Identify the potential ethical and legal issues raised in the following brief scenarios, and consider how you would address them:
Your supervisor does not provide what you consider to be adequate supervision. He sometimes cancels supervision sessions. You are left mainly on your own with a difficult caseload. The staff members where you work also have overwhelming caseloads. When you do get time with your supervisor, he also seems overwhelmed with responsibilities. Thus, you do not get enough time to discuss your cases. What would you do? You have a conflict with your supervisor over the most ethical way to deal with a client. What would you do? You do not get adequate feedback on your performance as a trainee. At the end of the semester your supervisor gives you a negative evaluation. What potential ethical and legal issues might be involved? How would you deal with the situation? Do you think it is unethical for supervisors to initiate social or romantic relationships with trainees after they have graduated (and when the supervisors have no professional obligations to the trainees)? Explain your position. If during the course of your supervision you became aware that personal problems are interfering with your ability to work effectively with clients, what would be your solution to the problem? What are the main problems with multiple relationships in supervision? What potential problems do you see, and how might you resolve them? Do you think all such relationships in supervision should be minimized or even avoided entirely? What possible benefits, if any, do you see when supervisors combine a multiplicity of roles such as teacher, mentor, counselor, consultant, evaluator, and supervisor?
