A Study on Varying Impact of Supervisory Relationships on Counselling Trainees' Self-Perceived Performance

Clinical placement plays a vital role in the development and practical application of counselling trainees' skills in real clinical settings. The Supervisory Relationship Questionnaire (SRQ) proposes a two-level bidirectional model, suggesting that the quality of the supervisory relationship significantly influences how trainees perceive their skills and the degree to which they achieve the learning goals. This study had two primary objectives. Initially, it aimed to reconfirm the positive relationship between the six factors in the SRQ model and their impact on the perceived achievement of various learning objectives among 124 counselling trainees recruited in Hong Kong. Secondly, the study sought to investigate the structure of the SRQ model by assessing the mediating impacts of the Level 1 (foundational) factors. Results showed that the two learning goals, i.e. development of professional self-efficacy and rapport-building skills, strongly correlated with most of the six SRQ factors. The relative inexperience of the participants in counselling skills may have contributed to the weaker relationship between the other two learning goals, namely case conceptualization and clinical judgement, and their supervisory relationship. The findings of this study also highlight the full mediating effects of the provision of a safe base and supervisor commitment in the relationship between supervisory training factors and the level of attainment of the learning goals. This suggests that the interaction and training factors at Level 2 of the SRQ model are expressed through the foundational factors at Level 1, ultimately facilitating the achievement of learning outcomes.