MULTICULTURAL ASPECTS OF SUPERVISION: CONSIDERATIONS FOR SOUTH AFRICAN SUPERVISORS IN THE HELPING PROFESSIONS

Abstract

MULTICULTURAL ASPECTS OF SUPERVISION IN POST-APARTHEID SOUTHAFRICAClinical supervision in psychology and social work is challenged with addressing the variouscultural, social and political factors that affect therapeutic and supervisory relationships. In thecontext of present-day South Africa with its emphasis on recruiting supervisees into the helpingprofessions from diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds, questions of race, ethnicity and culture inclinical supervision have become of considerable importance. This paper examines the literaturepertinent to supervision and presents a theoretical framework for conceptualising themulticultural development of supervisors and supervisees with a specific emphasis on the SouthAfrican context. It highlights some of the potential problems that might arise in supervisoryrelationships in which the supervisor and supervisee are racially disparate and outlinesrecommendations for clinicians to consider in their practice. Most of the research on inter-racialclinical supervision has been conducted in the United States and other countries wheremulticulturalism is part of the national landscape. This article uses this international literature andapplies it to the present post-apartheid contex