Are reflecting teams always helpful in group supervision? A review of supervisees’ experiences

Group supervision is widely used in educational psychology practice. The reflecting team (RT) method, originally developed in systemic family therapy for live supervision, has been adapted for retrospective group supervision across disciplines, including educational psychology. However, empirical research on RT supervisory processes and outcomes remains limited. Existing studies largely examine the use of RTs in live supervision and focus on client impact rather than supervisee experience. Little has been published on RTs in educational psychology. This paper reports a systematic review of eight empirical studies exploring how RTs have been used in psychology and psychotherapy. The Critical Appraisal Skills Programme qualitative checklist was applied within Gough’s Weight of Evidence Framework, and findings were synthesised thematically. Results suggest that RTs are generally experienced as beneficial when conducted in a safe supervisory environment, offering novelty, diverse perspectives and professional support. Reported challenges included supervisee anxiety when presenting work and feelings of exposure to RT reflections. The review was restricted to peer-reviewed, English-language studies in two professional fields, psychology and psychotherapy, with only two studies directly addressing educational psychology. Further research is needed to examine the use and impact of RTs in educational psychology supervision, to inform evidence-based practice and strengthen professional learning.