Monitor on Psychology - April 2012 - (Page 72)

Too many professionals complete their training without the emotional education and awareness needed to avoid selfdeception and to act in the prudent, considered manner that society expects and that represents professional ethical excellence. are ill or have problems, psychologists use their education and knowledge to help. As educated citizens, psychologists contribute to the community and, in return, draw strength from their participation. But, if education is viewed in strictly cognitive terms and valued only as an intellectual activity, it can leave little room for nurturing emotional intelligence. Although one would hope that colleagues are taught to use, and continue to use, their internal processes to monitor the impact of their behavior on others, not all psychologists hold such a broader understanding of education. Accordingly, Pope and Vasquez (2007) discuss “emotional competence,” which “involves self-knowledge, self-acceptance, and self-monitoring.” Therapists must recognize their emotional strengths and weaknesses, their needs and resources as well as their abilities and limitations for doing clinical work (see Pope et al., 2006). Another crucial form of education pertains to self-care (Baker, 2003; Barnett, Baker, Elman, & Schoener, 2007; Norcross & Guy, 2007). Properly understood, self-care refers not merely to avoiding impairment and ethical violations, but also to avoiding ethical mediocrity and moving toward excellence. Yet not all trainees in professional preparation programs have the opportunity to acquire these skills. Too many professionals complete their training without the emotional education and awareness needed to avoid self-deception and to act in the prudent, considered manner that society expects and that represents professional ethical excellence. A final way in which education can make people vulnerable is when psychologists fail to continue their learning process. New ways of understanding may be neglected, as psychologists continue to rely on what they once learned, even if it’s outdated. Applying DOVE: A case example As a child and adolescent, Evangelina Cruz, PhD, had experienced both victimization and discrimination. She developed a desire to help others at a young age and saw becoming a psychologist as the way to achieve her goal of helping others and making a difference. She worked hard in school. Despite economic obstacles, she was accepted at a prestigious university, and a professional preparation program of equal rank, with a strong emphasis on multiculturalism and feminism. It was just what she had hoped for. Cruz was an outstanding student and won a coveted internship at a large urban mental health center that specialized in treating trauma victims and 72 torture survivors. This position allowed her to develop expertise in treatment approaches for women with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Her scholarly writing and public advocacy won her early career awards and the respect of her colleagues. These experiences deepened her personal values and increased her desire to help the disempowered. Shortly after entering independent practice, Cruz was consulted by Angie Immel, who presented with moderately severe symptoms of acute anxiety and depression she claimed were the result of sexual harassment by her boss, Alex Morse. She said Morse began pursuing her from the time she started working for him. When she rejected his initial overtures, she reported, his advances increased, and he began making inappropriate, highly sexualized remarks in private. Immel said that she tolerated this behavior and had not become symptomatic until Morse began to touch her; then she became afraid. Immel said she complained to the human resources department, but nothing had been done because, according to her, Morse was best friends with and the golfing partner of the human resources director. Immel also made oblique references to filing an Equal Employment Opportunity Commission complaint and a lawsuit, but Cruz did not fully appreciate what Immel meant by these references. Cruz assumed she would not be personally involved in the legal process, and she and Immel never discussed it. She saw the legal issues as unrelated to her work and chose to maintain focus on the distress of her client. At the same time, she supported Immel’s efforts based on her own belief that Immel had been exploited. Cruz treated Immel with cognitive-behavioral therapy, but Immel did not respond as well as Cruz expected. In part, Cruz’s efforts were frustrated because at every session Immel asked her to document the aversive incidents that occurred during the previous week. Cruz informed Immel that this recording of events was unnecessary, but Immel persisted, and Cruz deferred to her client’s wishes. Although the treatment was not going well, Cruz persevered. One day, she received a telephone call from Blanca Knox, Immel’s attorney, who informed her that she would be calling Cruz to testify as an expert witness in a sexual harassment case against Morse and his company. Cruz first resisted Knox’s request because she knew the data she had were limited and that she could not directly address the legal question regarding what caused Immel’s condition. But Knox MONITOR ON PSYCHOLOGY • APRIL 2012

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Monitor on Psychology - April 2012

Monitor on Psychology - April 2010
Letters
President’s Column
Contents
From the CEO
Internship Shortage Continues
Mental Health Services Remain Scarce at Community Colleges
Apa Weighs in on the Constitutionality of Life Without Parole for Juvenile Offenders
Apa Praises Court’s Support for Equality
New Mobile App Answers Psychologists’ Clinical Questions
Nih Offers Free Web Resources for Psychologist Researchers
New and Improved Psyclink
In Brief
Government Relations Update
Time Capsule
Questionnaire
Random Sample
Judicial Notebook
Early Career Psychology
Psychologist Profile
Coal Miners’ Dilemma
The Science of Political Advertising
Science Watch
Science Directions
More Support Needed for Trauma Interventions
The Case Against Spanking
Innovative Psychology at the High School Level
Speaking of Education
Apa Divisions Reach Out to New Psychologists
New Journal Editors
A Home Base for Multiple Fields
Division Spotlight
American Psychological Foundation
Awards and Funding Opportunities
Personalities

Monitor on Psychology - April 2012