Transitional Dynamics of Three Supervisory Styles Using Markov Chain Analysis

Counseling supervision is a critically important process that depends on the establishment of a supportive, collaborative, and developmentally enhancing working relationship. However, the actual verbal exchanges within the supervisory dyads are infrequently examined in the literature. In this study, we used Markov chain analysis to explore supervision dynamics of 34 supervisory dyads and how these dynamics varied within three supervisory styles (i.e., attractive, interpersonally sensitive, and task oriented). Among the three styles, the interpersonally sensitive supervisory style was the only discriminant variable based on which supervisory dyads exhibited statistically different state-transitional patterns (i.e., movement patterns across six supervision events). The results of this study provide implications for clinical supervisors, counselor educators, counselors-in-training, and researchers who are interested in studying process features at the microlevel.