Ethical issues in the supervision of psychotherapy.

Supervision is the accepted training model for the teaching and learning ofpsychotherapeutic skills. Although standards of ethical behavior between a psychotherapist and client have been established, specific guidelines for ethical behavior between a supervisor and trainee have not been delineated. Given the importance of the supervisory relationship in the development of competent psychotherapists, the relatively powerless and dependent position of the trainee, and the potential occurrence of therapylike experiences in supervision, the development of guidelines outlining the rights of trainees and responsibilities of supervisors is indicated. "Psychologists respect the worth of the individual and honor the preservation and protection of fundamental human rights" (American Psychological Association, [APA] 1977a, p. 1). This quote from the "Ethical Standards of Psychologists" is a statement of a commitment by psychologists to ensure the rights and to promote the welfare of their clients. This commitment has been given specific meaning for the client-therapist relationship (Hare-Mustin, Marecek, Kaplan, & Liss-Levinson, 1979), for providers of psychological services (APA, 1977b), and for therapy with female clients (APA, 1978a). Although the mandate is clear, the specific implications of this commitment for the conduct of psychotherapy supervision have received limited attention in the professional literature. Except for one article on sexual behavior between supervisor and trainee (Pope, Schover, & Levinson, 1980) and another article on standards of competency for supervisors (APA, 1971), virtually no examination of the ethical issues within supervision has been made. An examination of ethical issues in psychotherapy supervision is critical for three major reasons. First, the supervisory relationship is the primary training model for the development of psychotherapeutic skills. Second, the supervisory relationship is inherently unequal in status, power, and expertise. Third, insofar as trainees are expected to evaluate their own performance and to increase self-awareness within the context of supervision, the relationship possesses therapylike qualities. Each of these reasons will be briefly discussed, with emphasis on clarifying the responsibilities of supervisors and the rights of supervisees.