Ethics (Standards 5 & 6) Flashcards
What are the ethical requirements regarding psychologists’ use of client testimonials in brochures and other statements describing their professional services?
They may use solicited testimonials from former therapy clients who are not vulnerable to undue influence.
Dr. Edison is a behavior therapist who specializes in treating cigarette smoking, nail biting, and other undesirable habits. While at a charity fundraiser, he meets the editor of a local newspaper and they agree that Dr. Edison will help the editor stop smoking in exchange for an article about his services in the newspaper. In terms of ethical requirements, this arrangement is:
A. acceptable as long as it does not interfere with Dr. Edison’s ability to provide treatment to the editor in an objective, competent manner.
B. acceptable as long as Dr. Edison and the editor agree that it’s an equitable exchange.
C. unacceptable because psychologists are prohibited from compensating employees of newspapers in exchange for a newspaper article about their services.
D. unacceptable because psychologists are required to avoid conflicts of interest.
C. unacceptable because psychologists are prohibited from compensating employees of newspapers in exchange for a newspaper article about their services.
You receive a letter from a colleague requesting that you send her a copy of the record of Donald D., a former client of yours. The request is accompanied by an authorization to release information signed by Donald. Donald abruptly ended his sessions with you three months ago, at which time he owed you for his past four therapy sessions. You’ve sent two letters to Donald about his unpaid bill, but he has not responded. To be consistent with ethical requirements, you:
A. must forward the record to the colleague since Donald has signed an authorization allowing you to do so.
B. may refuse to forward the record to the colleague until you and Donald reach an agreement about how he will pay his outstanding fees.
C. may refuse to forward the record to the colleague for nonpayment of fees only if they are not needed for Donald’s emergency treatment.
D. may refuse to forward the record to the colleague for nonpayment of fees only if you explained this policy to Donald as part of the informed consent process when he began therapy.
C. may refuse to forward the record to the colleague for nonpayment of fees only if they are not needed for Donald’s emergency treatment.
Which of the following is most consistent with ethical guidelines for contingent fees?
A. Accepting contingent fees is prohibited under any circumstances.
B. Accepting contingent fees should usually be avoided.
C. Accepting contingent fees is acceptable when all parties voluntarily agree to this arrangement.
D. Accepting contingent fees is acceptable as long as it is not prohibited by law.
B. Accepting contingent fees should usually be avoided.
You receive a letter from a former client’s current therapist asking you to fax confidential information about the client’s treatment. The request is accompanied by a signed authorization for release of information from the client. You should:
A. ask the therapist to confirm that he received the documents after you send them.
B. mark each page “confidential” before faxing the requested information to the therapist.
C. fax the requested information to the therapist after ensuring that all information that identifies the client has been removed.
D. refuse to fax the information and send a copy of the file by courier instead.
C. fax the requested information to the therapist after ensuring that all information that identifies the client has been removed.
Marsha comes to her first therapy session 10 minutes late. She’s disheveled, seems very nervous, and says she doesn’t “really want to be here” but her roommate insisted it was a good idea. When you begin taking notes, Marsha says she doesn’t want you to keep a record of her sessions. As an ethical psychologist, you should:
discuss her concerns and tell her that you need to keep a record of her sessions and explain your reasons for doing so.
You have just moved to Springfield and, to build your private practice, you plan to contact several psychologists in the Springfield area whom you met at a recent APA convention and offer them a fee for referring clients to you. With regard to ethical requirements, this is:
acceptable only if the fee represents the psychologists’ actual costs for referring the clients to you.
Standard 6.07 of the APA Ethics Code states that “when psychologists pay, receive payment from, or divide fees with another professional, other than in an employer-employee relationship, the payment to each is based on the services provided (clinical, consultative, administrative, or other) and is not based on the referral itself
You saw Mr. Miller in therapy for four months when he suddenly terminated therapy with no warning or explanation. In addition, he has not paid for his last five sessions and has not responded to the two letters you’ve sent him asking him to contact you to discuss his unpaid bill. You want to use a collection agency to collect the money he owes you. To be consistent with ethical requirements, you will:
notify Mr. Miller that you will contact a collection agency if you don’t hear from him by the end of the month.
(if psychologists intend to use collection agencies or legal measures to collect the fees, psychologists first inform the person that such measures will be taken and provide that person an opportunity to make prompt payment)
APA’s Record Keeping Guidelines recommend that, in the absence of legal and institutional requirements, psychologists retain the full client record until _____ years after the last date of service delivery for adults or _____ years after a minor reaches the age of majority, whichever occurs later.
7; 3
Dr. Liu, a licensed psychologist, is asked by a local television station if she would be interested in participating in a 10-minute segment every week during the Monday morning news show. The station would like her to present a four- to five-minute summary of a different mental health issue each week and then respond to emails and calls from viewers for the remaining time. If Dr. Liu accepts the offer to participate in the program, she:
will have acted unethically unless she makes sure that viewers understand that her responses to their emails and calls do not establish a therapeutic relationship.
Which of the following statements best describes the requirements of the ethics codes published by the American and Canadian Psychological Associations for bartering?
A. Bartering is always unacceptable.
B. Bartering is acceptable only in the “most unusual circumstances.”
C. Bartering may be acceptable when it’s not clinically contraindicated.
D. Bartering may be acceptable when potential conflicts are discussed with the client.
C. Bartering may be acceptable when it’s not clinically contraindicated
Mark Martinez is a graduate student in clinical psychology and is on-staff at a behavioral health clinic. He notices that the clinic’s most recent newspaper ad lists staff members and their credentials and identifies him as “Ph.D. (Cand.).” This designation of Mark’s credentials is:
unacceptable even if it accurately identifies his status.
“Ph.D. (Cand.)” and “Ph.D. Candidate” are misleading because they imply that the person has some type of earned credential.
When clients whose fees are paid for by an insurance company do not show up for their appointments or cancel an appointment within less than 24 hours, a psychologist bills the insurance company for the appointment. This is:
unacceptable because she’s providing inaccurate information to the insurance companies.
Billing insurance companies for missed appointments without their approval of this practice would be insurance fraud, which is both unethical and illegal.
The use of a sliding scale when setting fees for therapy clients:
may be acceptable but is not explicitly mentioned in the ethics codes published by the American and Canadian Psychological Associations.
Dr. Lansky returned to school when she was 48 years old to obtain a Psy.D. in clinical psychology. She already had a Ph.D. in business administration and, now that she’s a licensed psychologist, decides to list both doctoral degrees in her business card and advertisements for her clinical practice. This is:
unacceptable
psychologists can claim as credentials for their health services only degrees that “were earned from a regionally accredited educational institution or … were the basis for psychology licensure.” In other words, the psychologist should not include her Ph.D. in business administration in her business card or advertisements since that degree was not used as a credential for her health services
