Clinical Supervision and the Era of Competence

Abstract

Clinical supervision provides the primary means by which the applied practice of psychology is transmitted to future generations of psychologist practitioners. It is a core professional competency that provides the foundation for the development and maintenance of clinical competence of the psychologist while safeguarding the welfare of clients and protecting the public and the profession. Efforts to enhance accountability in the preparation of psychologists led to a call to establish a “culture of competence” in clinical training and throughout the profession. Competency-based clinical supervision is an approach in clinical training that responds to that call, and it places emphasis on the identification of knowledge, skills, and attitudes/values that are assembled to form specific clinical competencies. It systematically describes supervision processes to develop, assess, and provide feedback leading to professional competence. Continuing efforts are required to evaluate the effectiveness of clinical supervision processes, impacts on supervisee development, and clinical outcomes.