Master-level counseling students' perceptions of humor styles in clinical supervision from an attachment perspective: A quantitative evaluatio

The purpose of this study was to investigate potential differences between secure and insecure attachment among counselors-in-training and their perceptions of humor styles used by doctoral-level clinical supervisors. Doctoral supervisors acting in the clinical vignettes used humorous (adaptive or maladaptive) and non-humorous approaches in clinical supervision. The pilot study validated three clinical vignettes. These vignettes were based on Bordin's Supervisory Working Alliance (Bordin, 1983) and Martin's representation of Humor Styles (2003). The clinical vignettes depicted a clinical supervisor using adaptive, maladaptive, and non-humorous approaches (or communication styles) in three mock supervision sessions. Participants were asked to complete a demographic questionnaire, the Adult Attachment Scale (AAS; Collins, 1996), and to categorize the three clinical vignettes as either adaptive or maladaptive. The study asked one broad question: does a difference exist between secure and insecure attachment among counselors-in-training and their perceptions of supervisors' humor style? Results indicated there were no differences between secure and insecure attached CITs perceptions of humor used by doctoral-level clinical supervisors. Findings will be potentially beneficial in helping clinical supervisors determine when to use and when not to use humor. Furthermore, clinical supervisors should consider how they use humor in their approach with counselors-in-training.