Ethical Dilemma Dual relationships refer to relationships which exist when a therapist interacts with a client or consumer in a capacity beyond the role of a therapist. Dual relationships causes risk to the therapeutic relationship, which may cause harm to trust, confidentiality, and the ability of a therapist to maintain an unbiased perspective. The American Psychological Association (2002) has set ethical principles and standards to provide guidelines for therapist conduct and guidance for ethical decision making. In therapist psychology, therapists are faced with ethical dilemmas which may cause harm to the client or the therapist. In the event a therapist is faced with an ethical dilemma he or she may follow the steps of the ethical decision making process.
They also have a moral and ethical duty not to cause, or fail to prevent, physical or psychological injury, and must fulfil their responsibilities with regard to personal injury and negligence claims. Aiv: How the duty of care contributes to safeguarding individuals. In your role you have a duty of care to raising concerns you may have about any aspect of your work. These can range from inadequate working conditions, poor equipment, poor practise by other staff; to raising concerns about potential abuse cases and situations of neglect. It is your duty of care to safeguard individuals from harm.
Informed consent is another primary ethical concern for psychological testing. Informed consent is part of respecting the concerns and privacy of the test participants and helps protect them from harm. Informed consent is not as simple as the participant stating agreement. It also includes informing the participant of the expected length of the test, its purpose, and procedures. Doing so enables the participant to provide knowledgeable consent based on comprehension.
The American Mental Health Counseling Association (AMHCA) is a professional counseling association which also represents mental health counselors and this organization is also governed by a code of ethics which members are expected to follow in education, training, and practice. The code of ethics offered by the AMHCA is a guide to support and educate its members in making sound ethical decisions and to define ethical behavior (AMHCA, 2010). In my option, one of the greatest obstacles in the field of mental health counseling is the taboo associated with services based on cultural concerns. Once counselors have acquired the skills needed to communicate effectively with people
Furthermore, this paper will provide ethical reasoning, to aid in solving the ethical dilemmas that must be addressed when working with minors. Psychologists have the ability to work with a diverse population. For the purpose of this paper, the focus will be on the ethical
Abstract Confidentiality, the duty to warn, and the duty to protect as ethical dilemmas that counselors and therapist face on a regular basis. Counselors and therapists have to ensure that the rights of their clients are protected, but they also have to adhere to certain laws and regulations that the states provide. The counselor or therapist has to make sure that they know when to report a serious offense such as child abuse or elderly abuse, when a client claims to want to kill someone, and when a client wants to commit suicide. When the counselor doesn’t report these cases, they leave themselves open to be prosecuted criminally for neglect. They have to know how when to report the cases, is there legitimate reason to believe that the client will do or has done harm to someone, or if they are talking out of frustration and anger.
• When abuse is reported, Essex County Council and its partner agencies for example, Essex Police, NHS and the voluntary services will take joint action to ensure vulnerable people are safeguarded from further abuse, and their risks are managed appropriately. A vulnerable adult is any person aged 18 or over who: This booklet will cover: • What makes a person vulnerable • What is meant by abuse • Who abuses people, and where it takes place • What you can do if you are worried that somebody is being abused • The steps you can take to protect yourself from harm • What happens when we are informed that someone has been abused. 1. is or maybe in need of a community care service by reason of mental, physical or learning disability, age or illness. And who 2. is, or maybe, unable to take care of him or herself or unable to protect him or herself against significant harm or serious exploitation. They may include: • People with a mental health problem or mental illness ( including dementia ) • People with a physical disability • People with a sensory impairment • People with a learning disability • People who are frail and/or experiencing a temporary illness What is abuse?
Evaluation of the legal issues that are associated with assessments, testing, and diagnosis in professional psychology will be discussed. An explanation of the importance of maintaining confidentiality in the therapeutic relationship, and an evaluation the influence of legislation on professional psychology will be expounded upon, and finally an explanation of the role of competence in professional psychology will be discussed. Legal Issues and Informed Consent Informed consent is an essential part of the treatment process in psychology. Legally it protects both the psychologist and the individual who will be receiving professional services. According to Pope and Vasquez (2007), informed consent provides the client and the therapist the opportunity to understand his or her legal rights and each have an equal vested interest in the treatment process.
In a therapeutic setting, even when the client feels that they are speaking in confidence, when a therapist hears of facts that amount to child abuse, he or she is mandated to report those facts to the appropriate authorities. As a result, psychologists have reported that having to break confidentiality to report a suspected case of child abuse is a common ethical issue. Chpter 2 page 42 Indeed, the fact that confidentiality is considered a most basic ethical principle is articulated in the American Psychological Association’s Ethical Principles of Psychologists and Code of Conduct, which states: 4.01 Maintaining Confidentiality Psychologists have a primary obligation and take reasonable precautions to protect confidential information obtained through or stored in any medium, recognizing that the extent and limits of confidentiality may be regulated by law or established by institutional rules or professional or scientific relationship. In fact, the concept of confidentiality is so central in a therapeutic relationship that a study found that only 50% of practicing psychologists informed clients of the limits of confidentiality and 12% actually informed their clients that everything discussed while in session was confidential. Chapter 2 p 44 The
Ethics in the Psychology Field Carltonlynn Turner PSY 3002 Analysis Paper Capella University May 2014 Ethics in the Psychology Field In the profession of psychology there are ethical principles and code of conduct put in place to protect the therapist and the client. It is the therapist responsibility that all ethical dilemma, professionalism, values and judgments are within these guidelines. The dilemma in this paper will come about when a therapist is faced to make a decision regarding a father (custodial parent) of a minor who is being treated by the therapist and the mother (non-custodial parent) wants to be involved. The therapist has to make sure the decision is ethical and in the scope of practice of a psychologist. Following