Applying the Therapeutic Function of Professional Supervision: Attending to the Emotional Impacts of Human Service Work

158 Pages·2023·2.571 MB·English

by  Nicki Weld

Applying the Therapeutic
Function of Professional
Supervision
This book brings a fresh approach and conversation to the practice of
professional supervision for human services by specifically articulat-
ing its often performed, but unnamed and under-explored therapeutic
function. The discussion of the therapeutic function is timely given
the rising complexities in our world, and the increasing awareness
of emotional impacts of human service work. These impacts include
stress, distress, emotional labour, indirect trauma, and direct trauma.
Posing a challenge and invitation to supervisors to comfortably
inhabit the therapeutic function of supervision to increase emotional
support to workers, it places safe practice and worker wellbeing at the
heart of supervision to enable high quality service delivery for often
the most vulnerable in society. While underpinned by theory, it is
written to be practically applied and is developed from a ‘lived expe-
rience’ perspective, offering a unique glimpse into actual practice.
By modelling one of the main aims of professional supervision,
which is to facilitate and enable the integration of experience into
learning and knowledge, it will be of interest to all practitioners
across a broad range of human services, particularly both new and
experienced supervisors.
Nicki Weld (PhD) is a senior lecturer in the University of Auckland
Post Graduate Professional Supervision Programme, and a supervisor
and educator in human services in Aotearoa, New Zealand. She is a
registered social worker with research interests in supervision, cour-
age, trauma, and child and family work.

Applying the Therapeutic
Function of Professional
Supervision
Attending to the Emotional Impacts of
Human Service Work
Nicki Weld
FOREWORD BY GILLIAN RUCH
Cover image: © Getty Images
First published 2023
by Routledge
4 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN
and by Routledge
605 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10158
Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business
© 2023 Nicki Weld
The right of Nicki Weld to be identified as author of this work
has been asserted in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the
Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or
reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical,
or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including
photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or
retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers.
Trademark notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks
or registered trademarks, and are used only for identification and
explanation without intent to infringe.
British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
ISBN: 978-1-032-41637-3 (hbk)
ISBN: 978-1-032-41636-6 (pbk)
ISBN: 978-1-003-35903-6 (ebk)
DOI: 10.4324/9781003359036
Typeset in Sabon
by codeMantra
To those I have provided supervision to, and to the
supervisors I have received supervision from – thank you.

Contents
List of figures xi
List of tables xiii
Foreword xv
Introduction 1
1 Defining the therapeutic function of supervision 9
Types of supervision 9
Interdisciplinary supervision 13
Roles in professional supervision 15
The functions of professional supervision 18
The therapeutic and therapy boundary 20
Ethical considerations 26
Summary 27
2 Relational skills to enable the therapeutic function 30
Developing the supervisory relationship 30
Presence 32
Attuning 34
Listening deeply 36
Enabling vulnerability 37
Cultural humility 39
Summary 42
3 Developing a coherent narrative 45
Reflective learning processes 46
Explore inaccurate thoughts 49
viii Contents
Connect to strengths and existing resiliency 50
Moving forward 52
Summary 54
4 Working with emotions 56
Supervision as a space for emotional
containment 56
Overwhelm 59
Disappointment 60
Anger 62
Shame 65
Anxiety 67
Grief 71
Summary 74
5 Working with relational dynamics 76
Personality, beliefs, and values 76
The use of self-disclosure 79
Counter-transference and parallel process 80
Transactional analysis 83
The problem is the problem not the person 86
Summary 87
6 Connecting to compassion 89
Defining compassion 89
Self-awareness 91
Emotional regulation 92
Anchor to core motivation 94
Consciously engage to develop
acceptance, understanding and connection 95
Self-compassion and self-forgiveness 99
Summary 103
7 Supporting courage, grit, and resilience 105
Defining courage 106
Questions to connect courage 109
Grit 110
Resilience 112
Summary 114
Contents ix
8 Strengthening holistic wellbeing 116
A holistic model of wellbeing 116
Supporting the parasympathetic nervous
system 118
Building mental fitness 120
Organisational culture 124
Supervisor wellbeing 128
Summary 129
Conclusion 131
Index 135