Ethical, Legal, and Professional Issues in the Practice of Marriage and Family Therapy

by Wilcoxon, Allen; Remley, Theodore; Gladding, Samuel T.; Huber, Charles H.

• ISBN13: 9780131120341
• ISBN10: 0131120344
• Edition: 4th
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2007-01-01
• Publisher: Prentice Hall

Summary

The fourth edition of this established text for students, supervisors, and practitioners in marriage and family therapy emphasizes the multicultural context for intervention efforts. Additionally, the text features an examination of the impact of personal, professional, and institutional layers of values upon both the practitioner and the client/system. Emphasis is retained for classic ethical, legal, and professional concerns along with exploration of contemporary issues such as HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act), technology, and managed mental health care. Each section of the text concludes with case study examples that focus on applied considerations related to ethical, legal, and professional issues.

Table of Contents

PART I CULTURE AND VALUES: A BEGINNING POINT FOR PRACTICE DECISIONS	1	(40)
Values as Context for Therapy	2	(21)
Culture, Worldview and Identity	3	(5)
Gender	4	(1)
Race	4	(1)
Ethnicity	4	(1)
Social Class	5	(1)
Sexual Orientation	5	(1)
Disability	5	(1)
Religion	6	(1)
Worldview	6	(1)
Psychosocial Identity	6	(2)
Perspective Values, and Therapy	8	(8)
Values Clarification	10	(2)
Negotiation: The Nature of Valuing	12	(1)
The Practice Implications of Valuing	13	(1)
Living Without Objective Knowledge	14	(1)
Taking Personal Responsibility	15	(1)
Taking Responsibility for Pathologizing	15	(1)
Accepting What Is	15	(1)
Valuing Components	16	(5)
Obligation and Entitlement	17	(1)
Acknowledgment and Claim	18	(1)
Balance of Fairness	19	(2)
Summary	21	(2)
Marriage and Family Therapy: A Framework of Systems and Layers	23	(18)
Systemic Epistemology	24	(7)
The Feminist Critique of Systemic Epistemology	27	(1)
The Self in the System	28	(1)
Evolving Epistemology	29	(2)
Contextual Layers of Values	31	(8)
Personal Values	31	(1)
Professional Values	32	(2)
Institutional Values	34	(3)
Convergence and Interactivity of Layers	37	(2)
Summary	39	(2)
PART II ETHICAL ISSUES IN MARRIAGE AND FAMILY THERAPY	41	(160)
Promoting Ethical Practice: Foundational Principles and Traditions	42	(44)
Virtue Ethics and Principle Ethics	43	(2)
Professional Codes of Ethics	45	(3)
Ethical Decision Making	48	(6)
The Kitchener Model	48	(3)
The Keith-Speigel and Koocher Model	51	(3)
Diversity, Nondiscrimination Values and Allegiances	54	(4)
Nondiscrimination and Respect for Diversity	54	(1)
Personal Values, Institutional Values, and Legal Precedence	55	(3)
Client Welfare	58	(6)
Therapist Competence	59	(1)
Due Care	59	(3)
Complementary Elements: Competence and Due Care	62	(1)
Impairment	62	(2)
Confidentiality	64	(7)
Privileged Communication	65	(3)
Privacy	68	(2)
The Duty to Protect	70	(1)
Informed Consent	71	(10)
Therapeutic Contracts	73	(4)
Professional Disclosure Statements	77	(4)
Multiple Client Considerations	81	(3)
Summary	84	(2)
Unique Ethical Considerations in Marriage and Family Therapy	86	(37)
Systemic and Interactive: Views on Complexity	86	(2)
Foundational Ethical Principles in Marriage and Family Therapy	88	(7)
Confidentiality in Marriage and Family Therapy	88	(5)
Informed Consent Concerns in Marriage and Family Therapy	93	(2)
Defining the Problem	95	(3)
Complications in Convening Therapy	98	(5)
The Therapist as Agent for Change	103	(6)
Inequities in Power and Opportunity	109	(2)
Paradoxical Procedures	111	(4)
Triangulation	115	(5)
Other Uniquenesses in Marriage and Family Therapy	120	(1)
Summary	121	(2)
Intimate Partner Violence: An Illustrative Example	123	(15)
Intimate Partner Violence: An Overview	123	(2)
Diversity, Systemic, and Value Considerations	125	(2)
Principles, Traditions, and Uniquenesses	127	(4)
Decision-Making Models and Options for Resolution	131	(2)
Treatment Alternatives	133	(3)
The Cessation of Violence	134	(1)
The Contraindication of Neutrality	134	(1)
Individual Responsibility	135	(1)
Contracting for Nonviolence	136	(1)
Summary	136	(2)
Contemporary Ethical Issues	138	(37)
Technology	139	(12)
Technology as a Practice Resource	139	(1)
Technology in Information Management	140	(1)
Technology as Therapeutic Modality	140	(1)
Ethical Issues in the Use of Technology	141	(5)
The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders and Its Use in Marriage and Family Therapy	146	(1)
Incompatibity of Orientations	147	(1)
The Stigma of Diagnosis	148	(1)
Misrepresentation of Diagnoses	149	(1)
Competence to Diagnose	150	(1)
Managed Mental Health Care	151	(7)
Risk Taking	152	(1)
Intrusion into the Therapeutic Relationship	152	(1)
Exceptions to the Rules	153	(1)
Referral Resources	153	(1)
Short-Term Treatment and Therapist Competence	154	(1)
Input by Service Providers	155	(1)
Informed Consent	156	(1)
Acting Ethically as an MMHC Service Provider	157	(1)
Multiple or Dual Relationships	158	(9)
Ethical Codes and Multiple Relationships	159	(3)
Compatibility of Expectations	162	(1)
Divergence of Obligations	163	(1)
Power and Prestige Differential	164	(1)
Other Forms of Multiple Relationships	165	(1)
Taking Appropriate Action	166	(1)
AIDS/HIV and the Duty to Protect	167	(5)
A Fiduciary Relationship	169	(1)
Identifiability	169	(1)
Foreseeability	169	(1)
Other Factors and Considerations	170	(2)
Taking Appropriate Action	172	(1)
Publications	172	(1)
Summary and Closing Comments	173	(2)
Ethical Accountability: A Casebook	175	(26)
Adjudication of Ethical Complaints	176	(5)
The AAMFT Code of Ethics	181	(19)
Principle 1: Responsibility to Clients	181	(3)
Principle 2: Confidentiality	184	(3)
Principle 3: Professional Competence and Integrity	187	(4)
Principle 4: Responsibility to Students and Supervisees	191	(2)
Principle 5: Responsibility to Research Participants	193	(2)
Principle 6: Responsibility to the Profession	195	(3)
Principle 7: Financial Arrangements	198	(1)
Principle 8: Advertising	199	(1)
Closing Remarks	200	(1)
PART III LEGAL ISSUES IN MARRIAGE AND FAMILY THERAPY	201	(98)
The Marriage and Family Therapist: Roles and Responsibilities Within the Legal System	202	(41)
Legal Education	203	(6)
Common Law	203	(1)
Constitutional Law	204	(1)
Statutory Law	204	(1)
Administrative (Regulatory) Law	204	(1)
Case Law (Court Decisions)	204	(2)
Criminal vs. Civil Law	206	(3)
The Marriage and Family Therapist as a Source of Information	209	(9)
Confidentiality, Privileged Communication, and Records	209	(1)
The Duty to Protect	210	(4)
Child Abuse and Neglect	214	(4)
The Marriage and Family Therapist as Referral Resource	218	(8)
The Treatment Specialist	218	(1)
Diagnostician	218	(4)
Resource Expert	222	(1)
Treatment Provider	222	(2)
Mediation	224	(2)
The Marriage and Family Therapist as Expert Witness	226	(7)
The Rules of Evidence	227	(1)
Courtroom Testimony	228	(3)
Systemic Understandings and Expert Testimony	231	(1)
Redefining the Problem	232	(1)
Dealing with Resistance	233	(1)
Professional Liability Under the Law	233	(7)
Contract Law	234	(1)
Unintentional Torts: Malpractice	235	(2)
Intentional Torts	237	(2)
Professional Liability Insurance	239	(1)
Summary	240	(1)
Recommended Resources	241	(2)
Family Law	243	(28)
Marriage and Cohabitation	244	(5)
Parent-Child Relationships	249	(7)
Legitimacy and Paternity	249	(2)
Adoption	251	(2)
Surrogate Parenthood	253	(1)
Abortion	254	(2)
Parental Rights and Responsibilities	256	(2)
Annulment and Divorce	258	(5)
Annulment	258	(1)
Divorce	259	(2)
Spousal Maintenance	261	(1)
Division of Property	262	(1)
Child Custody and Support After Divorce	263	(5)
Child Custody	264	(3)
Child Support	267	(1)
Legal Actions Between Parents and Children	268	(1)
Summary	269	(1)
Recommended Resources	270	(1)
Legal Considerations	271	(28)
Case 1: Ethics and the Law	273	(3)
Case 2: Divorce Mediation	276	(2)
Case 3: Liability in Crisis Counseling	278	(2)
Case 4: Informed Consent?	280	(3)
Case 5: Criminal Liability	283	(3)
Case 6: Parental Rights and FERPA	286	(2)
Case 7: The Premarital Agreement	288	(3)
Case 8: Privileged Communications	291	(4)
Case 9: Legal Responsibility of Clinical Supervisors	295	(2)
Case 10: Insurance Fraud?	297	(2)
PART IV PROFESSIONAL ISSUES IN MARRIAGE AND FAMILY THERAPY	299	(89)
Professional Identity as a Marriage and Family Therapist	300	(48)
Profession or Professional Specialization?	301	(6)
Marriage and Family Therapy as a Separate and Distinct Profession	302	(2)
Marriage and Family Therapy as a Professional Specialization	304	(1)
Is Balance Possible?	305	(2)
Professional Affiliation	307	(22)
American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy	308	(17)
American Family Therapy Academy	325	(1)
Family Psychology (Division 43 of the American Psychological Association)	326	(1)
International Association of Marriage and Family Counselors	327	(2)
State Licensure and Marriage and Family Therapy	329	(9)
Licensure Coverage	334	(1)
Qualifications	335	(1)
The Licensure Process	336	(2)
Related Aspects of Professional Identity	338	(9)
Research: Examining and Refining Professional Identity	338	(4)
Continuing Education: Sustaining and Renewing Professional Identity	342	(3)
Intraprofessional Relationships and Service: Expanding and Enriching Professional Identity	345	(2)
Summary	347	(1)
Contemporary Professional Issues	348	(40)
Question 1: Evolving Epistemology in Actual Practice	350	(5)
Question 2: Marriage and Family Interventions with Other Systems	355	(3)
Question 3: Values Transactions	358	(4)
Question 4: Addressing Ambivalence	362	(5)
Question 5: Professional Advertising	367	(5)
Question 6: Practice Interruptions	372	(4)
Question 7: Business-Oriented Details	376	(3)
Question 8: Independent Practice in a Rural Area	379	(3)
Question 9: Being a ``Public'' Marriage and Family Therapist	382	(2)
Question 10: Optimally Serving Oneself and One's Clients	384	(2)
Closing Thoughts and a View to the Horizon	386	(2)
References	388	(26)
Name Index	414	(7)
Subject Index	421