A dissertation submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the Master of Arts Degree in Clinical Psychology at the University of Zululand, South Africa, 2011. / This study was used to compare how supervisors and supervisees experience supervision at the University of Zululand in the department of psychology. A survey was conducted with the use of Likert type questionnaires. The researcher used the data that was gathered during the pilot study (which was conducted in 2008) as well as the recommendations to formulate a 5-point scale. Items were in a counterbalanced order to identify and control response bias. Participants were then asked to suggest what they thought should be done to improve supervision in an open-ended question. Each statement was presented individually in terms of percentages of respondents and their level of agreement with the statement. Statements were designed to elicit particular themes so the researcher condensed them so as to better describe self-perceived experiences of both supervisors and supervisees. The findings were descriptive of the reality of supervision (what is happening) as perceived by the participants. These findings were then compared with the existing literature on supervision (what should be happening). The findings showed a more positive picture than what had been anticipated by the researcher. Nevertheless, a few gaps were identified and recommendations were made in an attempt to bridge them. This study has provided valuable information on how supervision is experienced by both supervisors and supervisees. Moreover, it is of value to the university departments that incorporate supervision as part of their training process, especially the helping professions. Furthermore, the study helped in the identification of factors that supervisors and supervisees view as attributes in the promotion of professional development.

A collective case study is the study of more than one case (Stake, 1995). One therapist supervisor and three therapist supervisees from a child and adolescent residential foster care facility were observed during their individual clinical supervision and interviewed post-supervision. Currently, the literature on clinical supervision seldom addresses the supervision of working professional counselors; particularly those who are child and adolescent counselors (CACs). Using a qualitative approach, two fundamental questions guided this inquiry: (a) what is the nature of clinical supervision involving a supervisor who provides clinical supervision to counselors in a child and adolescent residential foster care center that provides mental health treatment? and (b) within the clinical supervision experience, what issues involving children and adolescents does the supervisor explore?Participants provided detailed demographic information about their work and educational experience. During the post-supervision interviews participants recalled the content of the clinical supervision, discussed their thoughts and feelings about the supervision experience, explored how the supervision met their supervisory needs and expanded on their beliefs about the process of supervision in general. Constant comparative analyses, both within-case and cross-case, were conducted and themes emerged from the interviews. Various themes emerged that were associated with: administrative supervision, best practices, case specific discussion, developmental understanding, ethical dilemmas, the personal issues of the supervisor and supervisees, supervision practices, treatment modalities, treatment planning, and working with various systems. Within the clinical supervision of CACs in residential foster care the nature of supervision is related to discussing specific cases in the facility, the supervision practice as it is experienced within each supervisor supervisee relationship, and a general desire to explore the best approaches when working with the children and adolescents at the facility. Collectively the supervisor and supervisees explored issues related to children and adolescents specific to individual cases consistent with generic supervision. Implications for practice and research are also discussed.

The phenomenon under investigation in this study was the experience of having an Asian identity while in a U.S. counseling psychology graduate/professional-training context. Using a qualitative methodology involving 12 participants, descriptive phenomenological analysis of in-depth interview data illuminated five structures which comprise the essence of the phenomenon. These essential structures include: Need to negotiate or cope with cultural value conflicts, Feeling subtle effects of marginalization, Navigating through unique dynamics in working with ethnically-similar clients, Understanding the strengths afforded by Asian identity, and Desire for increased assistance in the integration of cultural and professional identities. These findings suggest that Asian identity within the context of U.S. counseling psychology professional-training can, at times, be a source of struggle as well as a strength/asset. Recommendations to training programs include suggestions for providing resources that increase the empowering aspects related to Asian identity and reduce any hindering effects. Recommendations to supervisors include suggestions to spend more time discussing how Asian trainees' ethnic/cultural identity may impact their work with clients.