Isabella Seymour
Psych 3300 Online
Spring, 2023
Assignment #1
Due Friday, February 3 at noon
For this assignment, don’t worry too much about finding the “right”
answers (in the text or in the APA Code). The purpose is to practice
identifying potential ethical problems. For each of the examples below,
try to spot the potential problem, explain why it might be a problem,
and how you think an ethical therapist would handle it. (Remember, I’m
not necessarily expecting the right answers -- we will get to that
through the course). Your answers to each only need to be a few
sentences or bullet points.
1. An exuberant client, having just won the blue ribbon at the
County Fair for “Best Chili,” spots you in the crowd and bounces
toward you with outstretched arms and puckered lips.
- The potential problem is the clients over excitement and
indication for physical contact (outstretched arms and
puckered lips). It might be a problem because it can make
the therapist uncomfortable, as well as break boundaries
that may have been set in a professional setting. If the
therapist and client have agreed that some physical
contact, like a hug, was okay, it would still possibly break
the boundary since the client has puckered lips. An ethical
therapist would be respectful at the same time as
reaffirming the boundaries that were set. If there is no
agreeance about physical contact, the therapist can kindly
talk about the award with the client while also reminding
them about their professional relationship. This can save
the client embarrassment and ensure the safety, comfort,
ethics, and professionalism of the therapist.
2. You have tried to remain objective and compassionate, but your
client’s obnoxious personality and foul body odor have become
increasingly difficult to ignore. You dread the approach of this
client’s regular appointment day.
- The potential problem is the therapist’s personal
discomfort with their client. This could be a problem
because if the therapist ends up treating the client
differently based on her feelings, it would be unethical
and unprofessional. If the therapist is uncomfortable, it
could also cause the client’s trust and progress start to
deteriorate. The client would probably be able to tell if
something is wrong or if the therapist feels
uncomfortable around them, which can also cause both
of those things. An ethical therapist would talk to a
supervisor or a trusted colleague to get their opinion but
also a reminder that it is a professional setting, and she
needs to focus on the client and not let personal feelings
get in the way of sessions. Another idea would be for the
therapist to bring it up during a session to make sure that
everything is okay with the client or if they knew about
the problem and did not/could not deal with it.
3. Your client’s mental state has worsened over the last couple of
months. Nothing you have attempted seems to help. You inform
the client that you would like to refer him to someone else, but he
insists he wants to stay with you.
- The potential problem in this situation is that the
therapist believes that they have done everything they
can, but they are unable to help any further. They want to
refer the client to a different therapist so they can get
further help, but the client wants to stay with them. This
can be a problem due to the fact that the current
therapist has tried everything, but the client’s mental
state is not improving. A different therapist could most
likely help the client if they agree to it, but they do not. It
is also a problem because if the therapist keeps pushing
for the client to see someone else, it could lead to
feelings of abandonment and make their mental health
worse than its current state; it can even strain the
relationship between the therapist and client. An ethical
therapist would notice the client’s feelings and explain
how they understand them wanting to stay, but that they
are trying to get the client to get better and they don’t
have the ability to help them anymore. The therapist
could talk with a supervisor or colleague to get ideas or
maybe how to handle the referral suggestion. It can also
help the therapist reflect on why they want the client to
see someone else, and how they can help the client in the
situation.
4. Your brother’s wife drinks way too much. He begs you to take her
on as a therapy client because she adamantly refuses to talk to
anyone else.
- The potential problem would be the therapist taking a
client that they know personally. This could be a problem
because there is a possibility that the boundaries
between therapist and client can mix with the boundaries
between family. This could also lead to biases or
favoritism between the therapist and client since they
know each other personally and the therapist could end
up providing care hat doesn’t actually help the client.
There can also be problems with confidentiality because
of the client being the therapist’s brother’s wife. They
may not be comfortable telling the whole truth or their
actual feelings due to the fact that the therapist could talk
to their brother about what is said in sessions. An ethical
therapist would realize the potential problems and ethical
viewpoints of the situation. The ethical side of dual
relationships would be broken if the therapist agrees to
take on the client due to them being related. The
therapist could talk to the brother about the situation and
explain why it would be a bad idea to take his wife as a
client. They could look for a therapist together and the
therapist could refer the wife to someone else.
5. You arrive at your office to meet the new bookkeeper your
partner hired while you were on vacation. At the desk sits a
person whom you treated in intensive therapy for 4 years before
she unexpectedly dropped you for a new therapist.
- The potential problem in this situation is the new
bookkeeper being a former client. This could be an issue
because there might be confusing boundaries between
the therapist and the client. There may also be confusion
on the new roles as instead of therapist-client, they are
now bookkeeper-client. An ethical therapist would think
about their feelings and reflect on their initial reaction to
seeing the former client now working for them. The
therapist could speak to the client to remind them about
the confidentiality and how nothing that was discussed in
sessions will ever be talked about to anyone else. They
could also set clear boundaries and ensure the
bookkeeper knows they are no longer seen as a client.
The therapist could also suggest that if the bookkeeper
needs therapy or help with any future issues, then she
could refer them to a different therapist. This will make
the boundaries clear for both the former client and the
therapist, ensuring they don’t have any discomfort or bad
feelings about working together.
6. Couples counseling has resulted in a decision by your clients to
dissolve their marriage. They also decide to quit counseling. The
wife calls you a week later and asks that you testify on her behalf
against her husband in a child custody dispute.
- The potential problem is the therapist breaching
confidentiality if they choose to speak in court, as it could
cause them to talk about things brought up during
sessions. This could be a problem due to the
confidentiality and the conflict of interest. If the therapist
decides to speak on behalf of the wife, it could ruin the
trust of the husband. It could seem biased and like the
therapist is choosing a side between their two clients. It
could also form a dual relationship since the relationship
of therapist-client will be together with client-witness.
This can make their professional relationship alter since
they would have a legal relationship; this can lead to
biases and professional objectivity. This issue can also
cause tension between the husband and therapist since
he knows the wife asked the therapist to testify on her
behalf. This could lead the husband to not tell the truth or
not to say anything he believes could be held against him
in a custody battle, thus making it harder to have sessions
to resolve the main issues. An ethical therapist would
decline the offer while reminding the wife that they are
her and her husband’s therapist, not anyone’s witness.
Reminding the wife about the confidentiality and how
they would need both parties consent (wife’s and
husband’s consent together) for anything to be said in
court about the therapy sessions. The therapist could
refer the wife to another professional to help with the
legal case such as a custody evaluator or a professional
who could testify for her. The conversation should also be
documented in case of future misunderstandings or
allegations. This document should contain the request for
legal help (testimony), the decline from the therapist and
why, and the referral to other professionals.