Ethics & Legal
111 articles found
Confidentiality Practices of Trainees Applying for Clinical Training Positions
The ethical issues involved in writing about clients are complex and were the topic of a recent special section of Psychotherapy, Division 29’s Journal (Samstag, 2012). The five papers in the series (Barnett, 2012; Blechner, 2012; Fischer, 2012; Sieck, 2012; and Woodhouse, 2012) identified a number of implications of a) obtaining consent from a client […]
Katie C. Lewis, M.S. + 1 more
September 24, 2014
Ethics and Mindfulness
Much of life is spent in motion—physical , mental/emotional, relational , and especially neural motion. Our conscious and non-conscious brain continually scans and interprets this motion, allowing us to focus our attention on other needs and desires, rather than having to pay attention to each motion as it occurs. In the absence of this scanning, […]
Ron Schwenkler, M.A., LPC
September 15, 2014
Student Therapists Seek Out Client Information Online
Few clinicians would dispute their clients’ right to privacy, including when and to what extent to share personal information in therapy. However, as DiLillo and Gale (2011) point out, the current advances in the use of the Internet – such as the development of search engines and social networks, for example – have led to […]
Valentina Stoycheva + 1 more
February 21, 2012
Report from The Society for the Advancement of Psychotherapy Task Force on Telepsychotherapy
Preamble Division 29 (Society for the Advancement of Psychotherapy) of the American Psychological Association has embarked on establishing practice recommendations for telepsychotherapy. This document was developed by a taskforce of Division 29 board members with the hope of providing a set of recommendations for psychologists providing therapeutic services using electronic media. Scope According to the […]
Ann B. Judge + 4 more
July 18, 2011
Ethical Considerations with Married HIV-Positive Clients
Victoria Asks I’m wondering how you would proceed when it is the case of a married person who is positive from engaging in sex outside the marriage, and the spouse does not know that the person is HIV+? Jeffrey Barnett Responds Hi Victoria. Great question. These are such tough issues. The first point to consider […]
Jeffrey E. Barnett, Psy.D., ABPP
October 12, 2010
Is there a Duty to Warn When Working with HIV-Positive Clients?
Stephanie Chervenak Asks I am curious about ethical considerations when treating individuals who are HIV positive. What are my responsibilities as a clinician if I know that my client (HIV positive) is engaging in risky/unsafe sexual practices with someone? In this case, the other person’s life is endangered. This issue always stumps me, thank you […]
Jeffrey E. Barnett, Psy.D., ABPP
August 8, 2010
Supervisors Need Competence Too
Taline Andonian Asks As graduate students we receive training not only in academia but in a myriad of different clinical settings, which often lead to a wide range of experiences in terms of supervision. Because of the emphasis that is placed on clinical/practical training for clinical psychology programs in particular a graduate student’s competencies are […]
Jeffrey E. Barnett, Psy.D., ABPP
August 1, 2010
Couples Therapy in an Abusive Relationship
Question by Faith Prelli I have a client (18yr female) who I have seen twice a week for 8 months who is currently in a relationship plagued with intimate partner violence. This has been dubbed “mutual combat” by several of my co-workers, but in exploration with her, it appears as though the severity of his […]
Jeffrey E. Barnett, Psy.D., ABPP
July 1, 2010
The Ethics of Making or Not Making Medication Referrals
Question By Jennifer Weinstein Currently, there is a push for people to be on medication, and clients often come in stating that they want medication. This is especially true in multidisciplinary environments where psychiatrists and APRNs work alongside psychotherapists. However, some people do not have this mindset. For therapists who believe that medication only needs to […]
Jeffrey E. Barnett, Psy.D., ABPP
June 17, 2010
Phone Therapy
Question by Dr. Betty Scott Noble I have a female client I have seen for several years (abusive marriage then divorce and a very recent re-marriage). She has moved with her new husband about two hours away and does all her work by computer, so she doesn’t come to Atlanta anymore. She asked if I […]
Jeffrey E. Barnett, Psy.D., ABPP
January 7, 2010
Incentives Offered to Research Participants
Incentive and Inducements in Psychotherapy Research The issue of offering incentives or inducements to potential research participants is addressed specifically in Standard 8.06 of the APA Ethics Code. This standard states: (a) Psychologists make reasonable efforts to avoid offering excessive or inappropriate financial or other inducements for research participation when such inducements are likely to […]
Jeffrey E. Barnett, Psy.D., ABPP
December 12, 2009
The Role of Recording in Psychotherapy
Recording Technology Before getting into the specifics of how to appropriately record a client, supervisee, peer, or research participant, I think it is important to ask why you are wanting to do this. In psychotherapy we all must appropriately document the services we provide. Are you thinking that recording the sessions is how you will […]
Jeffrey E. Barnett, Psy.D., ABPP
December 11, 2009