Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Supervisors'

This study sought to understand the circumstances under which supervisee nondisclosure (SND; e.g., Siembor, 2012) is more or less likely to occur by identifying potential constructs that may relate to SND. Specifically, this study investigated the extent to which supervisees? perceptions of the supervisory working alliance (SWA; Bahrick et al., 1991) and supervisor multicultural competence (SMC; Inman, 2006) contributed uniquely and jointly to SND. Accordingly, it was hypothesized that the SWA would be uniquely and inversely related to SND controlling for SMC and that supervisee perceptions of SMC would be uniquely and inversely related to SND controlling for the SWA. It was further hypothesized that the SWA and SMC would contribute jointly and inversely to SND. A sample (N = 221) of predominantly White (68.2%), female (80.0%), psychology (74.7%) trainees participated in a study on their experiences in multicultural clinical supervision. Consistent with theorizing, SMC and the SWA significantly contributed jointly and inversely to SND, accounting for 42% of the variability in SND. In addition, the inverse and unique relation between the SWA and SND was significant, with a large effect size of 23%, supporting previous research investigating this association (e.g., Ladany et al., 1996; Mehr et al., 2010). Unexpectedly, supervisee ratings of SMC did not contribute uniquely to SND, with none of the variance in SND accounted for by SMC. From a descriptive standpoint, it was noteworthy that the findings differed markedly from previous research (e.g., Ladany et al., 1996; Yourman & Farber, 1996) in that the overall level of SND was much lower and the types of SND most frequently identified in the literature (i.e., clinical mistakes and negative reactions to supervision) were endorsed at much lower rates or were not applicable for this sample. Implications of the findings for research, theory, practice, and training, are discussed.

Supervision is an essential component in the development of scientist-practitioner psychologists, and currently one of the primary ways that aspiring professional psychologists develop practical skills and receive training in their field. Although research has demonstrated that supervisors utilize diverse approaches, the literature has not yet identified different supervisor personal styles and the effects that these may have on supervision. This study contributes to the understanding of the personal styles of supervisors by adapting the psychotherapy construct known as the personal style of the therapist (PST) to the assessment of the personal style of the supervisor (PSS). The study focused on developing the scale, evaluating its psychometric properties, and identifying broad similarities and differences in supervisory styles. The result is a 34 item self-report scale that evaluates eight distinct dimensions of a supervisor's personal style. The psychometrics of the measure were evaluated, as well as general tendencies in supervisors' PSS and differences based on demographic characteristics. Findings indicate that supervisors sampled tended to: work within a flexible framework; bring themselves into supervision, either by self-disclosing or revealing their emotional states; think about supervisees in their personal time; be slightly more facilitative than didactic; have a slightly more active approach to managing conflict; and view multicultural issues as central to supervision. PSS differences were found based on supervisor's gender, ethnicity, licensure level, supervision model, psychotherapy model, and hours of supervision provided a week. A discussion of the implications of the findings and possible training uses of the PSS-Q as well as the limitations of the study is included.

Culturally responsive teaching is seen as a promising practice that will enhance teachers’ ability to meet the needs of today’s diverse student population. The purpose of this study was to understand how White supervisors talk about race and culture in the classroom, and in regard to their role of preparing pre-service teachers. Because supervisors’ work is grounded in student teachers’ classrooms, they are uniquely positioned to respond to specific incidents in the student teacher’s experience and thereby have a primary role in shaping teachers’ instructional practices.

This dissertation research examined 12 White university supervisors. Prior to this study, supervisors participated in professional development offered by the college aimed at raising awareness of culturally responsive teaching. The professional development was part of Griffin, Watson, and Liggett’s (2014) initial study, and offered opportunities for supervisors to discuss topics of race, culture, ethnicity, class, and gender, and to engage in reading Gay’s (2010) text: Culturally Responsive Teaching: Theory, Research, and Practice. Griffin et al. collected data, including a pre- and post-survey, a November interview, and artifacts from the professional development. Their study established the starting point for this research.

All 12 supervisors were interviewed following participation in the professional development. Findings indicated supervisors defined and described culturally responsive teaching by relying on elements congruent with the literature. Even when supervisors used language similar to Gay (2010), they held misconceptions and formed incomplete definitions about culturally responsive teaching. Other findings indicated supervisors lacked a clear vision in their role in supporting culturally responsive teaching. Lastly, supervisors used hegemonic understandings when talking about race and culture. The results of this study suggest supervisors need more opportunities to talk about race and culture, and their role in preparing culturally responsive teachers.

Trauma is ubiquitous in our society, taking a costly toll on the physical and psychological well-being of individuals across all social strata, and creating an ever-increasing need for better understanding of how to help the victim survivors. The purpose of this current study addresses an aspect of that need for understanding by examining the lived experiences of clinicians who have learned about trauma and who are addressing trauma survivors’ needs by acting as supervisors for other clinicians. This qualitative, phenomenologically oriented study used van Manen’s (1990) four lived existentials, Bronfenbrenner’s (1979, 2005) bio-ecological model of human development, and existing trauma literature as its base. Historically, basic trauma education has not been provided to master’s or doctoral level students in counselor education programs. The rapidly expanding base of trauma literature has referenced knowledgeable, competent supervision as a necessity for therapists working with traumatized clients, yet little has been written about those supervisors, how they are trained and educated, and their lived experience in the process of becoming competent trauma supervisors

For this study, eight clinicians who have been supervising other clinicians who work with adult survivors of childhood sexual abuse were interviewed. The results were summarized into five themes that focused on the ubiquity of trauma, the “trial by fire” learning that was required to become knowledgeable, the rise to supervisory roles for which participants were sometimes unprepared, what they needed but didn’t get, and what they deem necessary to support them in their work. The author suggests ways in which the field of counselor education could be enhanced to better support supervisors in addressing the needs of their supervisees, and those of their traumatized clients.

Can a first-line supervisor improve worker performance? First-line supervisors at a facility of a manufacturing company volunteered to learn performance improvement principles and be coached in applying those principles in order to solve performance problems in the workplace. The researcher continued coaching and evaluating the performance of the first-line supervisors as the volunteers utilized action research methodology to improve worker performance. While solving performance problems, the volunteers used a job aid specifically designed to guide the first-line supervisor in solving performance problems, improving the job aid as a result of usage. Each of the first-line supervisors, prior to volunteering, had some experience as a supervisor, ranging from one year to 20 years, but had not been prepared to be a supervisor prior to assuming the position and had not been trained in performance improvement after becoming a supervisor. In solving each performance problem, the first-line supervisor analyzed performance of a worker or group of workers to determine the performance gap for the problem, identified the cause of the problem, chose an intervention to improve performance, implemented the intervention, and evaluated all of the actions taken to determine if further action was needed to improve performance. Some performance problems were solved with one intervention and others required multiple interventions to find the most effective intervention to solve the problem. Each first-line supervisor used the job aid to guide, as well as document, actions taken to solve performance problems. Each first-line supervisor also contributed to improvement in the job aid resulting from usage. Findings resulting from observation, interview, and the comments of the volunteer first-line supervisors were that: (a) learning was transferred to application by actually solving performance problems, (b) the job aid was useful in guiding first-line supervisors in solving problems, and (c) action research, in addition to being easily understood by the supervisors, facilitated the solution of problems by providing a framework for action in solving performance problems. Further research is needed in applying the action research methodology in other organizations with a larger sample of first-line supervisors, in different locations, with different missions and goals.

It has long been asserted that the quality of clinical supervision within the field of psychology does not receive adequate attention. Recent literature on supervision highlights trends and makes a strong case for competency-based requirements for clinical supervisors (Falender & Shafranske, 2004). One such method for increasing the competency of clinical supervisors is formalized supervision training. Experts in this area have been highlighting the lack of formal supervision training in general as a current deficit in our efforts to train competent clinicians (Watkins, 2012). However, we currently have a limited view of the connection between formal supervision training and resulting improvements in supervisee experience of supervision. In an effort to better understand the impact of formal supervision training on the quality of clinical supervision, this research has gathered quantitative and qualitative information from internship site clinical supervisors and their supervisees regarding supervision training, development, and experiences within supervision in key areas highlighted by the American Psychological Association. By comparing the amount of supervision training of site supervisors with the supervision ratings of their supervisees, we may better gauge the value of formal supervision training. Supervisor development levels were also assessed to gain clarity on its relation to training experience as well as supervisee ratings.

Existing research indicates that employee engagement is tied to positive organizational outcomes, like higher productivity and lower workforce attrition. Research also indicates the supervisors’ performance is a key element in improving the employees’ levels of engagement. Within the Federal government, there is a wide range of measured employee engagement. Given the importance of employee engagement, the key role of the supervisor, and the range of federal employee engagement, this mixed methods research was designed to identify promising practices from three agencies noted for their work in employee engagement between 2013–2016. There were three research questions. 1. Which large federal agencies’ survey responses in the Federal Employee Viewpoint Survey (FEVS) showed marked improvement in employee engagement and the performance of their first-level supervisors as measured between 2013 and 2016? 2. For those large federal agencies that were able to improve their employee engagement over the period 2013 to 2016, along with a large agency with consistently high engagement, what changes have they made in the areas of selection, development, guidance and support, and accountability for first-level supervisors? 3. Is there a correlation between the supervisors’ view of their agencies in those four areas, as reflected in the Merit System Protection Board’s (MSPB) Merit Principles Survey Path L data, and the agencies’ employee engagement as evidenced by the established FEVS indices?

Through analysis of FEVS data, the Department of Labor, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, and the Department of Housing and Urban Development, were identified as large agencies with unusually positive results in employee engagement. Qualitative interviews, and the examination of statements by senior agency representatives, provided data regarding agency initiatives related to the improvements in the Office of Personnel Management’s Federal Employee Viewpoint Survey (FEVS) engagement indices. Additionally, the quantitative portion of this research identified specific areas of correlation between the views of supervisors at 20 large agencies using the Merit System Protection Board’s 2016 Merit Principles Survey (MPS) Path L data, and employee engagement indices based on FEVS results from that same year.

Analysis of the quantitative data revealed numerous instances of statistically significant correlation between supervisors’ views expressed in the MPS data and the FEVS engagement indices. Composite variables were designed using the findings from the qualitative research and the identified correlations related to major initiatives. Linear regression of a model using three of these composite variables based on supervisors’ MPS responses, explained nearly 80 percent of the variation in FEVS employee engagement scores among the 20 large agencies in both the FEVS and MPS databases. Using both the rich understanding from the qualitative research, and the identified relationships from the quantitative results, recommendations for a process to address employee engagement in general, and numerous specific initiatives, focused on supervisors, are provided for consideration and further research.