Predictors of Supervision Behaviours

Supervision is seen as a key aspect for initial training and ongoing professional developmentof allied health professionals. Limited research has empirically validated the contribution ofsupervision to specific outcomes. It is argued that for effective supervision, several elementsneed to occur. Supervision sessions need to be held, and both supervisors and superviseesneed to engage in behaviours that improve the clinical practice of the supervisee. Inparticular, supervision sessions need to focus on skill acquisition and reflective support.The current study sought to further examine factors that influence the occurrence of specificsupervision behaviours within sessions. It is predicted that the past occurrence of supervisionbehaviours, self-efficacy related to supervision behaviours, a positive supervisionrelationship, lack of perceived problems in supervision, and participation in training couldpredict the occurrence of specific behaviours within sessions.Fifty-nine supervision pairs completed baseline and 3 months assessments related tosupervision behaviours. Three supervision behaviours were examined: total hours ofsupervision sessions, frequency of reflective support behaviours and frequency of skillacquisition behaviours. Results indicated past behaviour was the best predictor of total hoursof supervision, reflective practice, and skill acquisition behaviours. Good supervision practicetends to be maintained over time. Supervisee self-efficacy further increases the prediction ofappropriate supervision behaviours, suggesting a reconsideration of the supervisee’s rolewithin supervision. Weak results from supervision training suggest that significant challengesremain in finding ways to enhance the quality of supervision.