Case Study: Duty to Protect

Directions: Read "Case 4: Research on Intimate Partner Violence and the Duty to Protect" on

pages 435-436 in your textbook. Once you have read the case study completely, answer the

discussion questions below in 350-500 words. Use one to two scholarly resources to support

your answer. When appropriate, use in-text citations according to APA formatting.

1.) Why is this an ethical dilemma? Which APA Ethical Principles help frame the nature of

the dilemma?

A.) There are a few ethical dilemmas in this situation due to the lack of information for Dr.

Yeung. One thing that comes to mind is how the call came in, one should ask if this is

something that came from a personal voicemail or maybe a professional voicemail,

bringing the audience back to the question of the status of the relationship between the

therapist and clients in said presented case. Then one must ask what Dr. Yeung’s

responsibilities in this situation are, for some, this might pose as a potential threat and

will be needed to report to authorities and other it might not. There are a few general

principles one can refer to in this situation.

- Principle A: Benefice and Nonmaleficence, as a Psychologist, one should never inflict

harm or intend to do so by protecting their clients welfare and basic human rights.

In case of possible conflict, a therapist should always seek out conflict resolution or

to deescalate a situation prior to escalation.

- Principle B: Fidelity and Responsibility,

“Psychologists establish relationships of trust with those with whom they work. They

are aware of their professional and scientific responsibilities to society and to the

specific communities in which they work. Psychologists uphold professional

standards of conduct, clarify their professional roles and obligations, accept

appropriate responsibility for their behavior, and seek to manage conflicts of

interest that could lead to exploitation or harm (APA, 2020)”.

- Principle E: Respect for People’s Rights and Dignity, as a psychologist, one should

always respect the privacy and confidentiality of a client (APA, 2020) However, in Dr.

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