A Qualitative Examination of Supervisors' Experiences of the Process of Triadic Supervision

Supervisee Incompatibility and Its Influence on Triadic Supervision: An Examination of Doctoral Student Supervisors' Perspectives

“…The presence of supervisee incompatibility can also cause supervisors to temper their feedback to one of the supervisees in various ways. Several aspects of this finding have been addressed previously by Hein and Lawson (2009), who found that supervisee incompatibility could make it more difficult for supervisors to give critical (and sometimes positive) feedback to supervisees. The present study, however, identifies a variety of ways in which feedback can be moderated and reveals that supervisors may shift the focus of their feedback from an unreceptive supervisee to a receptive one.…”

“…In a study of supervisors' experiences of the process of triadic supervision, Hein and Lawson (2009) found that supervisee incompatibility could compromise supervisor feedback by sometimes making it difficult for the supervisor to provide negative (or positive) feedback to a supervisee. When supervisees differed significantly in ability, supervisor feedback that was adjusted to make it useful to the less skilled supervisee was ultimately less relevant or valuable to the more skilled supervisee.…”

Dyadic, triadic, and group models of peer supervision/consultation: What are their components, and is there evidence of their effectiveness?

“…In an investigation of their triadic supervision model, Lawson and colleagues (Hein & Lawson, 2008, 2009; Hein, Lawson, & Rodriguez, 2011; Lawson, Hein, & Stuart, 2009, 2010) interviewed six supervisees (practicum students) and six supervisors (doctoral students) in one counsellor education programme. Supervisee peer matching (e.g., similar skill level) was emphasised by both groups; mismatches reportedly reduced productivity, truncated feedback, and limited support.…”

A Content Analysis of Peer Feedback in Triadic Supervision

“…Subsequent research, however, has revealed a more nuanced view of the pedagogy of triadic supervision from both the supervisors' and supervisees' perspectives. Researchers (e.g., Borders et al, ; Hein & Lawson, , ; Hein, Lawson, & Rodriguez, , ; Lawson, Hein, & Stuart, , ; Stinchfield, Hill, & Kleist, ) have identified the benefits and challenges of triadic supervision, many of which revolve around peer feedback. Across all these studies, both supervisors and supervisees reported that they valued the vicarious learning opportunities and multiple, diverse perspectives that are possible when receiving both supervisor and supervisee feedback.…”

“…On the other hand, supervisees also reported sometimes feeling awkward about providing feedback to their peers and were reluctant to give critical feedback (Hein & Lawson, ; Lawson, Hein, & Getz, ). In addition, when supervisees reported being in mismatched pairings, based on differing counseling skill levels, personality, or developmental levels, both supervisees and supervisors said the peer feedback was not helpful (Borders et al, ; Hein & Lawson, , ; Hein et al, , ; Lawson, Hein, & Getz, ). Thus, although peer feedback is highly valued, it appears that supervisors need to assist supervisees in providing appropriate feedback if supervisees are to achieve the potential advantages of triadic supervision.…”