American Psychological Association Guidelines for Clinical Supervision: Competency-Based Implications for Supervisees

Abstract

The American Psychological Association’s “Guidelines for Clinical Supervision in Health Service Psychology,” as well as the extant supervision literature, focus on supervisees’ competencies in their roles as therapist–professionals, and on the competencies of clinical supervisors. We consider two questions: What are the implications of the Guidelines for health service psychology supervisees in their roles as supervisees (vs. as therapists)? How can supervisees empower themselves to be proactive in making effective use of clinical supervision? We then outline a competency-based approach by focusing on the knowledge, skills, and attitudes for supervisees in clinical supervision. We suggest that the competencies (knowledge, skills, and attitudes) required to be an effective supervisee are distinct from existing competencies that focus on the supervisee as a therapist–professional. Our intent is to delineate competency-based implications of the Guidelines for supervisees, as well as to educate and empower them to become proactive collaborators and participants in clinical supervision.