Examining Predictors of Counselor‐in‐Training Intentional Nondisclosure

Abstract

This study explored factors that best predict intentional nondisclosure by counselors-in-training (CITs) during onsite supervision, including social judgment about one's supervisor, the supervisory working alliance (SWA), and supervisee attachment styles. Stepwise regression in a sample of 146 CITs revealed that the SWA and supervisee attachment avoidance predicted 60% of the variance in intentional nondisclosure.

Supervisor Cultural Humility Predicts Intentional Nondisclosure by Post‐Master's Counselors

“…A final limitation is that we chose to specifically target cultural humility. Cultural humility is only one of four facets of supervisor humility (see Watkins et al, 2018) as well as only one of several known predictors of supervisee nondisclosure (e.g., supervisee attachment styles, supervisory working alliance; Cook & Welfare, 2018). Predictors that were unaccounted for in this study might also be salient in mitigating supervisee intentional nondisclosure.…”

“…One underlying assumption of cultural humility is that culturally humble supervisors may encourage more open discourse between supervisors and supervisees, thus promoting an environment that encourages supervisee disclosure (Hook et al, 2016; Watkins et al, 2018). This is an important assumption that warrants attention, given that there is substantial evidence that supervisees intentionally withhold information from their supervisors (see Cook & Welfare, 2018; Cook, Welfare, & Sharma, 2019; Ladany, Hill, Corbett, & Nutt, 1996; Yourman & Farber, 1996). Although supervisee nondisclosure is a common problem in clinical supervision (Ladany et al, 1996), supervisors who demonstrate cultural humility may be able to mitigate supervisees' tendency to withhold.…”

Supervisor Cultural Humility and Supervisee Nondisclosure: The Supervisory Working Alliance Matters

“…To wit, supervisees experiencing a positive supervisory working alliance report more disclosure of information in supervision (e.g., Cook & Welfare, 2018;Gunn & Pistole, 2012;McKibben et al, 2019;Mehr et al, 2010Mehr et al, , 2015. If the supervisory working alliance is poor, however, disclosure about the supervisees' experience of supervision can be particularly challenging (Ladany et al, 2013).…”

Supervising the delivery of cognitive behavioral therapy in college counseling centers.

“…Predictors for problematic intentional nondisclosure include negative social judgment (e.g., supervisors being viewed as not moral, not competent, or not friendly), poor supervisor working alliance, and the trainee's anxious or avoidant attachments styles (Cook & Welfare, 2018). Supervisors can counter these factors by focusing on a strong supervisory relationship early on, normalizing and reinforcing the disclosure of mistakes, and deliberately addressing types of information expected to be shared within the supervision contract.…”