Date of Conferral

2-4-2026

Degree

Doctor of Psychology (Psy.D.)

School

Psychology

Advisor

Derek Rohde

Abstract

Current literature does not adequately address the factors that lead to and prevent burnout and poor work performance among inexperienced clinicians and clinical supervisors working in group private practice. Exploring supervision experiences, specifically leadership style, employee engagement, and internal communication, may provide insight into the experiences of novice mental health professionals and their supervisors in addressing burnout and enhancing work performance. Through a qualitative single-case study design informed by interpretative phenomenological principles, data were collected in semistructured interviews with five behavioral health leaders from a two-location group private practice who hold dual roles as clinicians and supervisors. The interview data were coded and analyzed thematically to better understand the perceptions of clinical supervisors regarding practice operations, the role of supervisors in individual clinician success, and their experiences in providing motivation and engagement for novice clinicians, and the following five themes were identified: (a) dual leadership identity and sense making; (b) communication and supervision as core mechanisms of engagement and performance; (c) systemic misalignment producing strain, burnout, and sustainability challenges; (d) engagement, motivation, and burnout tradeoffs; and (e) cultural disorganization creates a lack of structure. Potential implications for positive social include acknowledging and exploring workplace culture concerns and barriers faced by dual-role leaders helping to transform the culture of mental health, beginning with clinicians’ work environments.

Download

Share

 
COinS