The lack of a clear role definition for the special education supervisor has resulted in an interpretation of the position as that of a facilitator, planner, and legal rights guarantor for exceptional children. To determine whether differences existed between the self-perceived supervisory methods of special education administrators and their actual and preferred supervisory behaviors as perceived by special education teachers, and to gauge whether demographic variables influence the teachers' preferrences and perceptions, 66 Louisiana special education supervisors and 264 special education teachers were mailed the Supervisory Behavior Description Questionnaire (form 1). A total of 50 supervisors and 200 teachers (4 from each of the 50 schools) participated. No significant differences were identified between the supervisors' and the teachers' perceptions of actual supervisory behavior; however, there existed a substantial difference between teachers' perceptions of, and teachers' preferences for, their supervision. The teachers perceived their supervisors as more directive, but preferred them to be less directive. Female teachers preferred more direction than males, and non-Caucasian teachers preferred more direction than Caucasians on various tasks. The bibliography contains 9 references. (KM)