Critical Supervision for the Human Services

A Social Model to Promote Learning and Value-Based Practice

Lou Johnston, Carolyn Noble, Mel Gray

• Publisher: Jessica Kingsley Publishers
• Year: 2016
• Print ISBN:
  9781849055895
• eBook ISBN:
  9781784500436
• Topic: Ciencias sociales
• Subtopic: Trabajo social

Practitioners in the helping professions today operate in challenging settings where budgets have been cut dramatically, and progression and success are too often defined primarily by key performance indicators and strategic outcomes. Tensions arise when such pressures conflict with helping professionals' core responsibilities to provide excellent care, advocate for patients or service users and to seek social justice.

This book introduces a critical model for supervision which addresses not only the human relationships and interactions involved in work, but also the financial, political and managerial environment in which the work is carried out. It identifies how reflective practice alone is not enough to bring about transformational change, and outlines how practitioners can learn in and through supervision, drawing on ideas from critical pedagogy and organisational learning. Practice examples are included to demonstrate the use of this approach within contemporary human service environments.

Providing a new approach for effective supervision, this book will be of interest to practitioners, managers, researchers, academics and students working across the human services, including health care, social services and criminal justice.

CHAPTER 1

Contemporary Approaches to Supervision in the Human Services

This opening chapter explores contemporary approaches to supervision in the human services, where, for the most part, it is defined in terms of its purpose, function and role in professional development and practice improvement. Inherent in these approaches is what supervision can and cannot and should and should not do. ‘Good’ supervision is underpinned by the notions of developing competent, accountable, ethically informed, effective practitioners to ensure the work of the organisation in providing professional support and appropriate services is carried out with maximum efficiency. A ‘good’ supervisory relationship is said to be one where the supervisor and supervisee are equals, achieved through an ethos of cooperation, reciprocity and mutual learning (Davys and Beddoe, 2010; Hawken and Worrall, 2002; Hawkins and Shohet, 2012). Emphasis is on the supervisory relationship as a safe space of trust and respect, creating a springboard for curiosity, exploration, courage and willingness to take risks in practice strategies and service provision (Carroll and Tholstrupt, 2001; Hewson, 2001; McMahon and Patton, 2002; Page and Wosket, 2001). Newer supervision models emphasise an ‘integrative (developmental) approach’ (Carroll and Tholstrupt, 2001), ‘learning partnerships’ (Carroll and Gilbert, 2011) and ‘lifelong learning’ (Shohet, 2011). Many writers, however, talk about the triadic nature of supervision involving the practitioner, the supervisor or manager and the service user (although not physically present) in a tripartite relationship circumscribed by organisational requirements (Hughes and Pengelly, 1997; Noble and Irwin, 2009). We would add sociopolitical and cultural contexts as influences on this relationship as well. Carroll and Gilbert (2011) talk about ‘triple loop learning’ to reflect this systems perspective. While supervision is a medium to review and monitor practitioner performance and ensure accountability to service users, for the most part conventional models emphasise practitioner and organisational development and imply benefits for service users.

Many claims are made about the benefits of supervision and its propensity to improve service delivery, develop knowledge and practice skills, enhance understanding of professional values and ethics, increase job satisfaction, provide a valued defence against emotional exhaustion and burnout, facilitate practitioner resilience, improve workforce retention and further professional knowledge (Beddoe, Davys and Adamson, 2014; Bogo et al., 2011; Chiller and Crisp, 2012; Collins-Camargo and Royse, 2010; Mor Barak et al., 2009; Siebert, 2005). However, growing concerns have been expressed about the diminishing availability and quality of supervision and the potentially negative effects of this on service delivery in contemporary practice environments (Beddoe, 2010; Bogo and McKnight, 2005; Goddard and Hunt, 2011; Noble and Irwin, 2009). Some see the reduced number of skilled supervisors and increasing prominence of interprofessional supervision in the human services as signalling an uncertain future not only for progressive practice but also for supervision itself (Bogo and McKnight, 2005; Howard, Beddoe and Mowjood, 2013; Kadushin and Harkness, 2014). Others see the contemporary sociopolitical environment, where the dominant neoconservative view of welfare provision results in austerity and cutbacks, as stifling practitioners’ ability to critically review practice (Adamson, 2012; Hair, 2015; Noble and Irwin, 2009)

Supervision described

Supervision has variously been described as a form of professional development, a medium for professional accountability, a vehicle for professional learning and a process of ongoing reflection and feedback. Some place supervision on staged development or novice-to-expert continua (Dreyfus and Dreyfus, 1986; Hawkins and Shohet, 2012). However it is conceived, it is thought to involve a lifelong process of professional learning and development through which practitioners hone their effectiveness and expertise by reviewing their practice in light of new knowledge and practice understandings, thus acquiring new perspectives, knowledge and skills. At the same time, it is considered a means of emotional support and guidance for practitioners fulfilling organisational requirements, as well as remaining accountable to service users and managers alike (Ferguson, 2005; Hair, 2013; O’Neill, 2004).

Given the constant changes to organisational policies, supervision also plays a role in reducing stress and burnout and increasing resilience by assisting practitioners to adjust to ever-changing responsibilities and to negotiate new roles and expectations in their daily work (Beddoe et al., 2014; Chenot, Benton and Hansung, 2009; Gibbs, 2001; McFadden, Campbell and Taylor, 2015; van Heugten, 2011). However, supervisors also need to ensure performance indicators are met and this is often associated with monitoring work performance (Beddoe, 2010; Tsui, 2005). There is a fine line between accountability requirements and intrusive monitoring and surveillance, balanced by a focus on the practitioner’s developmental needs.

Approaches

Various approaches to supervision have developed over time. Their use varies between using only one or a combination of approaches. Most common approaches include:

•One-to-one individual supervision: The supervisor and supervisee meet regularly one-to-one. This can be extended to include one-to-two supervision sessions, where there is a collaborative or co-working relationship with two supervisors, or where the supervisee is working closely with another colleague.

•Self-supervision: Self-supervision is a valuable, legitimate, often underused resource when supervision with another person is not available or where the practitioner is working alone. It is also encouraged as complementary to supervision conversations with others so that the practitioner can become progressively more self-sufficient in applying thinking and learning from supervision conversations in practice. Self-supervision also helps supervisees take primary responsibility for identifying and meeting their own supervisory needs.

•Group supervision: This can include multidisciplinary teams, communities of practice, interagency and interprofessional groups, and small work groups. It can be effective when a supervisor is responsible for a number of staff members. Working with a group can extend knowledge, skills and experiences, and provide an important platform for examining multiple perspectives on practice situations upon which to draw in practice.

•Staff and organisational supervision: This is another form of individual or group supervision with a more specific focus on balancing practitioner performance with service delivery outcomes and internal and external accountability.

•Peer supervision: This occurs when a small group of practitioners working in the same agency or practice arena come together without a formal supervisor to share practice experiences and concerns. They take responsibility for their own learning and agenda setting fo...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Half Title
• Of Related Interest
• Title Page
• Copyright
• Contents
• List of Figures and Tables
• Introduction
• 1. Contemporary Approaches to Supervision in the Human Services
• 2. Human Services: Global Context
• 3. Human Services: Organisational and Workplace Context
• 4. Human Services: Professional Practice Context
• 5. Core Concepts of a Critical Perspective
• 6. Critical Pedagogy and Transformative Learning
• 7. Critical Supervision: Foundations
• 8. Critical Supervision: Practice Fundamentals
• 9. Critical Supervision: Pedagogical Skills and Tools
• 10. Critical Supervision: Using the Process
• 11. Critical Supervision: Practice Examples
• Glossary
• References
• Subject Index
• Author Index