Current Trends in Practicum Supervision Research

This article presents a conceptual framework and explores the results and implications of practicum research published from 1975–1982. Forty-two studies were found pertaining directly to practicum supervision and were divided into two categories: maximizing effectiveness of the practicum experience and specific techniques in practicum supervision. Overall, practicum supervision was found to be a worthwhile and beneficial experience and a necessary part of counselor education programs. Focusing on the personality characteristics or value systems of supervisors or supervisees, however, produced mixed results in predicting training effectiveness. There was greater consistency in the examination of specific techniques in supervision with positive outcomes resulting from the utilization of microtraining, dual supervision, peer supervision, modeling, and IPR. The use of programmed instruction was not supported.     

Peer Evaluation and Practicum Supervision

An investigation was made to determine the interrater reliability and validity of peer evaluations in a practicum setting. The interrater reliability on the Rating Scale of Counselor Effectiveness was high. Validity was determined by comparing student evaluations with supervisor evaluations. Agreement shown by rank order correlations was high, but differences in absolute scores between student and supervisor were significant with students consistently rating their peers higher.     

Review of Research on Practicum Supervision

This six-year review of research on practicum supervision examines articles in terms of findings and the research designs employed. Research is classified according to (a) counselor—supervisor similarity, (b) training methods, and (c) evaluation. Conclusions from the review indicate: (a) the investigators found no support for matching counselors and supervisors according to similar traits; (b) there was some support for modeling, didactic, and experiential methods; (c) there was some support for peer supervision; and (d) an experimental design was used in only 4 of the 19 studies examined.     

Review of Research on Practicum Supervision

This five-year review of research on practicum supervision examines research findings and research designs. Research is classified according to the role of the supervisor, the training procedure, and the rating systems. The major focus of research has been on training in the core conditions of facilitative communication. Modeling techniques have been used effectively in practicum, didactic approaches have been more effective than experiential approaches, and audiotape procedures in training were as effective as videotape techniques.     

Review of Research on Practicum Supervision

This 10-year review of articles on practicum supervision examines articles in terms of findings and research design employed. Research is classified according to (a) role of the supervisor, (b) process of supervision, and (c) rating systems in practicum. While the studies reviewed were indicative of prevalent characteristics of counselor candidates and procedures for rating their counseling performance, still unclear are: expected supervisory roles, the effects of various roles on trainee performance, and the differential effectiveness of contemporary methods of supervision in assisting counselors to work more effectively with their clients. More highly refined experimental studies of counselor supervision are urged.     

Structured Peer Group Practicum Supervision: Supervisees' Perceptions of Supervision Theory

The authors discuss a thematic analysis of retrospective phenomenological interviews of 4 group counseling practicum participants. Implications for developmental supervision theory and future research are presented.     

Coordination of Clinical Supervision in Practicum and Internship Programs

The authors examine practicum/internship coordination, viewing it as a system. Important components of the system are identified, and their impact on the system is explored.     

Practicum Supervision Roles: Effects on Supervisee Statements

The practicum supervision model evaluated in this study utilized the three commonly accepted supervision roles of teacher, counselor, and consultant as methods of addressing specific supervisee issues. Supervisors performed the roles in structured supervision sessions, and supervisee statements were analyzed to determine if use of the roles influenced supervisee behaviors. Utilization of the roles was found to be a significantly effective means of influencing the content of supervisee verbalizations during practicum supervision sessions.     

A Scale for Evaluating Practicum Students in Counseling and Supervision

This article presents an instrument, the Counselor Evaluation Rating Scale, which can be used as an aid in the systematic evaluation of a student counselor in a supervised counseling experience. Development of the CERS and its reliability are discussed. Some suggestions are offered as to how the instrument can serve as a useful tool for supervisors when faced with the task of conceptualizing and communicating an evaluation.     

A Multimethod Model for Practicum and Clinical Supervision in Nursing Homes

Nursing homes are an increasingly important setting for gerontological counseling. This article portrays a multimethod approach to counselor training and supervision in nursing homes.     

A Behavioral Model for the Practicum Supervision of Counselor Candidates

This article presents a behavioral model of supervisor behavior for the counseling practicum that involves supervisor, counselor, and client. Five identifiable stages in supervision are presented: (a) the initial session, (b) the development of a facilitative relationship, (c) goal identification and determination of supervisory procedures, (d) the use of supervisory techniques and procedures, and (e) termination and follow-up. This supervisory process between supervisor and counselor is related to the counseling process between counselor and client.     

Integrative Reflective Model of Group Supervision: Practicum Students' Experiences

The authors conducted a phenomenological study of 10 practicum students' experiences of the integrative reflective model of group supervision. Six categories emerged: (a) intentional listening, (b) engaged in the process, (c) extension and application of the model, (d) personalization feedback, (e) mindful listening, and (f) dimensional feedback. An implication was students' openness to constructive feedback in group supervision.     

Using Cognitive Interventions With Counseling Practicum Students During Group Supervision

The authors argue that students in counseling practicum courses experience many self‐defeating thoughts and anxieties. These worries can impede their performance as new counselors and can have a negative impact on the supervision process. The authors outline innovative methods used by cognitive therapists to address this anxiety. In addition, a model is presented for counselor educators to use cognitive restructuring techniques as a supervision tool. Summary Throughout their studies, counseling graduate students face many possible fears and anxieties that arise from their classroom experiences. The greatest fears and anxieties seem to be related to the counseling practicum experience. This experience is one in which students may feel incompetent, vulnerable, and unskilled as they begin to put their classroom knowledge and experiences into practice. If these fears and anxieties persist, students have a hard time making progress in the area of the counseling relationship and skill building. We have examined how practicum students' fears and anxieties might be addressed, using cognitive interventions. Such interventions allow students to take irrational thoughts and change them to rational thought patterns. This is accomplished by asking students to state their fears verbally, to think about the effects of the fears and the consequences, to think about intervening beliefs and thoughts, and to restate the fears in a rational manner. Our experience suggests that cognitive interventions are useful strategies to help practicum students combat fears and anxieties. Further research might examine the use of other behavioral interventions to address these fears. For example, does role‐playing a counseling technique in supervision make a student less anxious about applying it in a real counseling session? In summary, fear and anxiety can impede the preparation of counselors during their practicum experiences. Understanding the underlying thoughts that cause these fears can help students overcome self‐defeating thought patterns. Cognitive restructuring techniques have been shown to reduce tension and can be used with counseling practicum students to help relieve performance and supervision anxiety.     

Cybersupervision: Further Examination of Synchronous and Asynchronous Modalities in Counseling Practicum Supervision

The authors used an intensive single‐subject quantitative design to examine cybersupervision of counseling practicum students in a university setting. Five female supervisees volunteered to receive their required weekly supervision online during a 14‐week, semester‐long counseling practicum. Following a face‐to‐face orientation meeting, all remaining interactions among the supervisees and with the supervisor occurred electronically. Data were collected about the utility of the synchronous and asynchronous modalities, changes in supervisee competence and confidence during the practicum, and supervisee attitudes about the cybersupervision approach. The findings offered evidence that the web‐based modality could be used in similar settings.     

Toward the Development of Facilitative Counselors: The Effects of Practicum Instruction and Individual Supervision

The functioning of 22 counseling and therapy practicum students on the dimensions of empathy, regard, genuineness, and concreteness was assessed over a 20-week period. Predictions of growth were made on the basis of the level of functioning of individual supervisors and practicum instructors. It was found that those students with high-level practicum instructors and high-level individual supervisors showed significant growth. The students with high-level practicum instructors and low-level individual supervisors also showed significant gains but took a longer period of time to do so. Those students with low-level practicum instructors and low-level individual supervisors showed no growth on these dimensions.