Psychology: Ethics and Law

1. Issues and Ethics in the
Helping Professions,
National University
Steven Mendoza, Ph.D.
Psychology Adjunct Professor
College of Letters and Sciences
January 27, 2015
Semper Conosco Bene
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2. ETHICAL ISSUES IN COUPLES
AND FAMILY THERAPY
Chapter 11
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3. Ethical Standards in Couples
and Family Therapy
Responsibility to clients
Confidentiality
Professional competence and integrity
Responsibility to students, employees, and
supervisees
Ethics

4. Ethical Standards in Couples
and Family Therapy
Responsibility to research participants
Responsibility to the professions
Fees
Advertising
Ethics

5. Training Issues in Couples
and Family Therapy
Personal characteristics of family
therapists:
– Self-knowledge is critical, especially family-of-
origin issues.
Training, supervision, and clinical
experience:
– Didactic and experiential methods
Ethics

6. Training Issues in Couples
and Family Therapy
Values in couples and family therapy:
– Value system of the therapist has crucial
influence on formulation and definition of
problems.
Ethics

7. Feminist Perspective on
Family Therapy
Places same demands for change on both
women and men
Values women’s requests for change,
expression of emotion and nurturance in
both partners, and women’s work in the
family
Ethics

8. Feminist Perspective on
Family Therapy
Challenges traditional roles and patterns
of male dominance and female
subordination
Questions gender-specific rules
Ethics

9. Intimate Partner Violence
Intimate partner violence occurs in both
same-sex and heterosexual relationships
and affects people from all ethnic and
socioeconomic backgrounds.
Under current law, mental health providers
generally are not required to report
intimate partner violence.
Ethics

10. Help the victim
But help the victim during therapy to dev a
scape plan when the other person acts
violently
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11. Intimate Partner Violence
The therapist’s goal is to protect victims
from any further harm, including protecting
any children the couple may have at
home.
Ethics

12. Confidentiality in Couples
and Family Therapy
Exceptions to confidentiality:
– When mandated by law
– When it is necessary to protect clients from
harm to self or others
– When family therapist is a defendant in a civil,
criminal, or disciplinary action arising from
therapy
– When a waiver has been previously obtained
in writing
Ethics

13. Informed Consent in Couples
and Family Therapy
Before therapy begins, the counselor
needs to give information to family
members about:
– Purpose of therapy
– Typical procedures
– Risks of negative outcomes
– Possible benefits of therapy
– The fee structure
Ethics

14. Informed Consent in Couples
and Family Therapy
Before therapy begins, the counselor
needs to give information to family
members about:
– Limits of confidentiality (including how secrets
are handled)
– Rights and responsibilities of clients
– The option that a family member can withdraw
at any time
– What can be expected from the therapist
Ethics