Brief Online Training with Standardised Vignettes Reduces Inflated Supervisor Ratings of Trainee Practitioner...

Area of Science:

• Psychology
• Education

Background:

• Supervisor assessments are crucial for clinical psychology trainee competence.
• The Clinical Psychology Practicum Competencies Rating Scale (CΨPRS) often yields inflated ratings.
• There is a need for methods to improve the objectivity of these assessments.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate if brief supervisor training can reduce inflated competency ratings.
• To determine if objective criteria provided during training enhance assessment accuracy.

Main Methods:

• 124 psychology trainees' ratings from nine Australian university programs were analyzed.
• 32 supervisors completed online training with standardized vignettes and expert feedback.
• Trained and untrained supervisors' CΨPRS ratings and calibration vignette accuracy were compared.

Main Results:

• Supervisors who received training provided significantly lower CΨPRS ratings.
• Trained supervisors' calibration vignette ratings more closely aligned with expert panel ratings.

Conclusions:

• Brief online training using standardized vignettes effectively reduced inflated competency ratings.
• The training calibrated supervisors' judgment, leading to more accurate trainee performance assessments.
• This approach helps ensure clinical psychology trainees meet expected competency levels.