I'd say it would be best if men were born
Perfect in wisdom, but that failing this
(Which often fails) it can be no dishonor
To learn from others when they speak good sense.
—Sophocles, Antigone, trans. E. Wyckoff
Psychotherapy supervision is a relatively ill defined educational topic that is central to training. Supervision has never received enough attention, but it may be particularly important to study in an era when all of psychotherapy training is under siege: as Dr. Alonso notes, devaluation by the prevailing clinical climate ranks among the obstacles to supervision. Examining an area that deserves greater research attention, Dr. Alonso draws on her extensive experience to provide an illustrative “case series” of difficult supervisory situations, demonstrating both her skill in, and the pitfalls of, this difficult enterprise.
Reading this description, the reader may ponder how Dr. Alonso's experience in supervision of psychodynamic psychotherapy translates to supervision of other psychotherapeutic modalities such as cognitive-behavioral psychotherapy and interpersonal psychotherapy.1 Are there “common factors” that cross psychotherapy supervision as there are common factors that transcend psychotherapies? How much does supervision of psychotherapy differ with the particular technique under study?
Acknowledgments
—John C. Markowitz, M.D., Grand Rounds Editor
References
- 1.Markowitz JC: Learning the new psychotherapies, in Treatment of Depression: Bridging the 21st Century, edited by Weissman MM. Washington, DC, American Psychiatric Press (in press)