‘Treat Me Don't Beat Me’ … . Exploring Supervisory Games and Their Effect on Poor Performance Management

Abstract

This paper explores the concept of games that can be played out in social work supervision and the resulting effects on both social worker performance, and ultimately on client service provision. It draws on the well-known game playing concepts of Berne and Kadushin, and will then proceed to locate these issues in today's social work context. In particular, it will argue that in light of the recent Social Work Taskforce Report, Building a Safe, Confident Future, recommendations calling for clear requirements governing supervision to ensure high-quality practice, it is critical that attention to supervision is focused not just on questions of frequency and content, but also on the complex interpersonal dynamics. This paper proposes that social work managers are potentially susceptible to certain supervisory games due to their anxieties about the use of power in practice. The purpose is to assist social work managers to better understand particular games and how they can unwittingly participate. It explores the inadequate provision of support and supervision for managers themselves, and highlight the oft forgotten outcome of these dynamics — the resulting poor quality service provision to vulnerable social work clients.