The Roles of Mental Health Provider Attachment in Professional Development, Supervision, and Counselor Education

Attachment informs one’s formation of relationship connections with others, which is the basis of all therapeutic work for mental health professionals (MHPs). Manuscript one includes a PRISMA 2020 (Page et al., 2021) review of 33 research studies that investigated MHPs’ attachment in the context of non-therapeutic clinical roles, including professional development, supervision, and teaching. Findings are discussed, including the considerable evidence that MHP attachment style is relevant across professional roles. The impacts on these roles are discussed in the context of four emergent themes: Professional Functioning and Well-being, Supervisory Relationships, Self-awareness, and Empathy. Based on these findings, implications for counselor education and supervision practice are identified, including the need for explicit attachment theory instruction within MHP education, the use of attachment to inform feedback modalities, and MHP educators engaging in their own personal therapy to enhance self-awareness around their own attachment behaviors. Recommendations for additional research are provided.

Manuscript two includes a consensual qualitative research investigation regarding experts’ (n = 10) perceptions of the impact of attachment on the counselor education classroom and their strategies for attending to attachment in the counselor education classroom. Consensual Qualitative Research was used to interview counselor educators (CEs) who are experts in attachment and to analyze findings. Consistent with prior literature regarding supervision, participants confirmed the necessity of CEs attending to their own attachment styles. Findings indicate that participants perceived their counseling students as feeling empowered through real relationship; affirmation; instructor vulnerability and availability; clear, direct, and honest communication; and being given choice in their learning. Implications for counselor education are discussed, focusing on communication, differentiation of instruction, and responsive teaching practices. Recommendations for future research are provided.