Ethical Issues in Supervision

Abstract

, and can be regarded as a "signature pedagogy" in the field of psychology (Bernard & Goodyear, 2014, p. 2). In the 1970s supervision began to establish itself as distinct from its roots in counselling psychology (Carroll, 2007). During the 1980s the profession shifted to a view of supervision as requiring specific knowledge and skills (Pettifor, Sinclair, & Falender, 2014). This shift is reflected in the emergence of new supervision models and approaches (see Watkins & Milne, 2014). In Australia, similar to other countries, the focus on supervision as a professional competence increased after 2000. In their review of the literature on supervision and its effectiveness on clinical practice and client outcomes, Spence, Wilson, Kavanagh, Strong, and Worrall (2001) concluded that there was tentative evidence for the positive influence of supervision on supervisee practice, though the authors also concluded that the review raised more questions than answers. As a professional activity, intervention or service, supervision raises a number of ethical issues and challenges. The past decade has seen the emergence of ethical guidelines on supervision (