The supervisory relationship from an attachment perspective: Connections to burnout and sense of coherence in health professionals

Abstract

Supervision is an essential part of the training and work environment of health professionals, especially of psychotherapists and clinical/health psychologists. However, although the supervisory process is always a relational one and may therefore be influenced by attachment dynamics, the importance of the supervisory relationship for the professional's performance and the well-being of the supervisee has yet to be fully examined. In this cross-sectional observational study, the Experiences in Close Relationships-Revised (ECR-RD; avoidant and anxious attachment), the Supervisory Relationship Questionnaire (SRQ), the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI) and the Sense of Coherence Scale (SOC-13) were analysed for 346 (81.8% female) health professionals. Considering professional experience and number of supervision sessions as control variables, a better supervisory relationship negatively predicted burnout symptoms (β = -.31) but positively predicted sense of coherence (β = .31, both p < .01). The final model, including avoidant and anxious attachment as additional predictors, explained 30% of the variance in burnout symptoms and 41% of the variance in sense of coherence. The results underline the importance of the supervisory relationship for the well-being and the professional performance of health professionals. Interactions between the supervisory relationship and underlying attachment parameters should be further explored in future studies.

Keywords: attachment; burnout; health professionals; sense of coherence; supervisory relationship.