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Supervision in careers guidance:Empowerment or control?Jenny Bimrose a & Sally Wilden aa Department of Psychology , University of East London , RomfordRoad, London, El 5 4LZ, UKPublished online: 16 Oct 2007.

To cite this article: Jenny Bimrose & Sally Wilden (1994) Supervision in careers guidance:Empowerment or control?, British Journal of Guidance & Counselling, 22:3, 373-383, DOI:10.1080/03069889408253682

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British Journal of Guidance and Counselling, Vol. 22, No. 3, 1994 373

SYMPOSIUM n . . . Supervision in careers empowerment or

guidance: control?

JENNY BIMROSE & SALLY WILDEN Department of Psychology, University of East London, Romford Road, London El5 4 U , UK

ABSTRACT Like many otherprofesswns, careers guidance is currently undergoing rapid and radical change. But the Careers Service is still operating w nationally agreed ‘core training o&ectives’ which determine both initial training (Diploma in Careers Guidance Part I ) and supervisory training (Diploma in Careers Guidance Part II). Recent changes influencing guidance practice and training are outlined, and the predominant mode of current supererision within the Careers SeroiCe is identijied as ‘managed’ in character. This is explained in tenns of both the hiswrical development of the service and its funding mechanisms. A model for supervisory practice for the future is psesenttd, identtjjmag three essential elements: organisational commitment, connactual agreement and an explicit framework.

Careers guidance in transition

Careers guidance has been identified as centrally important to the economic recov- ery of the nation in a manner unprecedented in its relatively short history. ‘The Government is clear that careers guidance has, more than ever before, a vital role to play in lifting the quantity and quality of education and training to meet the skill needs of the 1990s and beyond’ (Employment Department, 1993a, para 1.4). As one consequence of this, recent legislation (the Trade Union Reform & Employment Rights Act 1993) contains the blueprint for a fkndamental change to the delivery of careers guidance in England. The provision of Careers Services will be opened up to competitive tendering and successful bidders will be invited to contract by the Secretary of State for Employment for a specific period.

It has been suggested that three main strands of influence shaping such changes can be identified: using guidance as a form of social control; supporting guidance as a means of making markets work; and making guidance services themselves more responsive to market forces (Watts, 1991, p. 230). Criteria which organisations must meet to be successful in the bidding process are clearly specified (Employment Department, 1993b). Training is mentioned, stating that staff delivering guidance should hold the established professional qualification, the Diploma in Careers Guidance, or ‘an equivalent qualification’. The interpretation of ‘equivalence’ is left

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open. Organisations will thus be free to choose the professional qualification(s) considered most suitable for their staff.

In addition to the structural changes driven by th is legislation, a major reform of the national system of vocational education and training is also under way, which has the potential to affect guidance training and supervision in a direct manner. The Advice, Guidance and Counselling Lead Body (recently retitled the Advice, Guid- ance, Counselling and Psychotherapy Lead Body) has been convened and is cur- rently defining the competencies required for the professional areas named in its title. One of the requirements of this Lead Body is to develop standards and establish National Vocational Qualifications (NVQs) and Scottish Vocational Qualifications (SVQs). Already these developments have affected training for careers guidance in various ways. For example, there is a move towards more work-based training which integrates the delivery of initial and supervisory training in some regions. However, the actual implications of these and other changes for initial and supervisory training in the future are currently a matter for speculation.

In this paper we first examine the complex relationship which exists between guidance, counselling and careers guidance. Next, we explore current guidance practice and argue that the major task of supervision within the Careers Service is predominantly ‘managerial’. Possible conflicts and tensions which arise are identified. Finally, we present a possible fiamework for future supervisory practice for careers guidance.

Guidance, counselling and careers guidance

The relationship between guidance, careers guidance and counselling is elusive. Miller et d ’ s (1982) proposition that guidance consists of five activities (informing, advising, teaching, counselling and feeding back) represents one way of making sense of the relationship. This conceptualisation of ‘guidance’ as consisting of a number of related activities-ne of which is counselling-has been adopted and developed in recent years (e.g. Oakeshott, 1990; SCAGES, 1991). No one definition of guidance, however, is currently accepted (Killeen et al., 1992, p. 1; Hawthorn & Butcher, 1992, p. 11). This ’view has been endorsed by the Advice, Guidance and Counselling Lead Body (1 993) which reported that ‘there is consider- able inconsistency in definition and function of adiice, guidance and counselling’, and that a recent feasibility study which they had undertaken had been ‘haunted by difficulties with terminology and definitions arising out of a lack of clarity about the differences between advice, guidance and counselling’. Similarly, a number of terms which variously combine ‘guidance’, ‘counselling’ and ‘careers’ are currently used to imply subtle but important distinctions in practice (for example, ‘guidance’, ‘careers guidance’, ‘vocational guidance’, ‘vocational counselling’, ‘adult guidance’, ‘educa- tional guidance’, ‘careers counselling’, ‘careers education and guidance’).

An examination of practice reflects this terminological confusion. Whilst ‘coun- selling’ has succeeded in establishing itself with a single professional body-the British Association of Counselling (BAC)-which unifies the various interest groups in the area of counselling and performs various umbrella functions, ‘guidance’

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Supermiion in careers guidance 375

remains a more fkagmented area of activity. Watts (1 99 1) identifies four professional associations established by guidance practitioners-the Institute of Careers Officers (subsequently renamed the Institute of Careers Guidance), the National Association of Careers and Guidance Teachers, the Association of Graduate Careers Advisory Services and the National Association for Educational Guidance for Adults. These associations represent separate but related areas of guidance practice which do not share any initial or supervisory training.

The Careers Service is one area of guidance provision which has operated for some time with common initial training and supervisory practice. It is to this particular type of guidance that we now turn.

Current practice-a historical perspective

The Employment and Training Act 1948 defined the requirement for a Youth Employment Service. This acknowledged the need for young people in transition fiom education to employment to have help available in the form of information and job-placement services. No accredited training was required for youth employment officers, and training support, where provided, generally took the form of short skills training. The rationale for the provision of such a service related to the pragmatic requirement to ensure the ‘best fit’ for the labour-force in a country undergoing economic recovery after World War II.

The role and functions of the Careers Service were redefined by the Employ- ment and Training Act 1973. This reflected economic, social and political changes which had occurred during the 1950s and 1960s. Local Education Authorities were given statutory responsibility to provide a careers guidance service for young people up to the age of 18 (or older in certain circumstances). Recommendations were made about professional training for the newly established ‘careers officers’. This was to take the form of a 2-year training programme. The first year was designated ‘off-the-job’ in a training centre located in the higher education sector. Successful completion of this initial year resulted in the award of Part I of the Diploma in Careers Guidance (DCG), and had to be followed by a further year of supervised practice with a Local Education Authority Careers Service to qualify for the award of Part 11. The Local Government Training Board (now the Local Government Management Board) became the awkding body.for the qualification, with responsi- bility for the core syllabus and maintenance of national standards. The qualification has never been mandatory, though in practice the majority of employing Local Education Authority Careers Services have specified Part I of the DCG as a requirement for employment as a probationary careers officer.

The rationale for the ‘new’ Careers Service was, once again, to facilitate the satisfactory placement of young people into jobs or courses. However, the Act established a different ethos and way of achieving this common aim, by recognising young people as primary ‘clients’. Careers guidance was as a result more readily identifiable as a professional activity. Moreover, while individual interviews with young people still formed the core activity of the Careers Service, additional responsibilities were defined, such as work with employers, group work with young

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people in schools and colleges, and advisory and consultancy work with parents and teachers.

This change in the practice of careers guidance was informed and underpinned by developments in the theoretical basis of careers guidance. Theories which had dominated careers guidance practice both in the USA and the UK during the first half of th is century originated mainly from differential psychology with its emphasis on individual differences and the concept of ‘matching’ individuals to the ‘best fit’ job. During the 1950s and 1960s, theories originating from other academic disci- plines, such as developmental psychology and sociology, emerged as competing perspectives, emphasising both the importance of the maturational process of individuals and the context in which occupational ‘choice’ occurred and was implemented.

The ‘developmental’ framework which had begun to influence the practice of careers guidance by the 1970s also informed the developmental nature of the 2-year training for careers advisers, which has survived up to the present day. Students who satisfactorily completed Part I of the Diploma in Careers Guidance have been required to seek employment with a Local Education Authority Careers Service, whereupon they become ‘trainees’ or ‘probationers’. Employing authorities are then required to register the ‘trainee’ for hidher probationary or supervisory year with the Local Government Management Board, lodging a ‘training plan’ with the LGMB for approval. The ‘trainee’ may then proceed with their period of supervised training, which must be satisfactorily completed within twelve months of regis- tration. The ‘core objectives’ (defining the content of the 2-year qualification), assessment regulations and an individual record of personal and professional devel- opment which relate to Parts I and I1 of the Diploma in Careers Guidance, are contained in the ‘Workbook‘ issued to each student at the beginning of Part I by the LGMB. It is t h i s period of supervisory training that we now consider.

Individual supervision in careers guidance: tasks and roles

Supervision has been defined as a formal contractual arrangement which enables practitioners to discuss their work with someone who is appropriately experienced (Horton, 1993). The formality is important, and the supervisory contract should make explicit such things as the time, place, frequency, length and purpose of supervision. Horton identifies the primary purpose of supervision as enabling practi- tioners to develop and maintain their usefulness to clients, and claims that most of the literature on supervision identifies various tasks or supervisory functions.

Kadushin (1976) describes three main functions or roles for the supervisor- educative, supportive and managerial. The ‘educative’ role provides the supervisee with a deeper understanding of their situation. This role should encourage the exploration of various aspects of their professional work, producing a higher degree of integration between theory and practice. A reflective approach is adopted in the search for explanatory viewpoints relevant to the issues under scrutiny. In Kadushin’s model, the ‘supportive’ role is particularly important when the supervi- see is feeling overwhelmed (either by the intensity of the demands, by conflicting

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demands or by the sheer weight of demands). The ‘managerial’ role seeks to ensure that standards are being maintained and that the supervisee is meeting agreed standards and goals both of the profession and of the organisation. The supervisor’s task is to monitor the quality of work and engender a sense of responsibility and the accountability of the individual towards their professional role. The extent to which these supervisory roles balance and support or override and dominate each other depends on whose interests are being represented during supervision.

Hawkins & Shohet (1989) state that in any supervisory situation four elements are always present-by implication, if not in reality. These are the supervisee, the supervisor, the work context and the supervisee’s client. They see these elements as interacting with the four roles of supervision in a complex and subtle manner. For example, if the supervisee’s interests demand that the major part of supervision be given to reassuring the supervisee, dealing with feelings of insecurity about their role, and offering encouragement and backing for tasks undertaken, then the supportive role will dominate supervision. Alternatively, if the client’s concerns are given priority in supervision, with case-study discussions, examination of the supervisee’s skills and knowledge, and suggestions of different ways to respond to challenging client situations, the supervisee could feel overwhelmed, undervalued and generally unable to cope.

Looking back over the historical development of the Careers Service outlined earlier in t h i s article, one of the most important challenges for the Careers Service post-1973 was to gain professional recognition. This was largely achieved by ensuring a shared standard in the assessment and award of a national qualification. It is therefore not surprising that the managerial role has assumed prime position in supervisory practice in the Careers Service. The recently published guidelines produced by the Local Government Management Board, entitled ‘Good Practice Guide for Diploma in Careers Guidance Part 11’ (1993), explicitly and comprehen- sively delineate the managerial function in supervision. The guide describes roles, responsibilities, training plans, methods, criteria and timetables for assessment. Assessable and non-assessable objectives are prescribed and learning opportunities, are suggested which are integrated within the existing workload.‘ Methods for gathering evidence for assessment are presented as examples of goo< practice. Indeed, if these guidelines are adopted and implemented across all careers Services, they will provide a much-needed common standard for the conduct of supervision in Part I1 of the Diploma in Careers Guidance, which hitherto has relied on the professional commitment (or otherwise) of individual Careers Services.

The ‘Workbook‘ produced and distributed by the Local Government Manage- ment Board to all students at the beginning of Part I of the Diploma in Careers Guidance also makes reference to the other two roles of supervision-namely, the supportive and the educative. The notion of promoting the self-development of the supervisee, and the importance of providing day-to-day support, are identified. However, these references need to be extended and brought into a more integrated and coherent fiarnework. This would help both the supervisor and supervisee to recognise how each supervisory role can support the layers of activities within which

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378 Jenny Bimrose 6.I Sally Wilden

the professional in training is engaged, and, equally important, how the integration of these supervisory roles can result in a satisfjmg experience for those involved.

The emphasis given to the managerial role in supervision is evident in docu- ments such as the ‘Workbook’ and the ‘Good Practice Guide’. Examination of various policy statements produced by individual Careers Services, or the observa- tion of the day-to-day conduct of supervision (for example, the frequency of contacts between supervisor and supervisee, the nature of the topics for discussion and the way in which this discussion is managed), reveal a similar picture. One other important indicator of the dominance of the managerial role in supervision is evident in the emphasis placed on quantitative measures of professional competence (such as the number of casework discussions, peer-group observations and evaluations). The choice of quantitative measures of competence is driven, in part at least, by funding mechanisms applied to Careers Services. A significant proportion of Careers Service funding is currently ‘target specific’, with managers having to demonstrate that the service has met quantitative targets to qualify for funding, thus reinforcing the managerial role in supervision above the other two possible roles.

Achieving an even balance between elements and roles is never an easy task for the supervisor. One supervisor’s description of the delicate balance between the roles is expressed vividly:

‘I feel most challenged and excited in supervision by the tension between the loving relationship and holding my own authority. Supervision is the place in my work where I can be at my most free-ranging-playful, free to think, allowed, able to comment on the process, challenge, take a journey into the unknown. Then there is the opposite side when I really have to hold the boundaries, own my own authority and risk the good relationship for the sake of truth. Each time this has happened, I have found it risky, self-challenging, lonely for a while, but also very mind-clearing and trans- formational and ultimately strengthening to both ourselves ‘and the rela- tionship’ (quoted in Hawkins & Shohet, 1989, p. 34).

This illustrates the complex nature of supervision-how it is made up of different factors and how the competent supervisor must be prepared to move effectively from one role to another in a way that inspires confidence in the supervisee. An additional complexity relates to the status of the supervisor compared with the supervisee. In the relatively small organisational structure within which most services operate, the power differential between a supervisor and a supervisee can vary enormously. This will inevitably complicate the supervisory relationship further, and will require a sophisticated level of awareness on the part of the supervisor regarding the level of control and form of interaction which it is appropriate to adopt when assuming different roles or functions. Indeed, the organisational context within which supervi- sion occurs adds yet another dimension which will now be considered.

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Supermiion in careers guidance 379

Organisational issues in supervision

Given that supervision is used to describe a heterogeneous set of conditions and activities which can include teaching, skills training and many other activities (Horton, 1993), the potential for conflict does not just occur in the ‘one-to-one’ relationship between supervisor and supervisee. The policy objectives of the organis- ation, and the personal and professional needs of the supervisee, can be significantly at odds and difficult to resolve. As stated above, funding for Careers Services relates, in part, to the meeting of targets which are often quantitative in nature. The need to meet such targets can result in destructive conflict when targets specify a particular type of supervision which is at odds with the perception of the training needs of individual practitioners.

For example, a guidance service had undergone an evaluation of a pilot project which involved offering a service to adult clients. One of the findings of the evaluation highlighted the need for further supervision and training for practitioners. The funding arrangements for the service were linked to achieving specific outcomes from this training (that is, training which amacted some form of accreditation). Thus, service managers organised a customised training c o m e which led to accred- itation. However, the practitioners h l y rejected the proposal, requesting instead that the training they required to make them more efficient with adult clients should take the form of case-study discussions. Their rationale was clear. They wanted the opportunity to discuss difficult clients and needed this kind of supervisory support to enable them to decide how to work more effectively with their clients. It can take prolonged negotiation to resolve opposing views on the nature of the suitable type of supervisory practice.

This example throws into focus the potentially conflicting needs of different parties involved in the supervisory function and how these should be identified and resolved. In the above example, the careers practitioners felt that they should have a significant share of the decision-making process, which was being denied by managers concentrating on meeting targets to secure funding. It is important that this process of decision-making is clear and accessible to all involved parties. Proctor clearly expresses this need for explicit contracting:

‘If supervision is to become and remain a co-operative experience which allows for real, rather than token, accountability, a clear-even tough- working agreement needs to be negotiated. The agreement needs to pro- vide sufficient safety and clarity for the student or worker to know where she stands: and it needs sufficient teeth for the supervisor to feel free and responsible for making the challenges of assessments which belong with whatever role-managerial, consultative or training-the context requires’ (quoted in Hawkins & Shohet, 1989, p. 29).

Innovation and change in the work context often bring uncertainty and a degree of conflict into existing working relationships. In another example, a Careers Service introduced a new project to integrate peer-group evaluation of guidance interviews, with management assuming the role of moderator. The initiative was received with

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a mixture of enthusiasm and anxiety by Careers Service staff. On the one hand, it was welcomed as one of the rare opportunities for experienced practitioners to have some developmental supervision for their work; on the other hand, a number of factors caused unease. Not least, the staff were concerned about the effect evaluation would have on working relationships, and there was an implicit assumption that colleagues’ interview practice was a matter of personal preference which each had uniquely developed over a period of time, and was therefore difficult to evaluate by a single method. An additional concern related to the suspicion that management could be using the process to assess individual performance and move towards performance-related pay. Fineman highlights possible problems that may arise around conflicting objectives in the supervision situation:

‘I have regular meetings with my supervisor, but always steer clear of my problems in coping with my report work. Can I trust her? I need her backing for my career progress, but will she use this sort of thing as evidence against me? There are some painful areas that are never dis- cussed, but which need discussing so much. It’s an awful dilemma for me’ (quoted in Hawkins & Shohet, 1989, p. 23).

A similar degree of anxiety was felt over the confusion of explicit and implicit purposes in peer assessment of interviews, leading to doubts about how each practitioner should conduct their own role in the process. Not only is a great deal of clarity about the contractual roles essential in this type of situation, but these need to be re-examined and sometimes re-negotiated at different stages to ensure conti- nuity of purpose.

Developing an appropriate h e w o r k for supervision

At a time of unprecedented change in the structure and functions of the Career Service, it would be easy to dismiss increased activity in supervision as neither feasible nor tenable. If such a response is temporary, then so be it. However, if it continues for any length of time, the service risks losing its cutting edge in the execution of its core function. The service must encourage self-reflecuon amongst members on the effectiveness of their own practice and ensure that continued attention is given to its code of profession$ ethics and the conduct of practitioners. A service that only gives cursory or no attention to the rationale for its existence, does so as its peril. Sooner or later, others will call these original functions into question and interrogate assumptions underpinning the delivery of guidance.

Undoubtedly there are many ways to achieve these ends, but integral to the process of continuous critical self-evaluation is to have an organisational structure that not only monitors, controls and directs, but also encourages learning in the workplace beyond the initial training phase for guidance practice. Short in-service training courses cannot, alone, foster and nurture this without commitment and value given to ‘living it out’ in the day-to-day work. Careers guidance does not take place in a vacuum. It is subject to changes, pressures and demands from the workplace and from the client groups with whom it deals. Alongside this should be

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Supervision in careers guidance 38 1

continued analysis of the underlying theoretical , ethical and ideological consider- ations of its practice. Practitioners should be encouraged to search for new perspec- tives, develop different professional responses, keep up to date with and contribute to research, and reflect on various aspects of practice continuously. In the final section, we discuss how th is type of learning culture can be developed.

Supervision in guidance: a h e w o r k for the future

What is the supervisory role in the learning culture outlined above? What would be an appropriate framework and how would the three roles of supervision be balanced in the overall scheme? Amongst the necessary conditions for such balance to be achieved, the essential three elements would seem to be organisational commitment, contractual agreement and an explicit framework.

Organisational commitment

The organisation would have to ensure that on-going supervision would be part of all staff development, and that this would not end on completing the supervisory (or probationary) year. Senior staff would be as much a part of supervision as trainee staff. The centrality of supervision would need to be explicit, so that it could not be relegated to the level of ‘we’re doing supervision anyway as part of our management function’. Supervision would then be seen as part of the organisation’s determi- nation to engender a climate of enquiry which produced continuous learning from different work situations. Growth in learning would be of equal importance to the control of functions. Appraisal systems would assume a staff development b c t i o n in addition to an appraisal of work performance.

Contractual agreement

Practitioners as well as managers would be able to participate in identifying the kind of supervision needed. The method and form would be open to negotiation. The supervisory activity would not just focus on assessment of performance but would be flexible enough to include experimentation with new and untried approaches with all the risks involved. Supervision would be part of the support and feedback needed to examine a new approach from different points of view. At all levels, staff would be encouraged to update their knowledge and skills. Those undertaking the supervisor role would develop skills to be able to move comfortably across the different sub-roles required of them-that is, supportive, managerial and educative-and be able to exercise judgement over their selection and application. Hawkins & Shohet (1989) recommend that supervisors should be practitioners as well as managers. Only then are they fully able to understand working situations fkom the supervisee’s point of view. At the same time, the supervisee should take responsibility for raising important issues, even if this risks raising doubts about their own competence. The agreement would include specific time-slots dedicated to the supervisory function, with a commitment that this would not be eroded at a time of heavier work

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382 Jenny Bimmse &= Sally WiIden

demands. Roles and responsibilities of supervisor and supervisee would be clarified, and the necessary skills of feedback and personal development would be nurtured in both roles.

Explicit framework

Gardiner (1989) summed up the main purpose of supervision as developing ‘the reflective practitioner’. How t h i s is achieved may not be the same for every careers guidance practitioner. A new and inexperienced practitioner may need a higher degree of control and support than someone of long experience. The organisation may opt for a model of supervision which extends fkom the more dependent mode to more collaborative responsibility. The model of supervision can vary in response to the degree of formality adopted. Too informal, and the contractual commitment to specific amounts of time can be eroded. Too formal, and the degree of control can restrict willingness to share information and engage in a genuine debate of issues.

Conclusion

These recommendations may sound ambitious, given the new climate in which Careers Services are being subjected to ever more rigorous methods of financial accountability. It would be understandable if Careers Services were to d i s m i s s such recommendations as attractive but not practicably feasible. It is, however, precisely the changing climate that makes supervision throughout staffs professional careers all the more desirable. Requirements to achieve higher and more extensive perform- ance targets can produce positive results, but they can also increase the possibility of performance fatigue and can distract attention away from critical self-reflection. Indeed, placing greater emphasis on the economic value of guidance canies with it the danger of diverting guidance into issues which are marginal to the original need that brought it into being.

Careers guidance has been developing since the turn of the century. Its continued development depends on the participation of practitioners, researchers, academics, policy-makers and ‘interested others’. Its position is by no means secure. One way to enhance its status is for practitioners to examine the activity of guidance with increased sensitivity and care. Supervisory practice, as outlined in this paper, could provide the framework for a more focused concern with ‘what actually goes on’ in the guidance process. From our contact with those practising careers guid- ance, we have formed the clear impression that practitioners would welcome such a development. An often-expressed concern is the &stration with work overload. It seems that this situation is unlikely to improve in the foreseeable future. A major challenge for careers guidance emerges as a need to re-order priorities, with super- visory practice elevated to the position which would secure the future existence of a professional service.

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