Bartering
Bartering definitely makes the counseling/client relationship more complicated. Although I
believe it can be ethically navigated, counselors have to be deliberate about avoiding
entanglements that would cause harm to the client. I also think there are situations that warrant
navigating the complications involved in bartering and there are those that do not. Ultimately,
counselors have to calculate, based on what they know of the client and the circumstances
present, whether bartering is a good idea and if it can be done ethically.
The first point to consider is that the subject of bartering should always be initiated by the client.
The ACA Code of Ethics (2014) and other ethics code’s state that the client should be the one to
request bartering services for counseling. Therefore, it should never be the counselors idea, as the
there is too much room for dissatisfaction or perceived exploitation for the client. If a client
suggests bartering as a way of paying for services during a difficult economic time, then
counselors are not putting clients in a position or maneuvering the situation for their own gains.
Secondly, it is important to clearly outline the parameters of the bartering agreement upfront.
This outline should be discussed verbally and in writing. The bartering agreement should be
thorough and account for foreseeable eventualities, such as a missed appointment. In addition,
the bartering agreement should specify the time period in which the barter will take place. It is
advised to have a start date and an end date, that way it is clear that the barter is not a standing
order. Finally, it is always better to barter items, rather than services, as services are ongoing and
more difficult to manage.
Finally, I agree with Zur (2011a, as cited in Corey, 2019) when he says that we should be more
focused on “doing good” when considering whether to barter for services, rather than focusing
on trying to “do no harm”. Yet, there are pitfalls to exchanging services or goods with a client,
so in an effort to “do good” I would prefer to barter for a service my client could offer to
someone else in need. If I were to do this, I would pick a service, such as volunteering at the
youth center or the food pantry, that I thought would be beneficial to my client’s mental health.
Supervision
As a supervisor, I would behave in the same professional and ethical manner that would be
expected when interacting with clients. I feel that the duty help students learn in a safe place,
protect the profession, and “do no harm” should apply to supervisor as well as counseling. A
supervisor is in a position of power over the students they supervise and that should not be
exploited. If I were a supervisor I would make sure I practiced informed consent with trainees,
followed through on our arrangement and provided supportive feedback and training, while
ensuring to operate within my competency.
The issue of informed consent with trainees is a valid one. Trainees may not be aware of the
potential pitfalls and implicitly trust their supervisors to know how to handle the relationship.
Therefore, it falls on the supervisor to protect and inform the trainee. This can be done by
discussing informed consent, respecting the trainees confidentiality and consulting the trainee
when the supervisor feels it could be beneficial to share information with another colleague.
As a supervisor, I would also explain the nature of our relationship to my trainees. I would let
them know up front, what they can expect from me and what I expect from them. I would behave
in a professional manner with all trainees and make sure I followed through on activities I
committed to. I would behave in the same professional manner with trainees, as I do with clients.
Another important issue that I didn’t think of first, is to provide helpful feedback and training. It
seems like this should be a given, but I don’t think it is. I would want to make sure that I was
effective in communicating with my trainees and I would want to make sure they were truly
learning and growing into a competent counselor. I believe this requires the same skills that make
a good counselor- active listening, understanding, lack of judgement, guidance, patience and
good rapport.
Finally, I would make sure I outlined my experience for trainees and let them know what
population they would be working with and which populations I was not qualified to oversee. I
think this is important because a trainee may be particularly interested in working with a specific
client population or with a specific counseling theory. I would want to make sure I was a good
match for their career goals and interests, while operating within my level of competence.
Diagnosis
I have to admit that I am really torn on the issue of diagnosis. On one hand, I think diagnosis can
provide insight for counselors to pursue effective methods of treatment. Diagnosis can also be
required to refer clients to outside sources of help or bill insurance companies. For those who
really need these services, I think diagnosis is necessary. I also typically like to categorize things.
It makes it clear and simple. I also like the idea of having a set of EBT to apply to the given
diagnosis. These treatments are the result of much research and study and I think they have
value.
On the other hand, there is something inside me that is leery about labeling people in such a
confining manner. This type of labeling can cause clients to meet the expectations of their
diagnosis or lose hope when diagnosed with something that sounds scary. Also, a diagnosis
might follow a client throughout their life. For example, if an Air Force lieutenant was diagnosed
with PTSD, this might effect their career in the military. In this instance, the PTSD symptoms
this lieutenant was experiencing were mild, but still warranted addressing, this would not be
indicated in the diagnosis of PTSD. This lieutenant might live with a stigma that stunts his or her
career.
In essence, my stance on diagnosis is- it depends. It depends on my experience, my ethics and
most importantly, what is best for the client. I will have to continue to research and think through
the issue of diagnosis throughout my education and internship. I will ask experienced counselors
a lot of questions and evaluate where I stand while in internship. I am sure that actually working
with clients will help me to solidify my beliefs about diagnosis.
Ethics in Group Work
My most salient concern in group work has to be the issue of confidentiality. If I were to form
and facilitate a group I would want to make sure I do two things to inform members. First, I
would prepare and screen group members. I may or may not control who the group members are
depending on the nature and objective of the group. I would not exclude a participant who
desires to join, unless it seemed like it might be harmful to them or the rest of the group.
Conflicting ideas are to be expected and can be constructive in the development of the group, so I
would not exclude members based solely on a questioning attitude. I would however, want to
make sure that the participants of the group where willing and able to respect confidentiality. As
a component of screening, I would prepare group members for what to expect in the group and
how basic group etiquette works.
The second thing I would do to address the issue of confidentiality, is to lay out the ground rules
of group discussions and ask the group to participate in formulating any additional rules or
guidelines. We would address in detail, some of the reasons why confidentiality is so important
and create a culture of advocacy for all members within the group. An example of this might to
be to explain to group members how their lack of discretion could cause another group member
their job or a relationship. I think everyone can relate to how difficult that would be and they
would not want to cause that kind of harm to another member.
During this initial discussion with group member and in additional discussions, I would also
make it clear to the group members that I cannot guarantee confidentiality, no matter what
lengths we go to, to stress the importance of confidentiality. I would explain that group members
should share at the level they feel comfortable with and it may not be necessary to go into every
detail in order to contribute and benefit from the group.
Advocacy
Mental health professionals encounter unique circumstances in rural settings, due to the lack of
services available to people and the difficulty some encounter finding adequate transportation to
the services that are available. These are common obstacles people face in Western Nebraska.
Most of the counselors I have spoken with have reiterated the fact that they are booked full and
often have a waiting list. This is so different from what I have seen in more populated areas. In
fact, there is often too much competition for services in more populated areas. Since mental
health services are few and far between, many clients would have to travel up to an hour or 2, in
both directions in order to have access to these services. Oftentimes, when clients are struggling
to make ends meet, this isn’t possible.
Mental health practitioners can advocate for these people in several ways. The first step is to
make some services available online. Whether this is includes applications for financial
assistance or social work and counseling services, this would improve access across rural areas. I
have seen improvements in the amount of services available online since COVID. I feel like the
pandemic sort of imposed this on us, whether we were ready for it or not. However, this may
prove to be the motivation mental health counselors needed to start the process toward offering
more services to rural areas online.
The second step is for mental health practitioners to provide services in other non-traditional
ways, such as making house calls and facilitating groups in local communities. In rural areas, the
counselor may need to go to the clients who cannot come to them. This can be done by doing
counseling at client’s homes or local community centers. Facilitating a group designed to address
specific issues that are prevalent in a certain community, is a great way to provide access for
several people at once.
The third step for mental health practitioners is to work with community groups, local
governments and policy makers, to improve the access to transportation services and income, for
those who are in rural areas. Providing these people with access to the things they need will only
improve their mental health and overall ability to thrive.
Critique of Good Will Hunting
I have always loved the movie Good Will Hunting. This movie tells a beautiful story about the
power of hope and human connection. However, now that I am studying counseling, I can see
that the counselor was operating in some gray area and other areas that are clearly unethical.
Describe each potential moral, ethical, clinical, and legal issue
The first issue that comes to mind is that the math professor was involved in Will’s therapy
sessions and was meeting with his counselor to get updates on his progress. This is an ethical,
clinical and legal issue. This issue is ethical because counselors should insist that the professor
not be involved in any counseling sessions and they certainly should not share information with
the professor, regarding Will’s progress and treatment, unless Will says it is ok. It is a clinical
issue because the presence of the professor does not invoke a therapeutic environment. Finally,
the math professors involvement, violates Will’s legal right to confidentiality.
The second issue that comes to mind is that the math professor seems to be trying to leverage
Will’s therapy and the outcomes to his own benefit. The counselor is aware of this and is not
happy about it. This is an ethical, moral, and clinical issue for the counselor. The counselor
should not allow the math professor to be involved in the direction of Will’s treatment, unless
Will requests it. Will’s therapy and treatment should the result of collaboration between Will and
his counselor. Will’s therapy should not be influenced by the needs of the professor.
The third issue that I am on the fence about, it the personal nature of mutual sharing between the
counselor and Will. The counselor seems to take on more of the role of a mentor. The counselor
shares many personal things about his life and he encourages Will to prioritize his relationship
with a girl Will is involved with. This is an ethical issue because the counselor my be driving the
direction of the therapy, rather than allowing Will to do that. Also, the counselor may be
imposing his values on Will, rather than encouraging Will to discover his own values. Finally, the
counselor is definitely crossing a boundary with Will, although I don’t think he is violating any
boundaries.
Discuss which ethics code or legal standard that may have been broken
Confidentiality was not handled properly, which is legally required of counselors. Will’s therapy
sessions should have been a confidential experience between his counselor and himself. The
math professor should not have been involved in this process at all, unless Will requested it.
The codes’ of ethics are clear on the issue of the counselor imposing their values or beliefs on the
client. According to the American Counseling Association Code of Ethics (2014):
Counselors are aware of—and avoid imposing—their own values, attitudes,
beliefs, and behaviors. Counselors respect the diversity of clients, trainees,
and research participants and seek training in areas in which they are at risk
of imposing their values onto clients, especially when the counselor’s values
are inconsistent with the client’s goals or are discriminatory in nature.
React to the therapist’s decisions/behaviors with regard to these legal/ethical issues
I think the therapist in Good Will Hunting was trying to help out a friend and ended up in a
situation that he did not expect. Perhaps he did not realize that the math professors was going to
try to impose his objectives on Will or maybe he thought he would be able to sort of protect Will,
by getting involved. It is difficult to know how circumstances will evolve once you are involved
in them, which is why it is important to think through ethical issues before getting involved in a
situation that might give you cause for concern.
The therapist working with Will did object to the math professors attempts to persuade him to
guide Will toward the objectives and goals that the math professor had for him. He was able to
recognize that Will might choose a different path for his life. However, this objection came out of
their personal rival as well. This dynamic further complicates the issue of imposing values on
Will. One wonders if they were both imposing their values on Will and if their motivations were
corrupted by their rivalry.
Discuss why you think he did what he did as a therapist
I think the therapist decided to go the route of mentor with Will because Will had special needs,
that might have required a nontraditional approach. Will had grown up in foster care and did not
have a mentor, father or male role model of any kind. He was used to making it on his own and
he had mastered his defense mechanisms of using intelligence and his powers of observation, to
keep people at bay. I think this therapist recognized that Will needed a genuine friend/mentor,
and that relationship was going to be more helpful for Will than the typical therapist/client
relationship. There is no way Will was going to benefit from traditional therapy, so the therapist
connected with him in a meaningful way. I am conflicted on this issue, since I am not sure he
handled this wrong. I would be very careful about engaging in this type of a relationship with a
client, but I have had success in similar relationships with foster kids I really connected with. It
really depends on the people involved, the motive for establishing a mentor relationship and
most importantly- the mandate to “do no harm” (APA, 2014). Even in a mentor/mentee
relationship, the mentor is always looking out for the best interest of the mentee.
Include consequences of his decisions/behaviors on the therapy
Sharing information with the math professor about Will’s sessions could have caused Will to
mistrust the counselor. The rivalry between the math professor and the counselor could have
caused the counselors judgement to be skewed or an imposition of values onto Will. Finally, the
relationship of mentor and mentee that the counselor established created a different environment
that therapist and client. A mentee may feel coerced or motivated to make their mentor proud.
Mentee’s might also feel like they are not free to share somethings because they know the values
and beliefs of their mentor and they do not want to be in conflict with them. In many ways, the
mentor/mentee relationship does not allow the same type of expressive one-way freedom, that a
counselor/client relationship does.
Discuss what you would have done the same and differently and why
If I were any of the counselors in this situations, I would have explained to the math professor up
front, that I appreciate the referral, but I would only agree to see Will as a client, if he was no
longer involved in the process. I would explain that Will can share anything he chooses to with
the math professor, but I would be legally and ethically required to keep everything Will shares
with me confidential. I would never let him sit in on a session and I would only report to him that
Will had missed a session, if it was mandated by the courts to do so. I would explain to him that I
my work with Will would be based on Will’s needs and not the professors desire to see him excel
in mathematics. I would not attempt to convince or persuade him to pursue a career in math or
continue to help the math professor. Finally, I would explain to him that it was important for our
sessions to be based on collaboration between Will and I.
Will’s counselor decided to develop and open relationship of mutual sharing between with Will.
He matched his critical nature and crude comments as technique to break through the barriers
Will had up to protect himself. If I am being honest, I believe that this can be effective.
Therapists may need to use any number of creative methods to engage mandatory and resistant
clients. I think this is a grey area that can easily go awry, when not done properly. It has to be
done with care and authentically. However, there are some people who have come from a
rougher background and simply aren’t going to respond to neat and tidy therapy. Many people
will not even consider sharing their feelings with another person. Others are so hidden away, that
they forgot how to engage in a meaningful way, with people. So, there is a time where creativity
and a unique approach are required to relate to a client and begin to build a rapport. As we know,
the biggest contributor to successful therapy is a connection between client and therapist. If this
counselors methods created a connection with Will, then they must have been successful in that
right.
Project what you think might have changed as a result of your behavior being different
My commitment to confidentiality and informed consent might have helped Will to feel more
respected from the beginning. When he first starts seeing various different counselors, he makes
a joke out of it. Why wouldn’t he? There were several other people in the room and it was clear
from the environment set, that they were really just doing the math professors bidding. However,
when he finally meets with the counselor played by Robin Williams, the first thing the counselor
does is ask everyone else to leave. He takes Will seriously and Will notices this. Because Will
realizes this counselor is not going to be someone’s tool and he might actually interact with Will
in a meaningful and authentic way, Will ups his game. He (almost frantically) starts searching
around the room for ammunition to discredit the counselor or throw him off his guard. He is very
uncomfortable with a real connection, although that is exactly what he needs. All this is
conveyed in simply treating Will with respect and requiring that his sessions be confidential. I
think people notice these types of interactions and I would want to make sure to set the tone for
trust and respect from the beginning.
I don’t know I would have done much different in the way of building a rapport with Will. Of
course, I would have used my own style to do so, but as I said earlier, I don’t think you can get
everybody to open up and share, if you don’t give a little back.
If you were the therapist’s colleague (or supervisor) what points would you most want to
address with him
If I were this therapist’s colleague or supervisor, I would want to make sure he was considering
Will’s best interests and I would talk through his issues with the math professor. I would want to
know that he was aware of these issues and that he was confident they were not driving his
methods with Will. I would also, of course, address the issues of confidentiality and sharing
information with the math professor. I would make sure that was only done if it was required by
law and what was shared was limited to those requirements.
Shifts in Your Thinking about Ethics
When I did the self-inventory again, I noticed three questions in particular that I had changed my
stance on. Originally I had answered all three of these questions as undecided. Now, I feel like I
have decided on a position for each. The three questions are: 1) I will tend to refer a client to
another therapist if I do not have much experience working with the kind of problem the client
has presented; 2) My ethical position regarding the role of values in therapy is that, as a therapist,
I should keep my values out of the counseling relationship; and 3) Regarding the issue of
counseling friends, I think friendship and therapy should not be mixed. I was surprised by how
many of the questions I answered exactly the same, when reviewing my previous answers.
However, these three questions stood out to me because I realized that I was able to change my
position from undecided to decided.
The first question- I will tend to refer a client to another therapist if I do not have much
experience working with the kind of problem the client has presented- doesn’t really have a yes
or no answer. If I were in this position, I would first consult a supervisor or colleague to
determine what I might need to know to successfully work with this client. I would also consider
my competence level and continued education that I may have had or need to have, in order to
work with this client. Finally, I would consider whether it might be beneficial or necessary to
bring in my supervisor, when working with this client. There will always be a first time for
working with specific kinds of problems, so you cannot simply jump to referral as the first course
of action. At the same time, I would not want to cause harm to my client, by working outside of
my competency.
The second question is- My ethical position regarding the role of values in therapy is that, as a
therapist, I should keep my values out of the counseling relationship. I wasn’t sure of this at the
start of our course, but now I am convinced that I would make every effort to keep my values out
of the counseling relationship. I have seen how there are too many opportunities for clients to be
influenced by my values and not have the freedom to explore and develop their own values. I
have also come to understand that even well-meaning therapists can cause a client to doubt
themselves and develop a dependence on the counselor for their answers. The goal of counseling
is to lead clients to their own values and help them develop the confidence to act on those values,
so that they can overcome future dilemmas and make decisions on their own. I want to be careful
with sharing, as I do not want to rob clients of the development of their own process.
The third question- Regarding the issue of counseling friends, I think friendship and therapy
should not be mixed- I now agree with. I think I can give friends advice or share common
experiences, because that is what friends do. However, engaging in a therapeutic relationship
with a friend could jeopardize one of these relationships. There is no way to be truly objective
with a friend and they might know too many personal things about you to really benefit from
therapy. Also, the therapeutic relationship has the potential to cause problems within the
friendship. I see now that therapy is truly beneficial when the client can call the shots, without
concern for the needs of the therapist. This type of relationship isn’t possible with a friend.
I think this has been the most challenging semester of all. My family and I have decided to make
some big changes in our life and I have been very conflicted as to where to apply my energies. I
still feel that I have gained a lot of insights from this course and I am more confident in my
ability to work through ethical issues and interact with clients in an ethical manner. I would give
myself a 90% in participation, mainly because of the other issues I have going on during the past
few weeks.

References
American Counseling Association. (2014). ACA Code of Ethics. American Counseling
Association. https://www.counseling.org/Resources/aca-code-of-ethics.pdf
Corey, C., Corey, G., & Schneider Corey, M. (2019). Issues and Ethics in Helping Professions
(10th Edition). Cengage Learning.