Full Digest V8, I2

2 TPC Digest C ounselors-in-training (CITs) enrolled in Council for Accreditation of Counseling & Related Educational Programs (CACREP)-accredited programs are required to receive clinical supervision from an onsite supervisor during their onsite field experiences. In this time with their supervisors, CITs are encouraged to discuss their professional and personal struggles and goals. However, the information that they choose to share with their supervisor can then be used to evaluate their clinical performance and fitness as counselors. Thus, most (if not all) CITs sometimes choose to withhold relevant information from their supervisors because they are concerned with what could happen if they share the information. Findings from research on allied professions (e.g., psychology, social work) suggest that supervisees withhold a variety of types of information from their supervisors, but their intentional nondisclosures most commonly include negative reactions about their supervisor and/or experience in supervision, personal information, clinical mistakes, and evaluation concerns. The reasons for the intentional nondisclosure are most often because the supervisee perceived a poor relationship with their supervisor, felt the information was too personal to share, experienced negative feelings such as shame or embarrassment, or desired to maintain a favorable impression in the eyes of their supervisor. Prior to the current study, intentional nondisclosure had been limitedly investigated in the counseling profession, and no previous studies had examined the types of information being withheld during onsite supervision as well as the reasons for the nondisclosures. Accordingly, we utilized content analysis to examine examples of intentional nondisclosures provided by 66 participants. Eleven types of intentional nondisclosure and 13 reasons for withholding the information emerged from the data. The most common types of information withheld by participants included negative reactions to supervisors, general client observations, and clinical mistakes, and the most common reasons for withholding the information were impression management, perceived unimportance, negative feelings, and supervisor incompetence. In addition to the most common experiences of intentional nondisclosure, some participants described their experiences of ineffective or harmful supervision. We present the participants’ detailed examples of intentional nondisclosure in hopes to offer insight into CITs’ experience during onsite supervision. We hope that examples of intentional nondisclosures provided by participants help to normalize the experience for other CITs who may face similar challenges. We encourage CITs who are experiencing ineffective or harmful supervision to seek guidance and support from a peer, professional, faculty member, or professional association ethics consultant. We also encourage supervisors to be proactive in soliciting feedback from CITs about their experiences in supervision. This might also include intentionally normalizing potential clinical mistakes for CITs who experience pressure to perform perfectly. Finally, counselor education training programs may find it helpful to review examples of ineffective or harmful supervision with CITs prior to them starting their field experience. Implementing regular check-ins with CITs and soliciting feedback at the end of each semester to learn about their experience at their field placement may prevent future occurrences of ineffective or harmful supervision. In sum, collectively, CITs, supervisors, and counselor educators can work together to create solutions that mitigate intentional nondisclosure in supervision. Ryan M. Cook is an assistant professor at The University of Alabama. Laura E. Welfare, NCC, is an associate professor at Virginia Tech. Devon E. Romero, NCC, is an assistant professor at The University of Texas at San Antonio. Correspondence can be addressed to Ryan Cook, 310A Graves Hall, The University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, AL 35487, rmcook@ua.edu. Counselor-in-Training Intentional Nondisclosure in Onsite Supervision A Content Analysis Ryan M. Cook, Laura E. Welfare, Devon E. Romero