Informed Consent

Informed consent is the permission the client gives to the therapist or professional to disclose information to another party regarding personal information of the client (Pope, & Vasquez, 2011). This would also include if the parent’s give informed consent for the therapists or professional to disclose information of a minor. Another important aspect of informed consent is the information given to the client; like what the client is there to accomplish, the type of therapy or assessment instruments the therapists or psychologists will incorporate in the sessions, and when will the therapy initiate (Pope, & Vasquez, 2011). There are a few ways informed consent can be received; through client consent, from legal authorities if the client is unable to give consent, and through court orders (American Psychological Association, 2010). Informed consent also protect the professional from liabilities issues down the road (American Psychological Association, 2010).
Informed consent is important in psychology because “the right to informed consent reflects respect for individual freedom, autonomy, and dignity. It is fundamental to the ethics of therapy and counseling” (Pope, & Vasquez, 2011, p. 171). The informed consent form gives the client a sense of relief as what to expect from the therapist or professional in which could strengthen the client-therapist relationship.
Reference
American Psychological Association. (2010). Ethical Principles of Psychologists and Code of Conduct . Retrieved from http://www.apa.org/ethics/code/index.aspx
Pope, K. S., & Vasquez, M. J. T. (2011). Ethics in psychotherapy and counseling (4th ed.). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass/Wiley
What is informed consent? Why is informed consent so important in the field of psychology?

Informed consent the process by which the patients give permission to receive treatment. During this process the patient signs a form acknowledging that he or she understand the treatment process and