Developmental trajectories of competency attainment amongst clinical psychology trainees across field placements

This research aimed to describe the developmental trajectories of clinical psychology trainees across competency domains over multiple placements.

Competency reviews of 252 trainees were completed at mid-placement and end-placement for up to four consecutive placements by 143 field supervisors. Competency was measured across multiple domains using the Clinical Psychology Practicum Competencies Rating Scale.

There was an overall ascending stepped pattern occurring across all competency domains from early to late placements. The starting point of competency ratings varied across domains with the largest discrepancy between Response to supervision (highest) and Intervention competencies (lowest). There were significant increases from mid-placement to end-placement for all competencies within each of the four placements. There were few significant decreases in competency between different placements and these were largely restricted to the transition from placement one to placement two.

This research has the potential to be used as a benchmark to indicate expected levels of competency attainment for trainees across their training, allowing for early identification of difficulties and more targeted remediation plans.