Evaluation in the field of supervision
Veronika Basa
Citation: Basa, V. (2021). Evaluation in the field of supervision. European Journal of Counselling Theory, Research and Practice, 5, 3, 1-10. https://ejctrap.nationalwellbeingservice.com/volumes/volume-5-2021/volume-5-article-3
Processing dates: Submitted: 8 November 2020; Resubmitted: 20 November 2021; Accepted: 11 December 2021; Published: 15 December 2021
Abstract
Evaluation is the heart of supervision, a function of supervision distinguishing it from counselling, consultation, or therapy, and making supervision a distinct field. It has a critical role in promoting supervisees’ development to protect the clients’ welfare; serving as a ‘gate keeper’ to the profession, fostering the supervisees’ empowerment through self-evaluation and ongoing professional and personal development throughout their career, and is a central role of a supervisor. Literature shows that many supervisees and supervisors have difficulties with the formal evaluation function that introduces a judgement of supervisees’ work. Typically, supervisees feel vulnerable to being judged in the relationship, which is hierarchical, whereas supervisors feel uncomfortable with making judgments, the gatekeepers’ responsibilities to the profession, and the legal liabilities over supervisees’ ethical, legal, and clinical performance. This article looks at evaluation as a function of supervision and within each function supervisors have different roles and thus different evaluation responses to supervisees work; explores the effects of evaluation on both supervisees and supervisors within pre-registration settings, organization settings and independent/private settings; and what research suggests about making the supervision experience more comfortable to both supervisees and supervisors.
Keywords: Evaluation, Criteria for Evaluation, Competency, Gatekeeping, Remediation
Biography
Veronika Basa is an independent researcher, author, speaker, educator, and course designer. She designed, developed,
and authored, within the Australian Qualification Framework (AQF), the first nationally accredited courses in supervision in Australia, the (69828) Certificate IV in Counselling Supervision (AQF level 4, 2007-2010), and the (69795) Graduate Diploma of Counselling Supervision (AQF level 8, 2010-2015). She is also a member of the European Journal of Counselling Theory, Research and Practice (EJC-TRAP) European and International Advisory Board.
http://orcid.org/0000-0002-6908-4930