P117 - Module 1 Intro To Clinical Psych
P117 - Module 1 Intro To Clinical Psych
Module 1: Introduction to Clinical Psychology of their clients’ problems abnormalities of the brain
A. DEFINITION OF CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGY PERCEPTION OF View client’s problems “Fix” the brain by
o The term clinical psychology was first used in print by CLIENTS’ as behavioral, emotional, prescribing medication
LIGHTNER WITMER (1907) as he was the first to operate a PROBLEMS and cognitive. (Noll, 2015)
psychological clinic. Witmer envisioned clinical psychology as a
discipline with similarities to a variety of other fields, specifically APPROACH TO PSYCHOPHARMACOL
PSYCHOTHERAPY
medicine, education, and sociology. TREATMENT OGY
o Clinical Psychology is the aspect of psychological science and
practice concerned with the analysis, treatment, and prevention of
3. CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGISTS vs. SOCIAL WORKERS
human psychological disabilities and with the enhancing of
o Traditionally, social workers have focused their work on the
personal adjustment and effectiveness. (Rodnick, 1985). It uses
interaction between an individual and the components of society
what is known about the principles of human behavior to help
that may contribute to or alleviate the individual’s problems.
people with the numerous troubles and concerns they experience
o Perspective on client’s problems: Products of social ills such as
during their life in their relationships, emotions, and physical
racism, poverty, abuse, etc.
selves.
o Help their clients by connecting them with social services, such
o Clinical Psychology is essentially the branch of psychology that
as welfare agencies, disability offices, or job-training sites.
studies, assesses, and treats people with psychological problems or
o Collaborate with psychologists and psychiatrists in the
disorders.
o The field integrates science, theory, and practice to understand, facilitation of the client’s transition to the community after
leaving an inpatient unit and make sure that needs of housing,
predict, and alleviate maladjustment, disability, and discomfort as
employment, and outpatient mental health services were being
well as to promote human adaptation, adjustment, and personal
met.
development. It focuses on the intellectual, emotional, biological,
psychological, social, and behavioral aspects of human functioning
4. CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGISTS vs. SCHOOL
across the life span, in varying cultures, and at all socioeconomic
PSYCHOLOGISTS
levels.
o School Psychologists work in schools, day-care centers, or
o Clinical psychology involves rigorous study and applied practice
correctional facilities.
directed toward understanding and improving the psychological
o PRIMARY FUNCTION:
facets of the human experience, including but not limited to issues
or problems of behavior, emotions, or intellect. o To enhance the intellectual, emotional, social, and
o The psychological specialty that provides continuing and developmental lives of students.
comprehensive mental and behavioral health care for individuals o Conduct psychological testing to determine diagnoses
and families; consultation to agencies and communities; training, such as learning disorders and ADHD.
education, and supervision; and research-based practice. o Develop programs designed to meet the educational and
emotional needs of students.
B. HOW ARE CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGISTS DIFFERENT FROM o Consult with adults involved in students’ lives (teachers,
OTHER PROFESSIONS? school administrators, school staff, parents) and are
involved to a limited degree in direct counseling with
1. CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGISTS vs. COUNSELING students.
PSYCHOLOGISTS
5. CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGISTS vs. PROFESSIONAL
CLINICAL COUNSELING COUNSELORS
PSYCHOLOGIST PSYCHOLOGIST
CLINICAL PROFESSIONAL
More psychologically PSYCHOLOGIST COUNSELOR
CLIENTELE Less pathological clients
disturbed individuals
EDUCATION Doctorate Degree (PhD) Masters’ Degree
Work more often in
Works in hospitals and Focused on providing
WORK SETTING university counseling
inpatient psychiatric units. services to clients and
centers.
Emphasis on psychological specialize in areas such
SCOPE OF
THEORETICAL Humanistic/ Client- testing and/or conducting as career, school,
Behaviorism TRAINING
ORIENTATION Centered approaches research addiction, couple/
family, or college
Applications of counseling.
Vocational Testing and
INTERESTS psychology to medical
Career Counseling
settings
C. COUNSELING vs. PSYCHOTHERAPY
o Psychotherapy Outcome Researches: ⮚ Seek to study clinical populations or situations but not
o Minimize any element of the study that may bring into having access to them
question that causal connection between the treatment ⮚ Involves an approximation of the target client or
and the outcome.
situation as a substitute for the “real thing”
d. ASSESSMENT METHODS
e. CORRELATIONAL METHODS
o Clinical psychologists conduct research to evaluate and
improve the assessment methods they use with ⮚ Examine the relationship that exists between two or
clients. more variables
g. META-ANALYSIS
⮚ A statistical method of combining results of separate
studies to create a summation of the findings.
o They RESPECT and APPRECIATE THEMSELVES. o They possess EFFECTIVE INTERPERSONAL SKILLS.
▪ They give and receive help and love out of their own ▪ They can enter the world of others without getting lost
sense of self-worth and strength. in this world, and they strive to create collaborative
relationships with others.
▪ They feel adequate with others and allow others to feel
powerful with them. ▪ They readily entertain another person’s perspective and
can work together toward consensual goals.
o They are OPEN TO CHANGE.
o They become DEEPLY INVOLVED IN THEIR WORK
▪ They exhibit a willingness and courage to leave the
AND DERIVE MEANING FROM IT.
security of the known if they are not satisfied with the
way they are. ▪ They can accept the rewards flowing from their work,
yet they are not slaves to their work.
▪ They make decisions about how they would like to
change, and they work toward becoming the person o They are PASSIONATE.
they want to become.
▪ They have the courage to pursue their dreams and
o They MAKE LIFE-ORIENTED CHOICES. passions, and they radiate a sense of energy.
▪ They are aware of early decisions they made about o They can MAINTAIN HEALTHY BOUNDARIES.
themselves, others, and the world.
▪ They are not the victims of these early decisions, and ▪ Although they strive to be fully present for their clients,
they are willing to revise them if necessary. they don’t carry the problems of their clients around
▪ They are committed to living fully rather than settling with them during leisure hours.
for mere existence. ▪ They know how to say no, which enables them to
maintain balance in their lives.
o They are AUTHENTIC, SINCERE, and HONEST.
II. PERSONAL THERAPY FOR THE COUNSELOR
o An unethical process with which counselors directly attempt
⮚ Orlinsky and colleagues (2005) suggest that personal therapy
to define a client’s values, attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors.
contributes to the therapist’s professional work:
▪ Personal therapy offers a model of therapeutic practice o The heart of why many counselor education programs
encourages or require personal therapy for counselors in
in which the trainee experiences the work of a more training.
experienced therapist and learns experientially what is o Personal therapy sessions provide an opportunity for
helpful or not helpful.
therapists to examine their beliefs and values and to explore
o A beneficial experience in personal therapy can further
their motivations for wanting to share their belief system.
enhance a therapist’s interpersonal skills that are essential to
skillfully practicing therapy. B. THE ROLE OF VALUES IN DEVELOPING THERAPEUTIC
o Successful personal therapy can contribute to a therapist’s GOALS
ability to deal with the ongoing stresses associated with
clinical work. ⮚ Counselors have general goals, which are reflected in their
⮚ Norcross (2005) states that lasting lessons practitioners learn from behavior during the therapy session, in their observations of the
client’s behavior, and in the interventions they make.
their personal therapy experiences pertain to interpersonal
relationships and the dynamics of psychotherapy. ⮚ The GENERAL GOALS of counselors must be congruent with
the personal goals of the client.
o Lessons learned are: o The client and the counselor need to explore what they hope
▪ The centrality of warmth, empathy, and the personal to obtain from the counseling relationship, whether they can
work with each other, and whether their goals are compatible.
relationship
o It is essential that the counselor be able to understand,
▪ Having a sense of what it is like to be a therapy client respect, and work within the framework of the client’s world
rather than forcing the client to fit into the therapist’s scheme
▪ Valuing patience and tolerance of values.
▪ Appreciating the importance of learning how to deal ⮚ The INITIAL INTERVIEW can be used most productively to
with transference and countertransference. focus on the client’s goals or lack of them.
o The therapist may begin asking any of these questions:
⮚ Personal therapy can be instrumental in HEALING the HEALER ▪ What do you expect from counseling?
o By becoming clients themselves, counselors gain an
experiential frame of reference in which to view themselves, ▪ Why are you here?
thus providing a basis for understanding and compassion for
▪ What do you want?
clients, for they can draw on their own memories of reaching
impasses in their therapy, of wanting to go farther at the same ▪ What do you hope to leave with?
time, resisting change.
o Participating in a process of self-exploration can reduce the ▪ How is what you are currently doing working for you?
changes of assuming an attitude of arrogance or of being
convinced that they are totally healed. ▪ What aspects of yourself or your life situation would
o Their own therapy can help them avoid assuming a stance of you most like to change?
superiority over others and makes it less likely that they
would treat people as objects to be pitied or disrespected. o The therapist can also reflect on “Why is this person coming
in for counseling?”
III. THE COUNSELOR’S VALUES AND THE THERAPEUTIC
PROCESS ▪ It is the client’s place to decide on the goals of therapy.
o The process by which counselors manage their personal ⮚ Effective counselors understand their own cultural conditioning,
values so that they do not contaminate the counseling the cultural values of their clients, and the sociopolitical system of
process. which they are a part.
o Counselors are expected to set aside their personal beliefs
and values when working with a wide range of clients.
⮚ Counselors from all cultural groups must examine their
⮚ VALUE IMPOSITION expectations, attitudes, biases, and assumptions about the
counseling process and about persons from diverse groups.
o Multicultural counseling is enhanced when practitioners use
⮚ A major part of becoming a diversity-competent counselor
methods and strategies and define goals consistent with the
involves challenging the idea that the values that they hold are life experiences and cultural values of their clients.
automatically true for others.
o Counselors:
B. FRAMEWORK FOR COMPETENCIES AND STANDARDS IN
MULTICULTURAL COUNSELING ▪ Do not force their clients to fir within one counseling
approach, and they recognize that counseling
1. BELIEFS AND ATTITUDES techniques may be culture-bound.
o Effective counselors have moved from being culturally
▪ Can send and receive both verbal and nonverbal
unaware to ensuring that their personal biases, values, or
problems will not interfere with their ability to work with messages accurately and appropriately.
clients who are culturally different from them. ▪ Actively involved with minority individuals outside the
o Cultural self-awareness and sensitivity to one’s own cultural office and are willing to seek out educational,
heritage are essential for any form of helping. consultative, and training experiences to enhance their
ability to work with culturally diverse client
o Counselors are aware of their positive and negative populations.
emotional reactions toward people from other racial and ▪ Consult regularly with other multiculturally sensitive
ethnic groups that may prove detrimental to establishing
professionals regarding issues of culture to determine
collaborative helping relationships.
whether referral may be necessary.
o Counselors:
C. INCORPORATING CULTURE IN COUNSELING PRACTICE
▪ Seek to examine and understand the world form the
vantage point of their clients. a. Learn more about how one’s own cultural background has
influenced his thinking and behaving and take steps to increase
▪ Respect clients’ religious and spiritual beliefs and one’s understanding of other cultures.
values. b. Identify their basic assumptions, as they apply to diversity in
culture, ethnicity, race, gender, class, spirituality, religion, and
▪ Are comfortable with differences between themselves
sexual orientation.
and others in terms of race, ethnicity, culture, and c. Examine the source of knowledge about culture.
beliefs. d. Remain open to ongoing learning of how the various dimensions of
▪ Rather than maintaining their cultural heritage as culture may affect therapeutic work.
e. Be willing to identify and examine your own personal worldview
superior, they can accept and value cultural diversity.
and any prejudices held about other racial/ ethnic groups.
▪ Realize that traditional theories and techniques may not f. Learn to pay attention to the common ground that exists among
be appropriate for all clients or for all problems. people of diverse backgrounds.
g. Be flexible in applying the methods used with clients.
2. KNOWLEDGE h. Remember that practicing from a multicultural perspective can
o Culturally effective practitioners possess certain knowledge make our job easier and can be rewarding for both therapist and
about their own racial and cultural heritage and how if affects client.
them personally and professionally.
V. ISSUES FACED BY BEGINNING THERAPISTS
o They understand the worldview of their clients, and they
learn about their clients’ cultural background and not impose a. Dealing with Anxiety
their values and expectations on their clients from differing b. Being yourself and self-disclosure
cultural backgrounds and avoid stereotyping clients. c. Avoiding perfectionism
d. Being honest about your limitations
o Culturally skilled counselors understand that external e. Understanding silence
sociopolitical forces influence all groups, and they know how f. Dealing with demands from clients
these forces operate with respect to the treatment of g. Dealing with clients who lack commitment
minorities. h. Tolerating ambiguity
i. Becoming aware of your countertransference
o They possess knowledge about the historical background, j. Developing a sense of humor
traditions, and values of the client populations with whom k. Sharing responsibility with the client
they work. l. Declining to give advice
m. Defining your role as a counselor
o Those who are culturally skilled know how to help clients n. Learning to use techniques appropriately
make use of indigenous support systems; in areas where they o. Developing your own counseling style
are lacking in knowledge, they seek resources to assist them. p. Maintaining your vitality as a person and as a professional
Module 3: Clinical Assessment
3. SKILLS AND INTERVENTION STRATEGIES
o Effective counselors have acquired certain skills in working A. REVIEW OF NORMALITY vs. ABNORMALITY
with culturally diverse populations.
⮚ Features of Abnormality:
o Counselors take responsibility for educating their clients o Deviance
about the therapeutic process, including matters such as o Dysfunction
setting goals, appropriate expectations, legal rights, and the o Distress
counselor’s orientation. o Danger to oneself and others
o Faulty Perception or Interpretations of Reality
⮚ Harmful Dysfunction Theory (Wakefield, 1992, 1999) ⮚ FEEDBACK
o Harmful: based on social norms o Clinical psychologists provide their clients with the results of
o Dysfunction: failure of the mental mechanism to perform a tests or interviews that have been conducted.
natural function for which it was designed by evolution. o It can come in the form of a face-to-face meeting, a written
o Proposes that in our efforts to determine what is abnormal, report, or other forms.
we consider both scientific data and the social values in the o Most psychologists believe that clients find their feedback to
context of which the behavior takes place. be helpful and positive, even before any type of intervention
is implemented.
⮚ Definition of Abnormality
o Use of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental C. THE CLINICAL INTERVIEW
Disorders, the prevailing diagnostic guide for mental health
professionals. ⮚ GENERAL CHARACTERISTICS OF INTERVIEWS
o Mental Disorder:
▪ A clinically significant disturbance in cognition, a. AN INTERACTION
- An interview is an interaction between at least two
emotion regulation or behavior that indicates a
persons, each participant contributes to the process, and
dysfunction in mental functioning that is usually
each influences the responses of the other.
associated with significant distress or disability in
work, relationships, or other areas of functioning.
- The interviewer approaches the interaction
purposefully, bearing the responsibility for keeping the
B. ASSESSMENT IN CLINICAL PSYCHOLOGY
interview on track and moving toward the goal.
⮚ DEFINITION AND PURPOSE
o Clinical Assessment involves an evaluation of an - A good interview is carefully planned, deliberately and
individual’s strengths and weaknesses, a conceptualization skillfully executed, and goal-oriented throughout.
of the problem at hand (as well as possible etiological
b. INTERVIEWS vs. TESTS
factors), and some prescription for alleviating the problem;
- Interviews are more purposeful and organized than
all of these lead us to a better understanding of the client.
conversation but sometimes less formalized or
o Clinical psychologists employ a wide variety of methods,
standardized than psychological tests.
including intelligence tests, achievement tests,
- Psychological testing is the collection of data under
neuropsychological tests, personality tests, and specialized
standardized conditions by means of explicit
measures for targeted variables.
procedures.
- Interviews provide flexibility and a wider opportunity
⮚ THE REFERRAL for an individualized approach that will be effective in
o The beginning of the assessment process. eliciting data from an individual.
o REFERRAL QUESTION
c. THE ART OF INTERVIEWING
▪ What are the reasons behind the client’s problems or - Interviews are often regarded as an art, except in the
difficulties? most structured, formal interviews, there is a degree of
freedom to exercise one’s skill and resourcefulness that
▪ Why was the client referred for assessment? is generally absent from other assessment procedures.
- DIRECTIVE STYLE
o Interviewers get exactly the information
3. DEVELOPING POSITIVE WORKING they need by asking clients specifically for
RELATIONSHIPS it.
- There is no formula for developing positive o Questions tend to be targeted toward
working relationships during an interview; specific pieces of information, and client
however, attentive listening, appropriate empathy, responses are typically brief.
genuine respect, and cultural sensitivity play o Provide crucial data that clients may not
significant roles. otherwise choose to discuss:
▪ Important historical information
b. SPECIFIC BEHAVIORS
▪ Presence of absence of a particular
1. EYE CONTACT
- Eye contact not only facilitates listening, but it symptom of a disorder
also communicates listening. ▪ Frequency of behaviors
- Requires cultural knowledge and sensitivity on the
part of the interviewer, both as the sender and ▪ Duration of a problem
receiver of eye contact. o Disadvantage:
2. BODY LANGUAGE ▪ Sacrifice rapport in favor of
information; clients may feel as though
3. VOCAL QUALITIES
they did not have a chance to express
- Use pitch, tone, volume, and fluctuation in their
themselves or explain what they
own voices to let clients know that their words
thought was important.
and feelings are deeply appreciated.
4. VERBAL TRACKING
- Effective interviewers can repeat key words and - NON-DIRECTIVE STYLE
phrases back to their clients to assure the clients o Allow the client to determine the course of
that they have been accurately heard. the interview; without direction from the
- Skilled interviewers can monitor the train of interviewer, a client may choose to spend a
thought implied by clients’ patterns of statements lot of time on some topics and none on
and are thus able to shift topics smoothly rather others.
than abruptly. o Provide crucial information that interviewers
5. REFERRING TO THE CLIENT BY THE PROPER may not otherwise know to inquire about.
NAME o Disadvantage:
- Inappropriately using nicknames or shortening ▪ Fall short of gathering specific
names are presumptuous mistakes that can
information; interviewers may finish
jeopardize the clients’ sense of comfort with the
the interview without specific data that
interviewer.
are necessary for a valid diagnosis,
- The initial interview is an ideal opportunity to ask
conceptualization, or recommendation.
clients how they would prefer to be addressed and
to confirm that it is being done correctly.
b. SPECIFIC INTERVIEWER RESPONSES
c. COMPONENTS OF THE INTERVIEW - What the interviewer chooses to say
1. INTAKE INTERVIEWS
4. PARAPHRASING - Purpose is to essentially determine whether to
- Used to assure clients that they are being “intake” the client ti the setting where the
accurately heard interview is taking place.
- When interviewers paraphrase, they typically - Determines whether the client needs treatment;
restate the content of the clients’ comments, if so, what form of treatment is needed and
using similar language. whether the current facility can provide that
- Paraphrasing does not usually break new treatment, or the client should be referred to a
ground but maintains the conversation by more suitable facility.
assuring the client that the interviewer is - Typically involve detailed questioning about
paying attention and comprehending. the presenting complaint.
2. DIAGNOSTIC INTERVIEWS
5. REFLECTION OF FEELING - At the end of a well-conducted diagnostic
- Echo the client’s emotions interview, the interviewer can assign DSM
- Reflections of feelings intend to make clients diagnoses confidently and accurately to the
feel that their emotions are recognized, even client’s problems.
if their comments did not explicitly include - Include questions that relate to the criteria of
labels of their feelings. DSM disorders
- Reflecting a client’s feelings often involves
an inference by the interviewer about the a. STRUCTURED INTERVIEW
emotions underlying the client’s words. - A predetermined, planned sequence of
questions that an interviewer asks a
6. SUMMARIZING client.
- Involves tying together various topics that - Constructed for specific purposes such as
may have been discussed, connecting diagnostic purposes.
statements that may have been made at - Advantages:
different points, and identifying themes that o Produce a diagnosis based explicitly
have recurred during the interview. on DSM criteria, reducing reliance
- Summarizing lets the clients know that they on subjective factors, i.e.,
have been understood but in a more clinician’s clinical judgment and
comprehensive, integrative way than inference.
paraphrasing. It conveys to the client that the o Highly reliable
interviewer has a good grasp on the “big o Standardized and uncomplicated in
picture”. terms of administration.
- Disadvantages:
c. CONCLUSIONS
o Format is usually rigid, which can
- Take several different forms, depending on the
inhibit rapport and the client’s
type of interview, the client’s problem, the setting,
opportunity to elaborate or explain
or other factors.
as he or she wishes.
- May be essentially like a summarization or the
o Typically, do not allow for inquiries
interviewer might be able to go a step further by
into important topics that may not
providing an initial conceptualization of the
be directly related to DSM criteria,
client’s problem that incorporates a greater degree
i.e., relationship issues, personal
of detail.
history, and problems that fall
- Conclusions may:
below or between DSM diagnostic
o Consists of a specific diagnosis made by the
categories.
interviewer based on the client’s response to
o Require a more comprehensive list
questions about specific criteria
of questions than is clinically
o Involve recommendations:
necessary, which lengthens the
⮚ The MSE is NOT intended as a meticulous, comprehensive
interview.
diagnostic tool but rather it is for a brief, flexible administration,
- STRUCTURED CLINICAL INTERVIEW for primarily in hospitals and medical centers requiring no manual
DSM-V DISORDERS (SCID) (First, 2015; or other accompanying materials.
First, Gibbon, Spitzer, Williams, & Benjamin,
E. CRISIS INTERVIEWS
1997; First, Spitzer, Gibbon & Williams, 1997)
o A comprehensive list of questions that ⮚ A special type of clinical interview and can be uniquely
directly ask about specific symptoms of the challenging for the interviewer.
many disorders included in the DSM
o Each question in the SCID has one-to-one
⮚ They are designed not only to assess a problem demanding
correspondence with a specific criterion of a
DSM diagnosis. urgent attention but also to provide immediate and effective
intervention for that problem.
b. UNSTRUCTURED INTERVIEW
- Involves no predetermined or planned ⮚ Can be conducted in person but also take place often on the
questions telephone via suicide hotlines, crisis lines, and similar services.
- Improvise, interviewers determine their
questions on the spot, seeking
information that they decide is relevant ⮚ Key Components:
during the interview. o Quickly establishing rapport
o Expressing empathy
c. SEMISTRUCTURED INTERVIEW
- Some clinical psychologists blend both
⮚ For suicidal clients:
structured and unstructured approaches.
- Partially structured but may include o Providing an immediate, legitimate alternative to suicide
unstructured segments, typically at the can enable the client to endure this period of very high
beginning of the interview, which allows distress and reach a later point in time when problems may
clients to describe in their own words the feel less severe or solutions may be more viable.
current problem and any relevant history. o Some interviewers ask clients to sign or verbally agree to
- After the unstructured segments, an suicide prevention contracts. These contracts essentially
interviewer may ask a succession of require the client to contact the interviewer before
targeted questions to address specific committing any act of self-harm.
diagnostic criteria. o Issues to be assessed:
⮚ Employed most often in medical settings ▪ Does the client have suicidal thoughts?
▪ Suitable for clients of age 15 years and above, ▪ The subtests involve such tasks as learning a
but alternate versions are available for younger list of 10 words presented orally, naming
clients. pictures of various objects, recalling an orally
presented list of numbers, recalling a story told
▪ Essentially, its primary purpose is to identify 20 minutes earlier, and copying of visual
people with brain damage identified, including figures.
specific cognitive impairments or physiological
regions of the brain that may be deficient. o WECHSLER MEMORY SCALE (WMS-IV)
▪ The findings of the HRB can help in diagnosis ▪ A memory test often used to assess individuals
and treatment of problems related to brain aged 16 to 90 who are suspected of having
malfunction. memory problems due to brain injury,
dementia, substance abuse, or other factors.
o LURIA-NEBRASKA ▪ Assess both visual and auditory memory across
NEUROPSYCHOLOGICAL BATTERY (LNNB)
its seven subtests as well as immediate and
▪ Like the HRB in that it is wide-ranging test of delayed recall.
neuropsychological functioning ▪ WMS-IV offers a shorter version for adults
▪ It consists of 12 scales, with a similar range to over 65 years of age to minimize the impact of
quantitative data. fatigue on test results.
▪ Rely on qualitative written comments from the
examiner about the testing process; these
comments describe what the examiner observe
d about the client, such as:
G. PERSONALITY ASSESSMENT AND BEHAVIORAL
● Problems comprehending the test ASSESSMENT
Recording IN RESEARCH:
o Obtain permission from clients or legal o Psychologists should inform prospective
representatives before recording the voices participants about numerous aspects of the
or images of the clients and explain all study, including its purpose, procedures, and
anticipated uses of the recordings. length of time it may require; any
predictable risks or adverse effects;
Minimizing Invasions of Privacy incentives for participation; and the right to
o In conducting consultations with colleagues decline or withdraw from participation.
or make written and oral reports, the
professional should only reveal information IN ASSESSMENT:
that is relevant to the consultation. o Professionals should offer information about
o Psychology practitioners shall discuss the nature and purpose of the assessment;
confidential information they obtained in the any relevant fees; the involvement of other
course of their work for appropriate parties, if any; and limits of confidentiality.
educational, scientific, medical, and
professional purposes such as research, IN PSYCHOTHERAPY:
intervention, and case consultations. o Professionals should inform clients/ patients
as early as is feasible in the therapeutic
Disclosures relationship about the nature and anticipated
o Professionals should take reasonable steps to course of therapy, fees, involvement of third
ensure that information to be disclosed will parties, and limits of confidentiality and
not be misused, misunderstood, or provide sufficient opportunity for the client/
misinterpreted to infringe on human rights, patient to ask questions and receive answers.
whether intentionally or unintentionally. o Professionals should be able to give the
o Disclose confidential information only when client opportunities to ask questions and
the client or legal representative gave their receive answers and it is the chance to begin
consent unless it is prohibited by law. to establish a collaborative relationship with
o Disclose confidential information only with the client.
a written permission from the client, with
knowledge as to the nature of information D. ETHICAL DECISION MAKING (Fisher, 2017)
that will be disclosed and to whom it will be Prior to any ethical dilemma arising, make a
provided. commitment to doing what is ethically
o Disclose information with consent of the appropriate.
client or legal representative only when it is Become familiar with the Psychological
mandated by law or permitted by law for Association of the Philippines Code of Ethics.
valid purposes. Consult any law or professional guidelines
relevant to the situation at hand.
o When confidential information needs to be Try to understand the perspectives of various
shared with schools, organizations, social parties affected by the actions you may take.
agencies, or industry. Consult with supervisors, colleagues, etc. for
additional input and discussion.
Generate and evaluate your alternatives.
Select and implement the course of action that o Release the data to clients on request unless
seems most ethically appropriate. there is reason to believe that the data will
Monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of course be misused or will harm the client.
of action.
Modify and continue to evaluate the ethical plan, G. ETHICS IN CLINICAL RESEARCH
as necessary.
Minimize harm to participants, steer clear of
E. BOUNDARIES AND MULTIPLE plagiarism, and avoid fabrication of data, among
RELATIONSHIPS other things.