Why does the field supervisor wait five days before beginning individual and group work with the students?
A. The reason SUWS reaches adolescents faster and more intensely than any other program is because we have mastered the art of pattern work. We allow plenty of time for the students’ maladaptive coping patterns to emerge and eventually become a problem for them. This process takes patience and time and a great deal of skill and finesse on the part of the instructors. If field supervisors were to begin their work earlier, students would still be in their patterns of control and not nearly as eager or motivated to accept support and guidance. Also, if the students think they will be “doing therapy” when they start the program, they may be tempted to act or talk a certain way to meet perceived criteria. Not knowing what’s ahead for a week or so is a powerful tool.
Related Questions
- How closely do the faculty members work with individual students? Does a doctoral student work with a faculty supervisor from the outset, or is one assigned later by the school?
- Will the RA Sponsor field in ESR use the Supervisor hierarchy and if not what are the implications for more than one RA Sponsor per organisation or for individual exceptions?
- How much group and individual therapy do students receive each week?
