Negotiating Consent In Psychotherapy

Psychotherapists have an ethical requirement to inform clients about theirtreatment methods alternative treatment options and alternative conceptionsof their pr... » 

Psychotherapists have an ethical requirement to inform clients about theirtreatment methods alternative treatment options and alternative conceptionsof their problem. While accepting the basis for this informed consentrequirement therapists have traditionally resisted giving too muchinformation arguing that exposure to alternative therapies can cause confusionand distress. The raging debates over falserecovered memory syndrome and thelarger move towards medical disclosure have pushed the question to the forehow much information should therapists provide to their clients?In Negotiating Consent in Psychotherapy Patrick ONeill provides an indepthstudy of the ways in which therapists and clients negotiate consent. Based oninterviews with 100 therapists and clients in the areas of eating disorders andsexual abuse the book explores the tangle of issues that make informed consentso difficult for therapists including what therapists believe should be partof consent and why how they decide when consent should be renegotiated andhow clients experience this process of negotiation and renegotiation. «