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InPsych 2023 | Vol 45

Spring 2023

Highlights

Five key tips for conducting an effective supervision session

Five key tips for conducting an effective supervision session

There’s no one-size-fits-all approach to conducting an effective supervision session. But there are some common elements to keep in mind when it comes to cultivating an environment conducive to effective supervision.

Supervision is an essential foundation for growth as a psychologist. As well as being a critical space to work through the complex and emotionally charged situations psychologists are often faced with, an effective supervisory arrangement also helps to build psychologists' skills and develop insights into their therapeutic approach. These goals can be achieved through one-on-one supervision, involving focused discussion and deep observation, or through group sessions.

Dr Catriona Davis-McCabe, President of the Australian Psychological Society, says one major benefit of an individual setting, rather than a group one, is that a supervisee may feel more comfortable being vulnerable. “The supervisor only needs to focus on one supervisory relationship, and this relationship can be quite unique," she says. 

However, she notes that because supervisors tend to practice from their particular modality, individual supervision can limit the supervisee’s learning opportunities. 

“Group members may have different training and experiences and therefore bring different lenses and skills… Collusion is less likely to happen in a group setting and therefore accountability may be enhanced.” 

Due to the unique benefits and challenges that each option presents, the Psychology Board of Australia doesn’t favour one type of supervision over another. 

Psychologists can participate in either or both types of supervision, but for provisional psychologists and those in a registrar program, a proportion of their overall supervision must be individually based. Regardless of the type of supervision, there are some key components necessary for effective supervision.  

Here are five top tips to keep in mind.

1. Discuss practical elements 

At the start of a supervision contract, the supervisor should allow time to discuss key practical elements, including the roles and responsibilities of the supervisee and supervisor, as well as logistical information, such as time, place, frequency of sessions, cost and record keeping. 
 
The option for virtual supervision removes geographical limitations, and provides psychologists with greater access to supervisors across different areas of practice endorsement.

“If supervision is to take place online, it is ideal if the initial meeting can be conducted face-to-face to establish some familiarity,” says Dr Davis-McCabe. 
 
“However, this may not be possible and it is important to consider all factors that could impact on supervision – for example, speaking to the camera versus the screen for better eye contact – how confidentiality will be maintained, how to manage pauses or lags, and what to do if technological issues arise.”

In an ideal scenario, a practitioner will have a different supervisor to their line manager. The reason for this is well-illustrated by a 2007 study of occupational therapists. Practitioners who were supervised by their line managers held back from discussing their skills and performance out of fear of being perceived as incompetent. As a result, progress in supervision was hindered and learning opportunities were missed.

However, in instances where the supervisor is also the psychologist’s line manager, Dr Davis-McCabe advises that supervision takes place in a different location to the managerial conversations, to try to delineate the two relationships.

The duration and frequency of supervision sessions vary depending on the supervisee’s evolving learning needs and their professional pathway: 

It’s also advisable for supervisors to encourage their supervisee to develop and share a learning plan, says Dr Davis-McCabe.

“This is common practice for supervision of provisional psychologists and registrars, as the supervisor needs to be actively monitoring and evaluating competency development.

“Fully registered psychologists engaging in peer consultation supervision can also benefit from this so that peers know what learnings their colleague is hoping to gain.”

As well as a broad learning plan, supervisors should home into the discreet goals of each session.

“Sessions will be more focused if an agenda is collaboratively set at the beginning of each session. This also allows the supervisor to check on what the supervisee is looking for specifically in that session.” 

2. Make cultural reflexivity a priority

Engaging in reflective practice extends to the supervisor and psychologist examining their own culture – including, but not limited to, one’s age, ethnicity, gender, religious and/or spiritual orientation.

Dr Davis-McCabe says cultural reflexivity requires closely examining how a person's culture might impact supervision, practicing cultural humility and inclusivity, and being respectful of someone else’s culture, which can be achieved by the supervisor utilising open, non-judgmental dialogue and prioritising metacognitive strategies.

“It is important for supervisors to model and encourage cultural reflexivity, which can be done through acknowledging professional limitations or [obtaining] knowledge of culturally diverse practices, seeking further education and support, and regularly checking in.”

3. Facilitate reflection

For a psychologist to derive full benefit from supervision, reflective practice is key. 

Dr Davis-McCabe says adopting a Socratic approach (i.e. a shared dialogue in which the supervisor asks open-ended questions) and exploring underlying thoughts and feelings allows the supervisee to engage in deep processing so that shifts in practice occur.

 “Supervisors need to ask good questions and allow space for thoughtful consideration and [responses].” 

Reflective practice could be enabled by observing video recordings of the sessions.

“The supervisor can observe and ask questions to explore what was happening in the video. For example, ‘What are you feeling in this part of the video? Where is that feeling coming from? What do you think is working/not working?’

“The supervisor can encourage the supervisee to self-assess on their progress, so they are critically reviewing their own work before the supervisor provides their feedback.”

Reflect on your supervision experiences with other APS members by joining PsyCommunity, a safe online community covering a range of topics relevant to clinical practice.

4. Meet ethical guidelines

The APS outlines ethical guidelines for conducting a supervision session. Supervisors should address key elements of the guidelines in the initial supervision agreement, and ensure they regularly review the guidelines.

“This will support the integration of ethics into the process from the beginning,” says Dr Davis-McCabe.

These elements include: 

  • Maintaining the confidentiality of the supervisee and the supervisee’s clients 
  • Periodically reviewing the supervision contract and amending it as required
  • Ensuring supervisees contribute to the process of establishing the contract

Dr Davis-McCabe adds that supervisors are also encouraged to seek guidance from a more senior supervisor, who can help to address any ethical issues that may arise during supervision.

“Supervisors need to ask good questions and allow space for thoughtful consideration and [responses].” – Dr Catriona Davis-McCabe

5. Give and receive quality feedback

Good supervision requires open, honest and regular feedback.

“This should be discussed in the contracting phase when supervision is established, so that the supervisee is fully aware of this aspect of supervision and [it] becomes a natural part of the process,” says Dr Davis-McCabe. 

Feedback occurs in two primary ways:

1. Formative feedback is informal and ongoing.
 
“Progress towards goals and competencies is transparent and both parties understand where the supervisee currently stands and discussions can occur on what needs to happen for development.” 

2. Summative feedback is evaluative and occurs more formally, such as at mid and end-year placement reviews. 

Importantly, feedback isn’t a one-way street. The supervisee should also be encouraged to share feedback on the supervisor’s approach. 

This can also happen informally, with the supervisor asking about the supervisee’s experience, or more formally through questionnaires such as the Supervisory Relationship Questionnaire or the Supervisory Working Alliance Inventory.

“The supervisor needs to be proactive in seeking feedback and allow a safe, nonjudgmental space for the feedback to occur.”

References

Disclaimer: Published in InPsych on September 2023. The APS aims to ensure that information published in InPsych is current and accurate at the time of publication. Changes after publication may affect the accuracy of this information. Readers are responsible for ascertaining the currency and completeness of information they rely on, which is particularly important for government initiatives, legislation or best-practice principles which are open to amendment. The information provided in InPsych does not replace obtaining appropriate professional and/or legal advice.