THE IMPACT OF SUPERVISORY WORKING ALLIANCE ON COUNSELOR PERFORMANCE DUE TO DISTANCE SUPERVISION AMONG TRAINEE COUNSELORS IN HIGHER EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTION

The aim of this study is to investigate the impact of supervisory working alliance on counsellor performance due to distance supervision among trainee counsellors in Higher Educational Institutions in Malaysia. The study is implemented using the causal comparative design and utilized the convenience sampling technique. Data were collected from 92 counselling students that undergone practicum and internship from higher educational institutions in Malaysia. The instrument used in the study were demographic form, Supervisory Working Alliance Inventory – Trainee Version (SWAI-T) and Counsellor Performance Inventory (CPI). The data collected were analyzed by using t-test analysis. The result shown that there is no significant impact of supervisory working alliance on counsellor performance due to distance supervision, p>.05. Hence there is no impact of supervisory working alliance on counsellor performance. However, there is a significant impact of supervisory working alliance specifically on the rapport and client focus on the subscales of counsellor performance. Therefore, the supervisor and trainee counsellor need to build the strong rapport and work based on client focus to enhance the competency of the counsellor development. This study is expanded to the current study in the supervision setting which it implies the element of distance supervision