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Abstract
A national sample of Canadian psychologists who provide clinical supervision in academic or service settings (n = 156) was surveyed regarding their background preparation for clinical supervision, satisfaction with current supervisory load, and workplace support for supervisory activities and development. With respect to supervisor training and development, we found that (a) almost twothirds of the respondents received no formal training in supervision, (b) most initially felt inadequately prepared to supervise trainees, (c) subsequent self study of supervision was perceived as helpful, and (d) self study was associated with administrative encouragement for professional development. Exploration of supervisory load and workplace support showed that (a) a large majority of respondents were satisfied with their load, (bj satisfaction did not differ across academic and service settings, and (c) supervisors in service settings were more satisfied with opportunities for peer support around supervision. Respondents called for more training in supervision and increased amounts of time on the job to devote to supervision. The need for increased training in supervision at all levels, continuing professional education, and workplace enhancements to facilitate supervision are discussed.
Consider the following question: "What aspect of graduate training and education has the greatest impact on the applied competencies of clinical psychology trainees?" For many psychologists the answer to this question would likely include the quality and quantity of clinical supervision received. Despite the importance of clinical supervision to the education and training of clinical students, our collective scientific knowledge about supervision has traditionally suffered from benign neglect (Bernard & Goodyear, 1998).In contrast to our knowledge about the theory and practice of psychotherapy, where we know a great deal, the literature on clinical supervision remains in its infancy (Watkins, 1997b) .
The knowledge base concerning the practice of supervision by psychologists in Canada is no exception to the general neglect of supervision in the literature. To our knowledge, there exists only one published survey concerning psychology supervision in Canada. In 1996, Howes, Vallis, Wilson, Ross, and Louisy reported the results of a survey they distributed to psychology supervisors at 35 internships listed in the 1992-93 Canadian Council of Professional Psychology Programs (CCPPP) directory. Because our research builds on Howes et al.'s work, we will review some of their findings.
The first noteworthy finding from...