Are psychotherapists consistent in their ethical attitude to patient confidentiality?

Background: The issue of confidentiality often causes an ethical dilemma for the psychotherapist.

Aims Of The Study: We investigated if therapists are consistent in their attitude to confidentiality or judge each case on its own merit.

Methods: A questionnaire consisting of a series of clinical vignettes representing different ethical dilemmas in confidentiality in psychotherapy was completed by 93 therapists of different professional backgrounds and by a control group of 55 students from the fields of law and the humanities.