Ethics and uncertainty: Brief unfinished thoughts

Moje kolaborativní filozofie a praxe (zahrnující terapii, výuku, výzkum a konzultační služby) odráží pohled na etiku jakona vyjednané hodnoty a morálku – včetně pravidel pro tyto hodnoty a morálku – jež jsou historicky, kulturně, kontextuálně, společně a lingvisticky vytvářeny. ...My collaborative philosophy and practice (including therapy, teaching, research and consultation) reflect a view of ethics as representing or communicating agreed upon values and morals – and the rules for those values and morals – that have been historically, culturally, contextually, communally, and linguistically created. ..

A descriptive and comparative study of selected characteristics of patients of a psychiatric day hospital

The purpose of this study was three-fold: (1) to describe selected characteristics of a group of patients of a Psychiatric Day Hospital; (2) to compare the non-paying (or partially-paying) and the paying groups of patients with regards to these characteristics; and (3) to discover differences, if any, within each sub-group with regards to the above. The sample group included all persons who had been admitted to the Day Hospital as patients between September 1, 1966 and December 31, 1967. These patients were then divided into two sub-groups according to their status. The 'Community Mental Health' patients numbered 101, and comprised the non-paying (or partially-paying) group. Of these, 40 were males and 61 were females. There were 38 'Private' or paying patients. Of these, 9 were males and 29 were females. An analysis of the hospital records on these 139 patients revealed that information was available on a total of seven characteristics or variables. These variables were (1) sex, (2) age, (3) source of referral, (4) length of stay, (5) treatment days, (6) diagnosis, and (7) disposition. The various characteristics of the total sample group, the 'CRH' patient group and the 'Private' patient group were presented according to sex. The major findings of this study were: (1) Sex: Women patients outnumbered the men almost two to one. (2) Age: Only the male 'Private' patient differed in mean age. (3) Source of referral: The majority of all patients were referred from another hospital service. (4) Length of Stay: Female patients tended to continue in treatment longer than male patients. (5) Treatment Days: Only the male 'Private' patient differed in mean number of treatment days. (6) Diagnosis: Differences were found among the patient groups with regards to diagnostic classifications. (7) Disposition: Differences were found among the patient groups with regards to disposition.Psychology, Department o

An Experiment in Systemic Family Therapy Training: A Trainer and Trainee Perspective

This paper describes an experiment in systemic family therapy training that is part of an on-going attempt to relate the concepts and practices of systemic family therapy to systemic family therapy training. An example of a training framework, Systemic Case Consultation, is presented. Through intertwining trainer and trainee voices, we share two levels of observation: (1) our descriptions of the framework and (2) our descriptions of our experiences. Namely, the trainer simultaneously reviews the framework and comments on her experiences; and likewise, the trainee simultaneously provides a clinical example and relates her experiences. The processes described are intricate and evolutionary, and thus, extremely difficult to present and analyze with objectivity. We realize that there are multiple operationalizations of systemic theory and present our work as only one

Los sistemas humanos como sistemas lingüísticos: implicaciones para la teoría clínica y la terapia familiar

From our earliest practice of family therapy at medical schools, private family therapy institutes, and public agencies, our work with difficult populations that do not respond to current treatment technologies has reminded us of the inadequacies and the limitations of our expertise. This work has influenced our current, evolving clinical theory as we move from thinking of human systems as social systems defined by social organization (role and structure) to thinking of them as distinguished on the basis of linguistic and communicative markers. Hence, for us, the social unit we work with in therapy is a linguistic system distinguished by those who are "in language" about a problem, rather than by arbitrary and predetermined concepts of social organization. We call the therapy system a problem-organizing, problem-dissolving system.A partir de nuestra práctica inicial con Terapia Familiar en escuelas médicas, institutos privados de Terapia Familiar y agencias públicas, nuestro trabajo con poblaciones difíciles que no responden a las técnicas de tratamiento comunes, nos ha hecho reflexionar sobre la inadecuación de las descripciones teóricas y sobre las limitaciones de nuestra experiencia práctica. Asimismo, este trabajo ha influido sobre nuestra actual teoría clínica en desarrollo, haciendo que pasemos de una conceptualización de los sistemas humanos en términos de sistemas sociales definidos por la organización social (en forma de roles y estructuras) hacia una conceptualización de ellos en términos de sistemas diferenciados por distintivos lingüísticos y comunicativos. De esta manera, a nuestro parecer, la unidad social con la que trabajamos en terapia es un sistema lingüístico que se caracteriza por incluir a aquellos miembros que utilizan un lenguaje común para hablar sobre un problema determinado, y no por conceptos arbitrarios y predeterminados de organización social. Nosotros denominamos al sistema terapéutico "sistema organizador/desintegrador del problema"

Pas sur notre dos : du soutien aux conseillers qui doivent naviguer éthiquement dans les relations multiples au sein des communautés gaies, bisexuelles, et trans

Professional ethical guidelines commonly advise counsellors to avoid dual relationships wherever possible but generally have not provided guidance for situations where this is not feasible. This leaves queer, Two Spirit, and/or trans counsellors open to negative judgements, possible accusations of unprofessionalism, and practices of self-surveillance that limit their ability to live, work, and actively participate in the communities they serve. We argue that prohibiting dual relationships will neither end client exploitation nor account for the benefits that properly managed dual relationships can offer. The term multiple relationships may better reflect the complexity of relationships in queer, Two Spirit, and/or trans communities and acknowledges that they contain the potential of both harms and benefits for clients. We advocate for a richer engagement with ethics as a living entity that requires that we respond collectively as helping professions to ensure the care of marginalized communities without putting the burden of care on the backs of community members. We propose guidelines that call for the inclusion of all parties (counsellors, clients, and supervisors), transparency, full disclosure, and development of a plan and rationale for counsellors’ responsibilities in all encounters with clients both within and outside the clinical setting.Les guides de déontologie professionnelle recommandent généralement aux conseillers d’éviter les relations duelles autant que possible mais n’ont pas de repère pour les situations où cela n’est pas faisable. Les conseillers gais, bisexuels, et/ou trans sont ainsi exposés à des jugements négatifs, de possibles accusations de manque de professionnalisme, et des pratiques d’auto surveillance qui limitent leur aptitude à vivre, travailler, et participer activement au sein des communautés qu’ils desservent. Nous faisons valoir que l’interdiction des relations duelles ne mettra pas un terme à l’exploitation des clients ni ne pourra rendre compte des avantages que peuvent offrir des relations duelles bien gérées. Le terme relations multiples peut mieux rendre compte de la complexité des relations au sein des communautés gaies, bisexuelles, et/ou trans et permet de reconnaître que celles-ci comportent un potentiel aussi bien de préjudices que d’avantages pour les clients. Nous plaidons en faveur d’un engagement plus profond avec la déontologie en tant qu’entité vivante qui exige une réponse collective des professions de l’aide afin d’assurer des soins aux communautés marginalisées sans mettre le fardeau des soins sur le dos des membres de la communauté. Nous proposons des lignes directrices faisant appel à l’inclusion de toutes les parties (conseillers, clients, et superviseurs), à la transparence, à la divulgation complète, et à l’élaboration d’un plan et d’une analyse raisonnée pour les responsabilités des conseillers dans toutes les rencontres avec les clients, que ce soit à l’intérieur ou à l’extérieur du contexte clinique

Managing to Learn: the Social Poetics of a Polyphonic 'Classroom'

This paper draws on Bakhtin’s use of Polyphony and explores it potential for organising processes within management education. In developing the concept of a polyphonic ‘classroom’, the interplay between tutor, manager-student and theory is related to Bakhtin’s identification of the relationship between hero, other characters and idea within Dostoevsky’s novels. In particular, a carnivalesque polyphonic relations is argued to change tutor-student relations, extend the physical classroom into a wider polyphonic ‘classroom’ that includes the manager-student’s work context and re-imagines learning as a changing, social poetic performance beyond common understanding of learning as cognitive processes of understanding or sense making