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PRIVACY IN PSYCHOTHERAPY
Abstract
Therapists have voiced concern about recent legally imposed limitations on confidentiality in psychotherapy. Potential negative effects of limited confidentiality include interference with the development of a positive therapeutic relationship, an increase in premature terminations, and the withholding or significant but possibly self-incriminating information by clients. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of informing clients of the limits on confidentiality. The subjects were sixty-two Vietnam Era Veterans who sought psychotherapy at a Veterans Administration Hospital. There were three groups included in the study. Two groups were asked to participate in research about treatment and told they would be asked to complete a questionnaire about psychotherapy at the end of four sessions. One of these groups (control group) was not informed on the limits on confidentiality, while the other (informed group) was. The third, or pre-study group, was not informed of the research but acted as a baseline group. In all groups, therapists completed a questionnaire which assessed the developing therapeutic relationship and its effectiveness after each of the first four sessions. The results indicate that, both in terms of number of sessions and therapists' ratings, the control and pre-study groups did not significantly differ, suggesting minimal impact resulting from knowledge of being in a research study. Assessment of the effects of informing clients of the limits was accomplished by comparing informed and control groups. Results generally supported therapists' concerns that limitations on confidentiality may have a negative effect on treatment. Specifically, although therapists' perceptions of sessions reflected few differences between informed and uninformed clients, those who received the information sheet were more likely to terminate treatment prematurely than were clients who did not. However, informed clients who discussed the limits with their therapists were more likely to remain in therapy for at least four sessions than were those who did not discuss the issues. Implications for treatment given the current limitations on confidentiality and dissemination of such information to clients were discussed.
Subject Area
Psychotherapy
Recommended Citation
MORRISON, LEE LYNN, "PRIVACY IN PSYCHOTHERAPY" (1984). ETD collection for University of Nebraska-Lincoln. AAI8423817.
https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/dissertations/AAI8423817