, it is imperative that the conference begin in the best way possible. This paper discusses three aspects of relationship development about which a supervisor should be knowledgeable in order to establish effective, efficient relationships within supervisory conferences: (1) assumptions about change; (2) assumptions about learning; and, (3) assumptions about communication styles.     

Humility in clinical supervision: Fundamental,foundational, and transformational

We propose that supervisor humility is a critical variable for effective supervisory practice, fundamental, foundational, and potentially transformational in its impact. We examine humility, and the different types of humility (e.g., intellectual humility), that can impact supervision practice. Supervisor humility is considered to be supportive of supervision best practices by (a) enhancing multicultural competence, (b) fortifying the supervisory alliance, (c) rendering receptivity to supervisee feedback more likely, and (d) fostering engagement in peer consultation. Brief case examples are used to show humility in action.     

An autoethnography of broaching in supervision: Joining supervisee and supervisor perspectives on addressing identity,power, and difference

Broaching race, ethnicity, and other cultural factors within supervision can spark growth in supervisor and supervisee cultural responsiveness, enhance client care, and strengthen the supervisory relationship. Despite this promise, supervisorsunderutilize broaching. In the current study, we used autoethnography to explore the broaching process, including supervisor hesitation, supervisee expectations for supervision, and the relational and educational functions of broaching in supervision. The narratives of supervisor and supervisee were analyzed alongside empirical and conceptual work on broaching. Considerations for approaching broaching dialogues and implications for supervision practice are described.     

Putting on the face: A qualitative study of power dynamics in clinical supervision

Nine master’s-level counselors (recently graduated) were interviewed about their experiences with power in clinical supervision. Using the consensual qualitative research (CQR) method (Hill, Thompson, & Nutt Williams, 1997), the authors derived five general categories: power resides in the supervisor’s expertise, supervisor error erodes his or her power, misuse of power elicits self-preservation, supervisor demonstrating trust in the supervisee’s abilities empowers the supervisee, and supervisor transparency reduces power. Power dynamics appeared to be most salient in situations where the supervisee experienced a negative supervisory event. Implications for training and research are discussed.     

Supervision Characteristics Related to the Supervisory Working Alliance as Rated by Doctoral-Level Supervisees

Supervision is an essential element in developing well-trained and competent psychologists. The present study identifies strengths and weaknesses in supervisor characteristics that contribute to the supervisee's clinical training experience and professional development. Data gathered from doctoral psychology students indicate that supervisees rated their supervisors as having the following strengths: above-average intelligence, a positive attitude toward themselves, ethical integrity, and strong listening skills. Data from this study indicate the following areas may have room for improvement for clinical supervisors: awareness of countertransference in supervision, the ability to stay focused, the ability to meet time constraints, commitment to the supervisory alliance, and an ability to challenge the supervisee effectively. In summary, 68% of the participants rate their supervisor as outstanding, 5% rate their supervisor as acceptable, and 12% rate their supervisor as poor.     

The Fifth International Interdisciplinary Conference on Clinical Supervision

Doctoral students in counselor education and supervision programs take a course specific to clinical supervision as part of their doctoral course work. The transition from supervisee to supervisor occurring during this course can be challenging, as it is frequently the first time that students are asked to provide supervision to counselors in training. The purpose of this qualitative research was to gain information about the process of doctoral students' development from supervisees into supervisors. Significant themes emerged from the data related to the transition of becoming supervisors: the importance of creating the supervisory relationship and the need for further supervisory skills.     

Beginning Supervisees' Identity

Abstract

Masters level beginning supervisee practicum students (N = 98) from a western university were asked to identify what supervisor variables were most important for supervisees in their early developmental phase of becoming a therapist. The findings of the study indicated that supervisor care and concern as well as their clinical and supervisory experience were more important than supervisor-supervisee gender matches. The variables “supervisor care and concern” and “supervisor experience” were also indicators of supervisees' willingness to take risks in supervision.     

4/ Growth in Supervision:

This essay reviews the status of supervisory models, presents an overarching schemata of stage models of supervisee development, and finally, describes a three stage model of supervisor development. The terms "counseling" and "psychotherapy" are used synonymously, as are "trainee", "supervisee", "student", and "psychotherapist."     

A Model for Evaluating Supervisory Interactions in Family Therapy Training

While it is assumed in family therapy supervision that the relationship between supervisor and supervisee changes over time, the characteristics of this change have received little analysis. A model to explore this change was developed using audiotapes of supervisory planning sessions. Participants were marriage and family therapy trainees and three supervisors at Northern Illinois University Family Center. Fifteen categories of interaction were identified for analysis. Over a four month period, changes in frequency of kinds of interactions were recorded. The interactions during this period generally moved from a cordial, trusting, almost peer relationship to a more director-apprentice relationship as actual client families were encountered. These changes are compared to developmental models of supervision. Applications for use of the system are suggested.     

Transference,Counter-Transference,Projective Identification and Role Responsiveness in the Supervisory Process

The psychoanalytic concepts of transference, counter-transference, projective identification and role-responsiveness are elucidated an discussed in light of the supervisory process. It is our feeling that because of the strong Freudian influence on therapy and on social work theory, it is essential that supervisors be able to recognize the interplay in the parallel process of supervison between supervisor and supervisee, on all levels.     

Supervision As Pedagogy: Attending to Its Essential Instructional and Learning Processes

The various supervision models each emphasize particular interventions. But to conceptualize supervision as a teaching-learning process permits a common framework and attention to supervision's basic change mechanisms. This article discusses the four learning strategies of modeling, feedback, direct instruction, and self-directed learning through reflective practice, arguing that their effects are mediated by the quality of the supervisory relationship. As well, it makes the case that feedback grounds a developmental continuum that extends from direct instruction when supervisees are learning new skills to reflective practice, which becomes increasingly prominent as the supervisee gains experience.     

Supervisee Incompatibility and Its Influence on Supervisee and Supervisor Outcomes in Triadic Supervision: An Investigation of Supervisors' Perspectives

A qualitative study was conducted to examine supervisors' experiences of the outcomes for themselves and their supervisees when supervisee incompatibility was present in triadic supervision. In-depth, open-ended interviews were conducted with nine supervisors in one counselor education program. A whole-text analysis revealed that participants varied in the supervisee characteristics that they considered most important to address during supervisee matching. Supervisee incompatibility also resulted in a variety of positive and negative outcomes for both the supervisees and the supervisor.     

Countertransference and Clinical Social Work Supervision

ABSTRACT

Countertransference, once regarded as a major impediment in the therapeutic endeavor, is now generally held to be a potentially useful tool in the treatment and supervisory processes. These therapeutic and supervisory situations comprise aspects of both subjective and objective countertransference. A comprehensive review of the social work and psychoanalytic literature reveals several prevalent subjective countertransference themes in the supervisory situation, such as envy of the supervisee, an attitude of omniscience on the part of the supervisor, and factors relating to the supervisor's position in an institutional setting. Objective counter-transference elements are discussed in relation to reflection, parallel, multidimensional parallel, and triangulation processes.     

Psychotherapy Supervision and Attachment Theory: Review,Reflections, and Recommendations

Mental health professionals (N = 110) were surveyed about their experiences in supervision with clinical, administrative, and dual-roled supervisors (supervisors who serve in both clinical and administrative roles). The effects of supervisor training, supervisor disclosure, and supervisor role on supervisee disclosure were examined using a multiple hierarchical regression. Supervisor disclosure explained level of supervisee disclosure regardless of supervisee role (p < .0001). Clinical implications of these findings are discussed.     

The Clinical Supervisor-Practitioner Working Alliance

Abstract

The focus of my presentation this morning is the core dynamics and skills of the supervisor-practitioner working alliance, or what I will refer to as the working relationship. I will present a model that suggests that the use of certain communication, relationship and problem-solving skills by the supervisor can influence the development of a positive working relationship with the supervisee, and that this working relationship is the medium through which the supervisor influences the practitioner. I stress the words “influence” because a central assumption of this approach is that both supervision and direct practice are interactional in nature. The supervisor and the supervisee each play a part in the process. The outcome of supervision is the result of how well each contributes to the process. This morning's presentation focuses on the supervisor's role. One of the discussions is the concept of the “parallel process.” While the role of the supervisor and the purpose of supervision are quite different from counseling and therapy, nevertheless there are striking parallels in the dynamics and skills. There is a suggestion that “more is caught than taught” and that our supervisees watch us very closely. Whether we like it or not, whether we are aware of it or not, our supervisees learn more about practice from the way we work with them than from what we say about their actual practice. Supervision is not therapy. In fact, supervisors who are seduced into a therapeutic relationship with their supervisees actually model poor practice since they lose sight of the true purpose of clinical supervision and their role in the process.     

Advancing our understanding of sibling supervision and injury risk for young children

Sibling supervision has been shown to increase the risk of supervisee's unintentional injury in the home. Both poorer supervision by the older sibling and noncompliance by the younger sibling have been shown to contribute to this risk. Previous studies have shown that informing older siblings that they are responsible for the behavior of their younger sibling improves their supervision. The present study, conducted in Canada, examined whether informing both children the older child is in charge would improve both older sibling supervisory practices and compliance by the younger child. Younger and older siblings were initially placed in a room containing contrived hazards, and their interactions were unobtrusively recorded. In a second contrived hazards room, both children were then informed that the older sibling was in charge, and the supervisor was privately told not to let the supervisee touch hazardous objects. Results revealed that sibling supervisors showed improved supervision but supervisee behavior did not vary across conditions. Implications for injury prevention and future research directions are discussed.