Supervision (in) of social work –the way to perfection?

Supervision does not have a single definition, but on the contrary, it is vast and they emphasize its various aspects, dimensions, depending on what profession we are dealing with. The common point of all explanations of this concept is that it is understood as a learning process in which a social worker works with a supervisor (i.e. a more experienced “colleague”) in order to enrich his skills, reflect on his own behaviour and emotions. Thanks to it, he improves his methodical behaviour in working with a client or solving social problems. Indirectly, this affects the welfare and safety of the social worker, as the increasing competence of the supervisor benefits the client, who can be better assisted, and the supervisor is supposed to monitor the social worker’s practice from an ethical point of view, which provides additional protection. The aim of this paper is to reflect on the extent to which supervision can be a path to change for the better, that is, a path to excellence in and for social work.

Supervision does not have a single definition, but on the contrary, it is vast and they emphasize its various aspects, dimensions, depending on what profession we are dealing with. The common point of all explanations of this concept is that it is understood as a learning process in which a social worker works with a supervisor (i.e. a more experienced “colleague”) in order to enrich his skills, reflect on his own behaviour and emotions. Thanks to it, he improves his methodical behaviour in working with a client or solving social problems. Indirectly, this affects the welfare and safety of the social worker, as the increasing competence of the supervisor benefits the client, who can be better assisted, and the supervisor is supposed to monitor the social worker’s practice from an ethical point of view, which provides additional protection. The aim of this paper is to reflect on the extent to which supervision can be a path to change for the better, that is, a path to excellence in and for social work.