The Supervision Experiences of Non-Hispanic Bilingual Therapists Who Worked With Spanish-Speaking Clients

This study utilized a qualitative approach to explore the supervision experiences of nine participants (seven females and two males) or non-Hispanic bilingual therapists who worked with Spanish-speaking clients and were under the supervision of a monolingual English-speaking supervisor. Their interviews data were audio recorded, transcribed and coded into categories (i.e., areas noted as therapist and areas noted as supervisee) and themes using the constant comparative method (Maykut & Morehouse, 1994). The themes in the first category consisted of differences in the participants' therapeutic approach with English vs. Spanish-speaking clients, and participants' challenges as bilingual therapists. The themes in the second category consisted of helpful aspects of supervision, unhelpful aspects of supervision, challenges felt by the supervisee, preferences for Spanish-speaking supervision, approaches participants took to meet supervision needs and examples of how supervisors should approach supervision. Overall participants reported preferring to have a supervisor who was culturally and linguistically competent in order to provide competent services to clients. Participants shared that it was helpful when their supervisors were aware, admitted to having limitations, and were willing to learn. The study's limitations, clinical implications and suggestions for future research are discussed.