Week 12: Professional Relationships and Boundaries Flashcards
Describe situations where a psychologist might find themselves in multiple relationships
- in a non professional relationship with the same client
- in a different professional relationship with the same client
- in a non professional relationship with an associated party
- a recipient of a service provided by the same client
Potential multiple relationships
- sexual
- non sexual
- financial conflicts
- business
Examples of financial conflicts
Bartering for goods and services
Example of business multiple relationships
- employer/employee
- supervisor/therapist
- therapist/business partner
Boundaries
Structure for process and safety of client. Boundary between professional and personal lives of client and therapist
Boundary crossings
- departure from common practice with the intent to help a client
- intent to help indicates decision making
Boundary violations
- departure from accepted practice
- may cause client harm
Describe section C.3.1
- conflict of interest
- multiple relationships that may impair competence or effectiveness
- may harm clients
- lead to client exploitation
Describe section C.4.1
Psychologists do not exploit people with whom they have had a professional relationship
Describe section C.4.2
Psychologists do not exploit their relationships with their assistants, employees, colleagues or supervisors
Describe the impact of multiple relationships
- prevents impaired objectivity
- enables therapist to challenge and confront client
- enables client to trust the therapist
- safety from ambiguity and confusion regarding relationship
- provides therapeutic structure
- prevents falling down slippery slope
How to manage multiple relationships
- tolerate some ambiguity
- consult colleagues for professional accountability
- informed consent
- open discussion about potential negative impact of multiple roles
Risks of having too crazy boundaries tho
- ruining the therapeutic alliance
- intensifies the power differential
- dehumanisation
- impact of therapeutic orientation
Self disclosure
The disclosure of personal information, thoughts, beliefs and feelings
What do you need to consider associated with self disclosure?
- will disclosing info align with therapeutic goals?
- respect for client
- the clients feelings towards you
- clients purpose for asking
Three types of needed disclosure
- full disclosure of mechanism of therapy
- discretionary sharing of here and now feelings
- cautionary and well timed disclosure of personal life
When is it ok to accept gifts
- promotes rather than endangers clients welfare
- token of appreciation consistent with client’s cultural norms and a small monetary value
- rare sent in counselling rather than recurrent practice
- when gift does not compromise objectivity or competence
Describe section C.4.3
- no sexual relationships with clients or relatives
- no sexual relationships or relatives within two years of counselling them
- those who do after two years consult and ask for advice
- don’t accept a former sexual partner as client
Considerations in relationships with former clients
- length of professional relationship
- nature of the professional relationship
- clients mental state at commencing relationship
- circumstances in which professional relo ended
- duration of time past since ending professional relo
Emotional competence
The ability to maintain and regulate your emotions around clients and around your personal life
