1. Get out of the office, attend continuing education events and professional association conferences, and interact with colleagues. Don’t isolate yourself. Those who are more isolated professionally are at greater risk of poor decision-making and unethical practice over time (Knapp & VandeCreek, 2012). 2. Create a constellation of colleagues (Johnson, Barnett, Elman, Forrest, & Kaslow, […]
Scandals involving psychological research have been making the headlines since World War II (see Adair, 2001, for review). These public critiques make individuals skeptical of the veracity of psychological science. Recently, participants from Phillip Zimbardo’s Stanford Prison Experiment (Haney, Banks, & Zimbardo, 1973) were interviewed and revealed potential ethical violations, including feeling they were obligated […]
We know that psychotherapy outcome research cannot imitate randomized clinical trials for diseases because, for one among many reasons, the person of the therapist cannot be abstracted from the provision of treatment. The therapist is the treatment. What are the implications for training and lifelong learning? Over the course of a psychotherapy career, we will […]
Recently in one of my courses, I lectured on ethics in forensic psychological assessment. A case example was provided involving a psychologist who provided testimony citing non-existent risk and risk assessment literature in a death penalty case, which later resulted in the case being overturned. One of my students inquired about the repercussions of psychologists […]
According to Haeny (2014), psychologists face a plethora of ethical dilemmas when attempting to find a balance between their personal lives and professional lives. In particular, this multitude of challenges present cognitive dissonance in many instances where the line of what is ethically and morally correct is not clear. Specifically, Haeny (2014) proposed that these […]
“Do that scale again.” “Do that fingering transition again.” “Let me hear that again.” Even if the scale was correct, it had to be done…again. As a novice musician, the word, “again,” became synonymous with repetitive practice. Practice for the sake of practice, because practice makes perfect. I (voice of 3rd author; true story) had […]
The importance of considering individual differences and diversity in our clinical work has rightly received increased attention in recent years. The relevance of individual differences and diversity to all aspects of the professional services psychologists provide is clearly articulated in the Ethical Principles of Psychologists and Code of Conduct (Ethics Code, APA, 2010) in Principle […]
In 2012, the American Psychological Association (APA) endorsed as policy, The Education and Training Guidelines: A Taxonomy for Education and Training in Professional Psychology Health Service Specialties, hereafter referred to as “the Taxonomy.” This Taxonomy was developed in response to confusing inconsistencies across education and training in professional psychology training programs that would describe offerings […]
Diversity is an important thing to keep in mind as a multiculturally aware psychotherapist, but what about under served and socially marginalized populations? The difference between understanding diversity and understanding under served and socially marginalized clients is briefly highlighted in this video interview where Dr. Astrea Greig, diversity domain chair, interviews Dr. Beverly Greene, diversity […]
Clinical supervision has changed dramatically in the past decade. First came the recognition that clinical supervision is a distinct professional practice that requires specific training. This represented a critical change from the previously unspoken assumption that all supervisors were, by virtue of their status, competent—an assumption that elicited strong emotional responses from both supervisees and […]