Learning from expert supervisors in action

The importance of psychotherapy supervision can be attested to by the increased state laws and regulations certifying supervisors but also the recent development of the APA Guidelines on Supervision (2014). Although there are an increasing number of calls for materials outlining and demonstrating what expert supervisors actually do in supervision, supervision remains a behind closed doors activity.

To rectify this situation, APA recently undertook a new video series spearheaded by Hanna Levenson and Arpana G. Inman. In this series, 11 eminent psychotherapy supervisors each conduct a 45-minute supervision session with one of his/her supervisees. The format of the series is closely modeled after APA’s Expert Therapist Series. Each expert represents a different approach to supervision cutting across the range of psychotherapy-based and supervision-based orientations.

For this Workshop, I will show excerpts from two-three of these videos—starting and stopping the DVD at appropriate moments to allow discussion of essential supervisory parameters. Specifically, for each model the theoretical underpinnings and/or perspective of the approach will be addressed. The goals, tasks, and functions of the model will be elucidated, as well the supervisory methods and techniques used. As the supervisory hour unfolds, the structure and process of each model will be highlighted, and the participants will have the opportunity to try on the central tenets of that model for one of their supervisory cases. In addition to these basic principles, each model examines how it handles common supervisory dilemmas (e.g., teach-treat tensions, difficult supervisees, trainee deficits, power issues, legal/ethical considerations) and multicultural/diversity issues. Research evidence for each approach will be provided.