Assignment Problem: Matthew is a counselling psychologist and teaches counselling theory at a local college. As a result of bringing theory to life, he often uses examples of clients he has worked with, to demonstrate the application of theory in real life. One of his clients was successful in the completion of a late enrolment at the college, for the module he teaches. Matthew was caught off guard when she walked into his classroom, not knowing what to do or say, instead, he avoided looking in her direction during his lecture. Matthew noticeably seemed very uncomfortable and started worrying about various things. He was afraid that she would find out that he had used her case as an example during the previous week's lecture and was concerned that this would ruin their therapeutic relationship, resulting in her rejecting him. He was further concerned about the assessment submission period approaching, and if he might assign a low assessment mark, this would unfavourably impact their relationship and the progress they have made. He is not sure whether being her lecturer and counsellor is a good idea, and is uncertain about how to proceed. Matthew hesitates to seek consultation, as he feels he can resolve this on his own.
Questions to answer:
Question 1: What ethical codes need consideration in this case study? Provide a thorough discussion on this, not definitions of concepts.
Question 2: Provide a critical discussion of Matthew's concerns raised in the case study?
Question 3: Critically discuss the imbalance of power in both the therapeutic relationship and the learning environment and the implications of this.
Question 4: How should Matthew go about managing his classroom environment to ensure that trainee counsellors adhere to ethical principles?
Question 5: What should Matthew do to resolve this ethical dilemma? Provide an extensive discussion.
Question 6: Reflect on what you as a professional can do in future to address or prevent the above ethical dilemmas from taking place.