This article seeks to demonstrate how self psychological concepts can
be applied to the process of training psychotherapists in a variety of
clinical and community settings. The author examines the role of clin
ical supervision in the development, consolidation, and maintenance of
a cohesive professional self. The role of selfobject experience, need
s, transference, and countertransference as manifested in the supervis
ory relationship is elaborated. Supervisor and supervisee form a self-
selfobject unit, through which the trainee's anxieties and vulnerabili
ties can be managed. This selfobject matrix enables maintenance of sel
f-esteem, expansion of cognitive understanding, and structure building
in the arena of the professional self. To achieve these ends, the sup
ervisor forms an empathic alliance with the internal, subjective exper
ience of the therapist. The importance of focusing on the self experie
nce and selfobject needs of the therapist in training via an empathic
mode of observation is illustrated by several examples and vignettes.
The application of theory to practice is emphasized, with examples cho
sen from a variety of clinical settings and modalities.