The subject of the research in this master’s thesis is the construct of mindfulness in the supervision process. The research arises from theoretical starting points, which describe the definitions and axioms of mindfulness, mindfulness as a therapeutic discipline and operating mechanism. Later on, reflection is described as the key method of learning and development in supervision. Particular attention is paid to the process-oriented approaches. After that, I focus on the elements of mindfulness that appear in the supervision process, and on justifying what they have in common and how they differ from each other. The purpose of the empirical part is to determine whether the supervisors of the developmental-educational model are using the elements of mindfulness when conducting the supervision process and in what way. I have researched whether the use of mindfulness can be connected to the level of the professional development of a supervisor and how supervisors deal with stagnation in the process. The views of the supervisors have been studied using the qualitative research, with the involvement of eight supervisors who are also members of the Slovenian Supervision Association. In order to gain information, I used a semi-structured interview. The collected information was processed with qualitative analysis of the content. The answers to the research questions show that the supervisors use individual elements of mindfulness in certain areas of the supervision process. The supervisors use mindfulness indirectly, especially informal mindfulness. The elements of mindfulness appear when directing attention to the “here and now”, when including personal experience in the process and when accepting emotions. The use of the elements of mindfulness can be connected to the level of professional development of the supervisor, but not with the number of years of conducting supervision. Even a beginner supervisor may be able to manage the essential process elements of supervision and use his or her own experience when conducting it. In particular, the usefulness of the elements of mindfulness was revealed in the process-oriented approaches. Its significant value lies in recognising and solving stagnation in the supervision process. The supervisors recognise stagnation by perceiving their own emotions and body sensations. To solve these stagnations, they direct attention to the “here and now” and change the perspective. Both solutions are important elements of mindfulness. The elements of mindfulness are used in the recognition of parallel process, as well as transference and countertransference. To solve the parallel process, they direct attention to the “here and now” and use verbalisation. To face transference and countertransference, they mostly use rational explanation.
This master’s thesis contributes to the clarification of the construct of mindfulness and to justifying the similarities and differences between mindfulness and supervision. The conclusions of the empirical part show the use of individual elements of mindfulness in the supervision process, mindfulness connected to the level of the professional development of the supervisor and the useful value of mindfulness when dealing with stagnation in the process. The findings are of direct importance to supervisors in terms of raising the awareness of their own methods in professional situations and learning new approaches. This master’s thesis indicates opportunities for the greater use of mindfulness in many ways: as a tool of a supervisor in terms of personal and professional development and within the meaning of developing abilities that are important for establishing the supervision relationship, as an intervention, in teaching supervisees certain mindfulness meditation techniques and in shaping new models of supervision where mindfulness plays an important role in the supervision process.
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