Contemporary Visions of Psychotherapy Supervision: Sharing Perspective, Identifying Need, and Charting Possibility

Psychotherapy supervision has now celebrated its first centennial, is poised to move boldly forward into its second century
of contribution to psychotherapy education, and seems perfectly positioned to further advance our knowledge about and practice
of how to effectively facilitate, influence, and mentor our supervisees. Professional interest in and recognition of psychotherapy
supervision appears to be at an all time high, and its value as a potentially alchemical educational event seems increasingly
incontrovertible. But if supervision is to maintain and even enhance its substance and significance in 21st century psychotherapy
education, what are the matters to which we as supervision practitioners, researchers, and theorists must vigilantly attend
and vigorously address? In this special supervision issue of the Journal of Contemporary Psychotherapy, we would like to examine some of those matters. The topics that are addressed include: competencies, evidence-based practice,
and supervising psychoanalytic/psychodynamic, cognitive/behavioral, humanistic/existential, and integrative/eclectic psychotherapies.
The binding theme of “pressing needs and impressing possibilities” will be evident throughout this journal issue. In this
introductory paper, I briefly define psychotherapy supervision, consider its beginnings, provide a rationale for this special
issue, and identify the specific questions that give focus and frame to each of the succeeding contributions.