IJSP Number 8, 2026

International Journal of Supervision in Psychotherapy, Number 8, 2026 Page | 30 As part of the students' self-assessment, strengths, weaknesses, and uncertainties should be discussed, both in relation to their own personality, relationship building, and conversational skills, as well as in relation to their understanding and abilities in dealing with basic working methods and various interventions or techniques. The aim of this approach is for trainees to gain increasing confidence in their self-assessment of their therapeutic skills through the feedback that arises from the course of the therapeutic work itself (the so-called interplay of impression and reaction) and, so to speak, develop their own “inner supervisor.” Only after self-reflection do students receive feedback from group members and training therapists, which they can use as inspiration for their further therapeutic development. We consider the diversity and multi-perspectivity of the feedback from teaching therapists and group members that this approach brings with it to be very enlightening, as, like the preceding self-reflection, it promotes the development of independent perspectives and judgments, and not just those of a trainer. 3. BENEFITS AND CHALLENGES First, let’s focus on the particular strengths we see in this approach: 1. Self-exploration and therapeutic experience go hand in hand within the group and can therefore be easily integrated. This allows students to identify what helps them and how they might make this accessible to others. 2. Early active learning through the interaction between observation and reaction, combined with learning by example, as opposed to learning that is primarily focused on role models or the acquisition of knowledge independent of practical application. 3. In the group, students can learn not just from one role model, but from many. We believe this fosters the development of their own style and an understanding of the fundamental principles reflected in the various works and processes they observe. 4. The ability to draw on direct observations when reflecting on a process, rather than relying solely on reports and descriptions from supervisees, is certainly advantageous. This allows distortions, inaccuracies, and blind spots to come into focus that would otherwise have gone undetected. Compared to tape recordings and transcripts, the advantage is less significant, but it is still enriched by the nonverbal aspects of communication. 5. Applying these principles and insights under supervision in increasingly complex and diverse situations prior to working with patients – with support from a co- therapist within the group and the supervising therapists present – fosters inner confidence and the practical application of the acquired skills and knowledge. For example, students first gain initial experience in providing feedback. When conducting morning rounds, students must pay particular attention to building relationships as well as recognizing and addressing personal or group-dynamic concerns. Ultimately, this leads to the first therapeutic work as a co-therapist, in which the primary responsibility lies with a more experienced group membe r1, which subsequently leads to the student taking lead as the primary therapist in their own in-depth therapeutic work. 1 The training groups are ongoing groups in which participants of varying skill levels are taught together so that they can learn from one another.