Supervisor Self-Disclosure: Supervisees' Perceptions of Positive Supervision Experiences

Within clinical supervision in psychology, supervisor self-disclosure plays an important role in normalizing supervisees' clinical experiences and process of identity development. This article explores three examples of supervisees' experiences with supervisor self-disclosure. We discuss the circumstances surrounding supervisor self-disclosure and how it facilitated professional development and clinical competency. Each supervisee reported an existing strong supervisory relationship and experienced the disclosure as beneficial to their identity development. We recommend future research examine the impacts of supervisor self-disclosure on supervisee development. Additionally, we suggest that training on supervisor self-disclosure be more readily available and integrated into existing supervision training opportunities. Public Significance Statement Self-disclosure within clinical supervision in psychology has consistently been identified as a core component of the supervision process. The focus, however, has primarily been on supervisee (i.e., psychology trainee) self-disclosure, with limited exploration of supervisor self-disclosure. This article presents case examples that explore the use of supervisor self-disclosure as an effective means of promoting supervisee professional development, self-efficacy, and sense of professional identity.