Abstract
Using a systemic perspective to treat survivors of incest elicits the controversial question of whether to involve the perpetrator in the therapy process. Ethically, the therapist has a responsibility to ensure that the therapeutic process will do no harm to the client; therefore, involving the perpetrator may be contraindicated in some circumstances. Therapists may feel torn between determining what the most ethical practice is. This determination is affected by a wide variety of factors, and requires clinical judgment once these factors are understood. The article proposes the Incest-Perpetrator Involvement Checklist to guide therapists through the relevant issues that should be addressed prior to approving the perpetrator's inclusion in conjoint therapy with the survivor.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 188-207 |
Number of pages | 20 |
Journal | Journal of Family Psychotherapy |
Volume | 24 |
Issue number | 3 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Jul 1 2013 |
Keywords
- assessment
- child abuse
- ethics
- family therapy
- incest
- systemic treatment