Analyzing the the Discrimination Model

¶ … Discrimination Model Mental health practitioners' clinical supervision began similar to the practice of "apprenticeship" in other areas. Apprentices or pupils possessing basic skills and knowledge would become proficient in work through observation, assisting the accomplished professional in that field, and receiving his/her feedback. The belief was that, since the "master" excelled at the job, his/her supervisory and teaching skills would be just as good. However, this is not true always.

Experts in the field have realized today that, despite counseling and clinical supervision having a lot in common (including the ability of engaging in effective interpersonal relationships), these two tasks employ unique and different skills. In other words, an expert clinician will not invariably be an expert supervisor, without adding supervisory skills and knowledge training and experience.

Moreover, the specialist-apprentice supervision concept induces a power hierarchy that favors the specialist or coach as "authority" in the field; this dynamic receives no support in current literature on the topic of supervision/training (Smith, 2009). Further, it has been recorded that clinical skills and knowledge cannot be transferred as easily as has been implied by the trainer-apprentice model (Falender & Shafranske, 2004). Observation of master clinicians at the job is undoubtedly a valuable training tool.

However, it does not suffice in aiding pupils to develop required skills for becoming accomplished clinicians themselves. Reflection of students on supervision, counseling relationship, and their work facilitates development. Therefore, clinical supervision has of late, been gaining recognition as a multifaceted supervisor-supervisee exchange, with supervisory theories and models being created for providing it with a frame. Among the most widely researched and adopted integrative supervision models in the present day is Janine Bernard's Discrimination Model, which was originally put forward by Bernard in the year 1979.

The theory comprises of three distinct supervision foci (namely, intervention, personalization, and conceptualization) and three potential roles of supervisors (namely, teacher, consultant, and counselor) (Bernard & Goodyear, 2014). At any given point of time, the supervisor can respond from any one out of nine ways (3foci x 3 roles).

For instance, the supervisor can assume the tutor's role, while concentrating on a certain intervention employed by his/her pupil during a session with the client, or he/she can assume the counselor's role, the focus being on work conceptualization of his/her pupil. As the response will always be specific to student's needs, it alters across roles assumed within sessions. Firstly, the supervisor assesses the ability of his/her supervisee within a given focus area. Subsequently, he chooses the suitable role to adopt when responding.

Goodyear and Bernard (2014) advise mental health supervisors to refrain from responding from the very same role or focus owing to personal preference, habit, or comfort. Rather, they must make sure their role and focus meet the supervisee's most important needs for that particular situation. In this paper, the Discrimination Model will be reviewed, together with its key elements of supervision, roles, and foci. Supervision The term 'clinical supervision' refers to creation of personalized supervisee learning plans, to be applied when they are at work with clients.

The systematic method of application of supervision is termed as a "model." The Counseling Supervision Curriculum Guide as well as the 1990 Standards for Clinical Supervision state that knowledge of supervision models is critical to ethical counseling practice. Practices, procedures, and beliefs linked to supervision started surfacing the moment experienced therapists expressed their desire to train novices. However, early training emphasized efficacy of a specific theory (for instance, behavioral, client-centered, or psychodynamic therapy). Norms of supervision were often conveyed indirectly in the course of apprenticeship routines.

As supervision started becoming more focused, three kinds of supervision models appeared, namely: (1) Integrated, (2) Orientation-specific, and (3) Developmental models.

Purpose of Supervision Facilitation of professional and personal supervisee development Promotion of counselor competencies, skills, and knowledge Promotion of accountable counseling programs and services, which is a challenge as well as responsibility for professionals in the field Gatekeeping to the mental healthcare profession Provision of learning opportunities with regard to school environment, which is imperative for effective counseling services in schools Safeguarding students/clients, and promotion of trainee growth (Borders & Brown, 2005) Supervision Best Practice Guidelines Initiation of Supervision Supervisors engage in rigorous practices of informed consent during the first supervision session.

They clearly articulate definite supervising parameters, and facilitate a discussion pertaining to the supervision process, for fostering supervisory working relationship. Goal-Setting Supervisors then co-develop certain supervision goals with their pupil. They emphasize on goals that are directly beneficial to the client-supervisor therapeutic relationship (and to efficiency of the services offered). They purposefully address and evaluate goals in every supervisory session. Feedback Supervisors offer continuous and regular feedback, in addition to direct, on-the-spot feedback as necessary. They focus on multiple feedback sources available to their pupils.

Conducting Supervision Supervisors follow correct professional standards (i.e., licensure, accreditation, and certification regulations) when deciding on the modality and frequency of their supervisory sessions. They cultivate and offer a safe, structured, and supportive supervision atmosphere, and employ various supervisory interventions. Furthermore, they select group supervision arrangements for a number of reasons, of which time efficiency does not constitute a major rationale. They also opt for triadic supervision plans for a number of reasons, of which time efficiency does not constitute a major rationale.

They apply technology-using approaches that serve to improve the process of supervision and student development, as well as actively evaluate supervision course continuously (in post-degree as well as academic supervision). The Supervisory Relationship Supervisors work with the knowledge that their relationship with their apprentices is important to supervision effectiveness and the apprentice's development and growth. They engage intentionally with their students for facilitating cultivation of a fruitful working alliance and supervisory relationship, whilst dealing with cultural and ethical concerns that have a bearing on the supervisory relationship.

Advocacy and Diversity Considerations Supervisors realize the fact that all of their supervisory functions have a multicultural element, and hence, they incorporate multicultural factors into their supervisory approach. Moreover, they encourage their students to infuse advocacy and diversity considerations when working with clients/patients. Ethical Considerations Supervisors make their supervisees aware of the fact that both of them are required to abide by ethical guidelines and codes mandated by the American Counseling Association (ACA), Association for Counselor Education and Supervision (ACES), and other divisions of the ACA, among others.

They constantly monitor their own competence level in supervising, and taking appropriate action. They further acknowledge the fact that welfare of client is their greatest and foremost responsibility, and act accordingly. They take care not to compromise the supervisory relationship through engagement in such relationships with their pupils that are deemed to be inappropriate, and perform continuous supervisee performance evaluation and assessment, which includes an appraisal of their limitations and strengths.

Supervision Format Supervisors employ different supervision formats (such as, individual, triadic, group, and colleague/peer review supervision) using ways that follow accreditation standards and credentialing body regulations (frequency of group and individual supervision) and that fulfill student needs, are appropriate to context, and satisfactorily deal with client needs. They do not select a format based on what proves convenient for them (for instance, time-saving formats). Documentation They maintain records that offer a supervisor accountability system.

The Supervisor Preparation and evaluation (Borders, et al., 2011) Model description Goodyear and Bernard's Discrimination Model is purportedly "a-theoretical." The model combines focus on three roles of the supervisor with three focus areas. Supervisors can assume the teacher's role, when directly lecturing, instructing, and informing their supervisees. Secondly, they can play the part of a counselor, when aiding supervisees in identifying their personal blind spots/weaknesses or the way they unconsciously get "hooked" by any given client's problem.

When a supervisor relates as a colleague/peer in the co-therapy process, he/she may be playing the role of "consultant." All of the above three roles are task-specific when identifying supervision issues. Supervisors have to be sensitive to unethical dependence on dual alliances. For instance, the rationale behind adoption of a "counselor's" role by the supervisor is: recognition of unresolved problems that cloud a therapeutic association. If such issues need constant counseling, the student must pursue this task with their personal therapist.

Further, Goodyear and Bernard's Discrimination Model underscores three focus areas in skill building: conceptualization, personalization, and process. "Process" issues explore the way communication is carried out.

For instance, does the apprentice resonate with the feelings the client expresses? Could application of paradox aid the client in being less resistant? Was the situation reframed/altered by the supervisee? "Conceptualization" issues cover how well a supervisee is able to explain his/her decision to apply a certain theory to any given case (i.e., how effectively they view the big picture), in addition to the rationale they provide for their decision on what is to be done next.

Personalization matters refer to counselors' application of their own person in the therapeutic process, such that every involved individual is present non-defensively in the therapeutic relationship. For instance, the natural body language of a therapist may intimidate certain clients, or one may not notice the fact that one's client experiences physical attraction towards one (Leddick, 1994). Goodyear and Bernard's Discrimination Model of supervision is predominantly a model in training. The assumption in this model is that everyone possesses the habit of focusing on some of the aforementioned issues and roles.

When identifying one's customary practice, one can then call to mind the remaining two categories. This way, a therapist will select interventions geared to supervisee's needs rather than their own learning style and preferences. Foci Intervention skills, personalization skills, and conceptualization skills are the three recognized focus areas. Intervention skills in the context of clinical counseling supervision include every visible counselor behavior that distinguishes the activity of counseling as a deliberate interpersonal activity.

These skills extend from the most straightforward head nod or other such gesture to delivering a complex counseling plan/technique. A subtler counseling dimension tracked by supervisors in clinical settings is the conceptualization skills of the counselor. These include ability of the counselor to select a suitable intervention, decipher what the client presents, identify, and systematize client/patient themes, and establish outcome and process goals. Lastly, a clinical supervisor seeks personalization skills evident while observing counselors.

This focus area may be defined as the capacity of using one's self properly as a counselor; it incorporates the traits of intrapersonal cohesion, interpersonal warmth, ability of drawing on the strong points of one's respective cultural characteristics, un-defensiveness, etc. While some personalization and conceptualization skills might be directly observed, they will more frequently be interpreted by supervisors and will, at first, require counselor-supervisor discourse for becoming clear.

Process Process represents the way supervisees go about conducting their counseling sessions (in other words, it deals with what supervisees actually do in the course of the sessions). It extends from the simple skill of active listening to more complex skills such as behavior interpretation. Conceptualization This implies the student's extent of understanding with regard to self, client, and the process of counseling (i.e., identification of patterns, furnishing of hypotheses/theories to explain and resolve client's problem, etc.).

It refers to the ability of making sense of information presented by the client, isolation of themes, and differentiation of what is necessary from what is not. Personalization Personalization concentrates on impact of supervisee on the counseling process because of personal attributes (for instance, personality traits, inter- and intra- personal dynamics). Personalization denotes the sum total of every personal thing trainees brings with them to their counseling role. It encompasses their personality, humor, cultural background, sympathy/compassion towards other people, etc.

Roles Goodyear and Bernard's Discrimination Model comes under the category of social role models (Bernard & Goodyear, 2004), as it describes various role postures assumed by supervisors for stimulating supervisees' professional development. These suggested postures include consultant, teacher, and counselor, and in each, the way supervisees are approached within the supervision process is altered. As its name indicates, supervisors' role as teacher requires the supervisor to instruct, model, provide feedback, and appraise students.

Supervisors assume this role where they feel a less systematized strategy will confuse their pupils, or they will somehow be incapable of accessing the supervision that is being provided to them. Supervisors in the counseling role typically ask their apprentices to evaluate their thoughts, internal reality, or an activity. In this role, instead of instructing their pupils on how they must proceed, supervisors aid them in taking advantage of critical moments for reflection.

In the consultant's role, supervisors serve as resources for their apprentices but urge them to have faith in their own feelings, thoughts, and insights at the workplace. In this role, supervisors intentionally share development and learning responsibilities with supervisees (Luke & Bernard, 2006). Teacher Role In this role, supervisors specifically; 1. Identify suitable interventions. 1. Evaluate observed interactions in counseling sessions. 1. Teach, model, or demonstrate intervention techniques. 1. Interpret significant counseling session events. 1. Explain the reason for application of specific interventions and strategies. Counselor Role In this role, supervisors specifically; 1.

Explore feelings of supervisees during supervision or counseling session. 1. Explore feelings of trainees with regard to specific interventions and techniques. 1. Facilitate self-examination of supervisee's confidence and doubts in the supervision session. 1. Provide trainees with opportunities for processing personal defenses or affect. 1. Aid trainees in defining personal growth areas and skills. Consultant Role In this role, supervisors specifically; 1. Provide alternative conceptualization and intervention options to trainees. 1. Encourage trainee brainstorming of interventions and strategies. 1. Allow trainee structuring of supervision session. 1. Encourage trainee to discuss client motivations, issues, etc. 1.

Seek and try to meet trainee needs in the course of the session. Application Goodyear and Bernard's Discrimination Model has wide application in the area of guiding clinical supervisor training and preparation. The SCSM (School Counseling Supervision Model) -- an extended version of Bernard's model --.