Ethical Contextualism In The Psychotherapist's Case
In the case of the client in the posed vignette, the psychotherapist should advise the client to attend the session in-person because having the client attend the meeting could be a step towards overcoming his social anxiety, in addition, the psychotherapist stated that he is unsure of his competency in teletherapy. Using ethical theories as a moral framework provides insight into what an ethical solution to this dilemma might be (Fisher, 209, p. 40). In the case of the ethical theory that applies to the vignette, I believe that ethical contextualism should be considered when making an ethical decision. This scenario should not be handled impersonally, as seen in absolutism, but rather in a manner that reflects the context of the situation and the individual’s needs, as seen in contextualism (p. 42). As for the vignette, each factor
…show more content…
For example, even though teletherapy could be beneficial to the client in this case, the fact that the therapist sees himself as lacking competence in teletherapy changes the context and makes teletherapy unethical.
As the text illustrates, there are eight steps to ethical decision making. In this case, I would apply the steps by first making a firm commitment to not allowing the therapy session to be conducted via telephone, followed by checking the APA Ethics Code General Principles and Ethical Standards, as well as the local and federal laws to ensure that advising the client to attend the session, despite not wanting to, is not a violation. Then I would consider the ways that the client would be affected by this decision, and determine other possible solutions to this issue while still considering laws
For example, even though teletherapy could be beneficial to the client in this case, the fact that the therapist sees himself as lacking competence in teletherapy changes the context and makes teletherapy unethical.
As the text illustrates, there are eight steps to ethical decision making. In this case, I would apply the steps by first making a firm commitment to not allowing the therapy session to be conducted via telephone, followed by checking the APA Ethics Code General Principles and Ethical Standards, as well as the local and federal laws to ensure that advising the client to attend the session, despite not wanting to, is not a violation. Then I would consider the ways that the client would be affected by this decision, and determine other possible solutions to this issue while still considering laws