Creating a Safe Holding Environment: Illuminating Complex Ethical Dimensions in Supervision, Education and Praxis

Supervision and professional practice involve complex ethical dilemmas, which can result in moral distress. This article illustrates how reflective dialogue and qualitative inquiry on ethical dimensions serve two primary purposes of supervision: to create a space for professionals in which they can process moral distress, as well as developing ethical awareness, which bridges the gap between realities of practice and the principles and ideals of the profession. This article illuminates professionals’ first-hand experiences with complex ethical dilemmas and explicates their visions for novel, trust-based supervisory trajectories, developed through dialogical action research, that can serve as safe, collegial holding-environments.