Supervision in aamft accredited programs: Supervisee perceptions and preferences

Abstract

To assess supervisees' perceptions of supervision in AAMFT accredited programs, 72 supervisees from 14 degree programs responded to a questionnaire asking them to describe the supervision they were receiving and what they preferred. The majority reported perceiving their supervision as a mixed didactic-experiential style. Subjects were also asked to describe their perceived actual and preferred supervision on six dimensions. The findings showed that from supervisees' point of view, the quality of supervision in accredited programs is good, that some supervisees do not receive once per week supervision, and that the majority did not receive the style of supervision they preferred.     

Supervisees' perspectives on the contribution of supervision to psychotherapy outcomes

Objective

The aim of this study was to examine supervisees' perspectives about the contribution of two predefined aspects of supervision, supervisory bond (SB) and didactic input of supervisor (DI), to their ascribed outcome of therapy.

Method

Supervisees anonymously assessed the SB, supervisors' DI and their contribution to therapy outcome. Assessment was quantitative and qualitative. The supervisory aspects were assessed using a questionnaire constructed for this study. Perceived contribution was evaluated by two scaled questions, and themes generated by an open question. Supervisees (n = 111) evaluated 16 supervisors and supervision’s contribution to psychotherapy outcomes of 111 clients.

Findings

Hierarchical regression showed that supervisees' age, supervisors' status and frequency of supervision accounted for 24% of the variance ascribed to outcome. SB and DI accounted for 51% of the variance. These values, which are higher than reported in the literature, may be attributed to the assessment of predefined aspects of supervision by the same assessor. Thematic analysis of the didactic input produced more themes than for the supervisory bond.

Conclusion

Sociodemographic variables and supervisory relationship variables determine supervisees' evaluations of supervision’s contribution to outcome.

Implications for practice

Training and supervision may benefit from information obtained from quantitative and qualitative measures regarding these and other predefined variables related to supervision. The in-depth look at views and experiences shared by supervisees may advance training, practice and research.     

Supervisors' and Supervisees' perceptions of the effectiveness of family therapy supervisor interpersonal skills

Abstract

This study surveyed a randomly selected group of Approved Supervisors of the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy (n=318) and their supervisees (n=299) on their perceptions of the effectiveness of several supervisor interpersonal skills. Both supervisors and supervisees had high ratings for the majority of the interpersonal skills and rated “respects the supervisee” most effective. Trends in supervisors' and supervisees' responses were assessed for (a) theoretical orientation, (b) supervision setting, (c) gender, (d) number of years supervising family therapists (for supervisors), and (e) number of years practicing family therapy (for supervisees).     

Understanding supervisee nondisclosures in supervision with videorecording review and interpersonal process recall

The purpose of this qualitative multiple case study was to obtain an in‐depth understanding of supervisees' in‐the‐moment nondisclosure experiences, perceptions and internal processes as they occurred in clinical supervision involving videorecording review. The supervisees who participated in the study were students in their first year of a master's‐level counselling practicum in Western Canada. Utilising interpersonal process recall (IPR) interview methods, supervisees were asked to share their moment‐by‐moment nondisclosures that occurred during a recent videorecorded supervision session in which the supervisory dyad reviewed a videorecording of the supervisee's clinical work. Thematic analysis across cases yielded five overarching themes: (a) validation; (b) safety; (c) growth and accomplishment; (d) performance anxiety; and (e) avoidance. The findings revealed a broad range of positive and negative supervisee nondisclosures that were influenced by the supervision modality of videorecording review and the IPR interview. Implications for clinical supervision, limitations of the study and suggestions for future research are discussed.     

What Is Unique About Supervising Couple Therapists?

Abstract

What is unique about supervising couple therapists? To answer this question I highlight three important therapeutic processes in CT and their accompanying supervisory implications. The first process, the attending to values and beliefs about the meaning of coupling to couples and therapists and its influence on CT, is facilitated by supervisors who help supervisees uncover values and beliefs about coupling. The second process, developing the therapeutic alliance which has a unique complexity in CT, is facilitated by the processing of the therapeutic alliance in supervision and discovering ways of strengthening it. The final process, attending to emotion prevalent in CT, is facilitated by supervisors who assist supervisees in becoming comfortable with the expression of emotion and work with it constructively in CT. After briefly describing each process and why it is viewed as important in CT, I suggest ways supervisors can assist supervisees' becoming more proficient in them. An abbreviated supervision illustration ends each section.     

Working with Lesbians,Gays, and Bisexuals: Addressing Heterosexism in Supervision

Heterosexism is a form of multicultural bias that has the potential to harm both clients and supervisees. Supervisors are encouraged to examine their own heterosexist lens as a first step in providing a safe environment in which supervisees can challenge their own heterosexism. The issue of heterosexism is first discussed from an ethical vantage point. The second section of the article examines four facets of heterosexism (discrimination, lack of knowledge, stereotyping, and insensitivity) and how they might be exhibited by the supervisor in the supervision arena. Special topics discussed in this section include: the possible consequences of “coming out” in the supervisory context; the presence of heterosexism in the foundational family systems theory; the need for recognition of the special family characteristics of lesbians, gays, and bisexuals; the value of personal and professional relationships with persons who are gay, lesbian, and bisexual; common heterosexist stereotypes and research that refutes them; and the use of language. The final section of the article offers suggestions for working with supervisees around these issues.     

Group supervision of groups: a modern analytic perspective

This article is introduced by historical references to Freud's Wednesday Evening Society and to relevant sources in the literature on group supervision. The aims of group supervision are defined: helping supervisees to understand the individuals who comprise their groups, helping the supervisee become a group-oriented therapist, alerting supervisees to the critical task of monitoring and regulating the amount of emotional excitation within their groups, helping supervisees deal with the range of feelings induced in them by their groups, and helping them become familiar with the principles and become proficient in the techniques of modern analysis. Major aspects of the group-supervisory process are delineated and illustrated through the use of relevant vignettes. Resistance in supervisory groups is discussed with examples of the resolution of some resistances. The author's method and style of leading supervisory groups is presented, as are observations on the boundaries of supervisory groups.     

Giving and Summoning Autonomy Support in Hierarchical Relationships

It is not easy to motivate and engage others in a way that is welcomed, effective, and relationship‐enriching. In a hierarchical relationship, supervisors' motivating styles and supervisees' agentic engagement–disengagement are often in conflict, rather than in synch. Still, reciprocal causation appears to be a naturally occurring process within these relationships, as supervisors' motivating styles longitudinally transform supervisees' engagement–disengagement, just as supervisees' engagement–disengagement transforms and summons the supervisors' motivating styles. Recognizing this, the article highlights an intervention‐based program of research designed to help infuse greater autonomy support and greater agentic engagement into the supervisor–supervisee relationship. When an experimentally based intervention helps supervisors learn how to become more autonomy supportive, interaction partners become more in synch, and this mutually supportive relationship dynamic yields numerous benefits for the supervisor, the supervisee, and the relationship. Future interventions are needed to understand what happens when supervisees learn how to become more agentically engaged. The conclusion is that relationships need and benefit from infusions of both the giving and the summoning of autonomy support.     

Temporal dimensions of the self-concept: Entrapped and possible selves in chronic pain

Abstract

The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore temporal aspects of chronic pain patients' conceptions of their selves; what they were in the past, how they were functioning at the present and what they thought about their potential and future. In-depth interviews with 21 chronic pain patients were performed and analysed. The main results of the analysis included four higher-order conceptual patterns: “the body and I”, “maintaining the consistency of past self”, the “entrapped self”, and “projected selves, defined by others”. These results are presented in a systems-oriented model illustrating the temporal dynamic between the perceived functioning self, the body and others, such as health care personnel and significant others. The mechanisms of the process of how selves are developing in the chronisation or healing process of pain are finally discussed. A clinical implication of these findings might be that with an enlarged insight of the temporal dynamic and the importance of interactive and social factors in shaping positive possible selves, health care personnel can contribute more effectively in stew-arding the chronic pain patient toward health-promotive ends and a concomitantly higher quality of life.     

Self-Portraits: Possible Selves in European-American,Chilean, Japanese and Japanese-American Cultural Contexts

Possible selves of students from European-American (EA), Chilean (CH), Japanese-American (JA), and Japanese (JN) cultural contexts were analyzed, revealing differences in the emphasis given to various content themes. EA possible selves focus on intrapersonal themes (i.e., “fear being dependent”), consistent with cultural emphases on uniqueness and independent development. In JN, JA and CH contexts, career and education themes dominate possible selves, consistent with particularly strong cultural emphasis on professional and academic accomplishments. The cultural contexts also differ in their predominant configurations of possible selves—EA and CH possible selves often show balance (expected and feared selves of similar theme but opposing valence, i.e., “expect to graduate from college” and “fear dropping out of college”) while JN and JA selves more frequently match (expected and feared selves of similar thematic content and valence, i.e., “expect to be idle” and “fear being idle”).     

The Emergence of Sex

Biological traits, the foci of natural selection, are by definition emergent from the genes, proteins, and other “nothing-buts” that constitute them. Moreover, and with the exception of recently emergent “spandrels,” each can be accorded a teleological dimension—each is “for” some purpose conducive to an organism's continuation. Sex, which is “for” the generation of recombinant genomes, may be one of the most ancient and ubiquitous traits in biology. In the course of its evolution, many additional traits, such as gender and nurture, have emerged. Patterns of sexual exchange are the basis for patterns of biological evolution and are central to the process of eukaryotic speciation. Human sexuality is central to our selves.     

Critical Incidents in Multicultural Supervision: Exploring Supervisees' and Supervisors' Experiences

Reports of supervisors' and supervisees' critical incidents in multicultural supervision were used to (a) explore events in supervision that influenced supervisees' multicultural competence, (b) explore how supervision was experienced differently by supervisors and supervisees, and (c) identify recommendations for improving multicultural supervision. Implications for training and research are discussed. Los reportes de incidentes críticos en la supervisión multicultural fueron utilizados para (a) explorar los acontecimientos en la supervisión que influyeron la competencia multicultural de los supervisados (b) explorar cómo la supervisión fue experimentada diferentemente por los supervisores y los supervisados e (c) identificar recomendaciones para mejorar la supervisión multicultural. Se discuten las implicaciones para la instrucción e investigación en esta area.     

Future Selves and Self-Control Motivation

Self-control is well established as a predictor of crime and deviance. Little is known, however, about the motivation to exert self-control, or the degree to which individuals perceive self-control to be relevant or necessary. This is because the “self” in self-control theory is under-theorized. We argue that self-control over criminal and deviant behavior is influenced by the desired and feared conceptions people have of themselves in the future. We argue that people's projections of their future selves engender commitments to lines of action, which mobilize the motivation to exercise self-control. By developing a more detailed conception of the “self” in self-control theory, we hope to orient criminology more fully to the importance of individuals' projected future selves and intended lines of action for understanding the relationship between self-control and criminal behavior.     

The relationship of supervisor and trainee gender match and gender attitude match to supervisory style and the supervisory working alliance

Background: Gender‐related events have the potential to impact the supervisory relationship. Gender events might be related to the match between supervisors and supervisees on variables such as gender or gender attitudes. Method: In this study, we sought to determine whether gender match and gender attitude match were related to supervisory style and the supervisory working alliance in 94 supervisory dyads using four instruments: the Gender Attitude Inventory; Operationalisation of Gender Match; Supervisory Styles Inventory; and the Working Alliance Inventory/Supervision. Results: Progressive dyads (in which supervisors have more liberal attitudes about societal issues and culturally defined roles for women than their supervisees) were perceived by supervisors as more task‐oriented than parallel‐high dyads (in which supervisors and supervisees both had liberal attitudes). Implications for counselling supervision are discussed.     

“They Go Too Far”: Reply to Review Essays by Lewes and O'Connor

Kenneth Lewes and Noreen O'Connor share little common ground in their discussions of Lesbian Lives. They agree that it represents, in Lewes's words, “important trends in psychoanalysis and more general intellectual discourse” (“the developing discourse on homosexuality, the ascendancy of feminist ideas within psychoanalysis, … the shift … from classical drive theory to … more … relational approaches, and the influence of postmodern social and literary thought”). But whereas O'Connor welcomes a text she sees as offering “critiques of traditional psychoanalysis's binary theorising of gender and sexuality,” Lewes finds that Lesbian Lives presents “certain questions and difficulties, especially to those who, like myself, espouse theoretical and political allegiances quite different from them.” This article responds to several of Lewes's distortions and misreadings, including his allegations that the authors believe they can “conduct therapy without theory or value” and that they “insist on the essential sameness of people who are heterosexual and homosexual.” Lewes also wrongly attributes to the authors a simplistic belief in “sexual fluidity” and the “multiplicity of selves.” Instead, the text of Lesbian Lives in various ways encourages psychoanalysis to incorporate into its developmental models what it has learned clinically about the multiple dimensions of subjective experience.     

A theology of pastoral multiplicity

The contemporary moment is characterized by liquidity and difference. “Liquidity” means rapidly changing social structures, accelerations in consumption, and constantly changing personal and group identities. In this increasingly diverse context, encounters with difference are not only inevitable, they are essential—and can be transformative for our understandings of our multiple selves, for our pastoral encounters with others, and for our theological imagination, as well. Viewing the self, especially the pastor's self, as a collection of multiple selves, identities, and performances illumines pastoral leadership; pastors who claim their multiplicity more wholly meet “others” when encountering difference. The triune God reveals divine multiplicity, so pastors who claim their multiplicity as their identity thereby make a theological claim.     

A Narrative Search for Respect

This article examines narratives of the self used by stigmatized people searching for respect on the streets of Oslo, Norway. The three narratives—“it was my own choice,” “I'm decent,” and “we're the same”—are embedded in conventional discourse. They are utilized in claims to be morally decent selves. Three different narratives—“I'm interesting,” “I'm smart,” and “I'm dangerous”—are embedded in the gangster discourse of a violent street subculture. They are utilized in order to appear as fascinating and competent. This ambivalent presentation of self challenges concepts such as “the code of the street” and “street culture.”     

Warrior Chicks: Youthful Aging in a Postfeminist Prosperity Discourse

In a youth‐oriented evangelical congregation where being perceived as “old” might marginalize member involvement and participation, a Hollywood, California congregation's women's ministry, God Chicks, presents aging women as possessing “godly wisdom,” endowing older women with spiritually charged energy, authority, and responsibility for training younger women to live “godly” lives. Ethnographic research and in depth media analysis of the God Chicks ministry reveals a particularly energizing evangelical postfeminist orientation that applies prosperity theology to contemporary challenges of changing women's roles. Specifically, the God Chicks ministry provides “women over forty” with consumer and caretaking strategies for maintaining youthful selves and motivating younger women. A “God Chick” emerges as a compelling, youthful gendered religious identity that expects congregationally committed women to be strong, healthy, and active warriors who fight multiple relational and global humanitarian battles. Overall, this study demonstrates the construction of an innovative postfeminist evangelical identity through the tactical, opportunistic use of theological doctrine by ministry leaders within a particularistic geographic location.