Psychologists' responses to the disclosure of personal therapy by a professional colleague

• Published in: Counselling and psychotherapy research Vol. 15; no. 1; pp. 50 - 57
• Main Authors: Schroeder, Kathleen R., Pomerantz, Andrew M., Brown, Danice L., Segrist, Dan J.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Abingdon Blackwell Publishing Ltd 01.03.2015
• Subjects: personal therapy; Professional ethics; Psychologists; psychotherapist; Psychotherapy; self-disclosure; stigma
• ISSN: 1473-3145; 1746-1405
• DOI: 10.1002/capr.12010

Aim The purpose of this study was to empirically examine the responses of psychologists to a hypothetical situation in which they learn that a professional colleague is seeking personal therapy. Method Practising psychologists (n = 96) responded to vignettes in which a professional colleague disclosed personal therapy for a particular disorder (major depressive disorder or bipolar disorder), disclosed personal therapy with no disorder specified, or made no mention of personal therapy. Results Results indicated that psychologists were willing to refer clients to professional colleagues with equal frequency and immediacy across all conditions. In other words, the fact that the colleague was in personal therapy, whether or not the colleague specified a particular disorder, did not influence the psychologists' intention to refer clients to the colleague in comparison to an identical colleague who made no mention of personal therapy. Discussion Although a number of other factors also deserve consideration as alternate explanations, these results may refute the notion, common among many mental health professionals, that revealing personal therapy to colleagues can elicit stigmatising negative professional consequences. These results are also consonant with the idea of competent communities, recently promoted in the US (where supervision requirements for licensed psychologists are less stringent than in the UK), in which psychologists form mutually supportive groups intended to maintain and augment competence. Cultural factors, particularly those stemming from the presence of required personal therapy for psychologists in some countries (such as the UK) and the absence of such a requirement in others (such as the US), are also discussed.