Clinical implications of ethical and legal issues surrounding adolescent disclosure: A training for therapists

Confidentiality is an imperative part of effective therapy. Its existence allows for client self-disclosure. Confidentiality, however, is not absolute. In fact, it is dependent on many factors. One of these factors is age. When working with adolescent clients, the topic of confidentiality becomes further complicated due to parental involvement. A therapist must be able to balance an adolescent client's autonomy, respect parent's wishes, adhere to ethical mandates, and uphold the law. The balancing act of this task could be one that is confusing and overwhelming for therapists. This project is designed to further train therapist in their ability to make ethically and legally sound decisions when working with adolescent clients