The Expression and Perception of Feelings Between Students and Supervisors in a Practicum Setting

Abstract

It was hypothesized that over a period of time the interaction between social work students and their field work supervisors would become similar and positive, based upon shared feelings and perceptions. The data presented tend to support this hypothesis. Stability in the student‐supervisor relationship was reached after a period of intensive interaction, and positive dyadic feelings increased as interaction increased. At initial contact there were negative correlations between students and supervisors scores on the perception and expression scales, but after two quarters of continued interaction, these correlations became positive and significant. Finally, it was demonstrated that the students' expressions and perceptions of the relationship became similar to those of their supervisors as time passed.