Fancy Meeting You Here: Multiple Relationships in Small Communities (2022 Spring Ethics & Integrity Series)

Topic:

Therapists in small or close-knit communities may experience conflict between providing therapy to member, and participating as members themselves. This presentation will propose a model of ethical decision-making that draws from feminist, multicultural, and family systems thinking as well as the “virtue ethics” model. The presenter will provide examples of applying this model in practice and invite participants to reflect on their own boundary setting practices with culturally-similar clients.

Presenter Bio:

Dr. Sheila Addison is core faculty in the Antioch University Couple and Family Therapy program, and offers supervision and mentoring as an AAMFT Approved Supervisor. In her private practice she works with the LGBTQ+ and BIPOC communities as a Certified Gottman Therapist. She is also Executive Director of Margin to Center, supporting equity-deserving groups in earning licensure and launching private practices, and works in DEI consulting. She lives in Seattle.

Learning Objectives:

1. Based on the content of the session, I am able to identify problems that the “prohibit/avoid” framework may create for clients from minority groups, subcultures, and small communities who are seeking therapy.
2. Based on the content of the session, I am able to articulate conflicts that clinicians from minority groups, subcultures, and small communities experience regarding management of dual relationships.
3. Based on the content of the session, I am able to describe an ethical framework for evaluating and mitigating the risks of dual relationships between therapists and their clients.