Intersectionality, power, and relational safety in context: Key concepts in clinical supervision.

Abstract

In this paper, we articulate foundational concepts for a supervision framework from a critical postcolonial perspective: intersectionality, power, and relational safety in context. We identify opportunities, challenges, and dilemmas encountered when engaging with students and colleagues in examining dimensions of privilege and oppression in supervision-of-supervision and supervision of clinical work conducted by clinicians in training. We highlight experiences of supervisees and supervisors of color throughout the paper, bringing together our own voices as a supervisor of color and White supervisor via our shared postcolonial lens to advance dialogue among scholars of all ethnicities. We also differentiate our experiences, purposefully centering the voices of supervisors of color to further a critical postcolonial agenda.