Case study:
Project description
CASE STUDY:
Helen is a third year student at a leading University. She is an “A” student who takes her studies quite seriously. Helen lives in a dorm and is a member of an on-campus sorority. The University has a policy, which all staff and students have been made aware of through training, that any incident of alleged sexual harassment MUST be reported to the University. Helen was, by definition, the victim of on-campus sexual harassment on two occasions by the same person. For personal reasons, Helen is emphatic that she does not want to report the incidents to the University. Instead, she has sought help through the University’s student counseling service which is staffed by trained clinical psychologists. Helen disclosed her victimization to the psychologist so she could begin counseling therapy. The clinical psychologists are employees of the University and bound by all of the University’s policies. Clients who are treated by these campus psychologists are also protected by a client-patient privilege of confidentiality. The University’s policy was written to ensure that the University was given notice of claims of sexual harassment so that they could be properly investigated, remedied, and resolved. In addition, the University believes that they had the right of notification in order to have the opportunity to mitigate their liability.
ASSISGNMENT REQUIREMENTS: Should the clinical psychologist report the incident to the University?
– Frame the issue, identify the relevant facts, and decide what options does the psychologist have in satisfying both the client’s preference and the University’s policy? Form a conclusion based on sound reasoning and critical thinking. Be sure you address both sides of the issue, objectively in order to reach a defendable position. Once you have decided on a conclusion, ensure that you comprehensively support your position with sound rationale.