Ethical ambiguities in the practice of child clinical psychology.

Abstract

This article presents results from a survey of ethical beliefs about practice dilemmas unique to clinical work with children and adolescents. Survey data suggest that identical practices are not always ethically equivalent, particularly when the developmental status of the client is varied. The survey also reveals widespread ambiguity about what constitutes ethical practice, as manifested both in individual uncertainty and in the absence of group consensus. Ethically guided clinical practice is presented as a far more complex undertaking than adherence to a single set of professional standards.