Trainee therapists’ views on the alliance in psychotherapy and supervision: a longitudinal study

ABSTRACT

The shape of alliance in psychotherapy and supervision using growth curve modeling was examined for clinically inexperienced trainee therapists, who were engaged in long-term cognitive behavioral - or psychodynamic individual psychotherapy at a Psychology Clinic in Sweden. Trainee therapists rated their view of the alliance with their clients and their supervisors on the Working Alliance Inventory at five time points. The alliance to the client show a consistent, positive development throughout the therapy. The alliance to the supervisors show initially a decrease, followed by an increase, and then again, the rate of increase in the supervisory alliance ratings slowed down indicating a more complex view of the supervisory alliance compared to the view of the alliance in psychotherapy.

KEYWORDS:

• Working alliance
• inexperienced psychotherapists
• psychotherapy training
• supervisory alliance
• mild mental health problems
• longitudinal analysis

Notes on contributors

H. Ybrandt, Associate professor, Senior Lecture, Specialist in Clinical Psychology, Licensed Psychotherapist and Supervisor and teacher in psychotherapy, Department of Psychology, Umeå University, Sweden. Her major research projects are about psychotherapy training and outcome and she is present involved in the SPR Collaborative Multi-Site Longitudinal Study of Development in Psychotherapy Trainees.

E. C. Sundin, Ph.D. in applied psychology, practicing clinical psychologist and cognitive behavioural therapist accredited by BABCP. She has been engaged in delivering clinically related teaching and research, in parallel with working therapeutically. She has written book chapters and articles on psychotherapy research and childhood trauma in people who are homeless.

G. Capone is undertaking a clinical psychology doctorate with the Trent program and is currently employed as a trainee clinical psychologist within Lincolnshire Partnership NHS Trust. Her research interests include the therapeutic alliance, and group psychotherapy, including therapeutic communities. Her future plans involve aiding and supporting the design of therapeutic environments, particularly within forensic settings.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.