Remote rural community perceptions of ethical psychological practice

Abstract

AbstractAll residents bar one of an isolated rural Australian town were interviewed to obtain their understandings of psychologists' roles vis a vis other professional workers' roles in rural communities, confidentiality expectations and limits to confidentiality, and overlaps between psychologists' professional and their other non-professional social roles. Data were gathered using a Kellian repertory grid technique and analysed using a multidimensional scaling technique. The results indicated that residents construed the psychologist's role as being different from other health or pastoral-counselling professionals' roles. Residents reported a complex array of opinions regarding the application of confidentiality standards, and limits to confidentiality, although all reported that limits to confidentiality should exist. Although residents reported and accepted that psychologists engage in a variety of non-professional, social roles in small rural communities, they also expected that psychologists would clearly differentiate between their professional role and their non-professional roles. Results overall were consistent with research findings with urban residents and with the professional code and guidelines.