IJSP Number 8, 2026

International Journal of Supervision in Psychotherapy, Number 8, 2026 Page | 31 6. Direct feedback and supervision by training therapists and group members allows for a multi-perspective view of the process, which can, on the one hand, enrich and clarify the possibilities for understanding what is happening, and, on the other hand – we hope – can better convey the provisional and hypothetical nature even of well-founded perspectives. This is important to us in terms of consistently adhering to a critical-realistic approach [4], because students, in their understandable search for orientation and security during this phase of training, are often tempted to cling to statements made by training therapists as truths or to derive simplified rules without considering the overall context, thus falling back behind a critical-realist approach with negative consequences for the therapist-client relationship. 7. Especially for inexperienced students at the beginning of their training, a supportive intervention by the instructor directly into the therapeutic work taking place on- site is possible – for example, to steer stuck or blocked situations back in a productive direction. But also, to prevent serious mistakes in the situation for the client’s benefit. This option gives students additional confidence. Of course, it can also make them feel very insecure in tense moments. Therefore, it is important to agree with the group on when help is needed and to discuss how this intervention was experienced. 3.1 OBSTACLES The challenges of this model arise primarily from the group setting. The group is a resource but can also be or become a hindrance. It is then a resource ‒ when it empowers and encourages its members, ‒ if it allows for open and honest exchange and feedback, ‒ if it promotes differentiated relationships and differentiated perspectives and feedback, and ‒ sufficient cohesion has developed and what is common and unifying outweighs competitive feelings and behavior. It becomes an obstacle especially when ‒ strong and/or unresolved conflicts exist in the group, ‒ strong (negative) competition develops, ‒ fear of criticism leads to mutual sparing. For live supervision in a group to reach its full potential, supervising therapists must pay particular attention to the group’s dynamics and development and reflect on their feedback and actions not only in terms of whether they are helpful to the supervisee, but also in terms of how they affect the group’s dynamics [18]. Now that we have contrasted the group as both a resource and an obstacle, we would like to highlight something that we regularly find particularly helpful in our students’ development into competent psychotherapists: overcoming the hurdle of working therapeutically in front of so many pairs of eyes and beyond their own expertise! This barrier – or rather, repeatedly overcoming it – ultimately contributes to greater self- confidence and ensures that students feel better prepared to work with their own clients in practice. Nevertheless, this approach requires the utmost sensitivity on the part of both the training therapists and the group participants, who, based on their own experiences, are generally quite capable of empathizing.