Date of Award
Spring 1998
Document Type
Dissertation - Restricted
Degree Name
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
Department
Education
First Advisor
Tagatz, Glenn
Second Advisor
Briggs, John
Third Advisor
Kipfmueller, Mark
Abstract
The effectiveness of therapy is a result of the dynamic interplay among many complex components. It includes 1) the characteristics of the client, 2) the therapeutic relationship, 3) theoretical orientation of the therapist, and 4) the expectancy or placebo effect (Lambert & Bergin, 1994). We cannot control presenting issues or characteristics of our clients, but as educators and supervisors of therapeutic intervention, we are in a position to educate and influence individuals who are in the process of professional training. Among the interactive dyads in the client, therapist, and supervisor context (i.e., therapist and client, client and supervisor, and supervisor and therapist) it is on the supervisor-therapist interaction that supervisors have the greatest influence. Recognizing that it is the welfare of the client that is the most important consideration of the three participants (Cornell, 1994; Clarkson, 1992), the client's welfare seems best served during the training of therapists when most emphasis is given to the supervisor-therapist dyad, emphasizing the increase in competency of the therapist. It is this dyadic relationship between supervisor and therapist that constitutes -the focus of this dissertation. The importance of this dyadic relationship between a supervisor and a therapist cannot be overstated. Research shows that therapist burnout (Bush, Powell, & Herzberg, 1993 ), and career changes--even after several years of being a therapist--(Chemiss, 1989), can be traced back to ineffective supervision. These researchers contend that traditional supervision models have not been effective in developing a sense of high perceived self-efficacy (Bandura, 1977) in the developing therapist. Therefore a need for an effective approach to supervision is warranted. That is the focus of this dissertation.