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Psychology Ethics: Sex

Ethical psychologists do not ever sleep with their clients. Ever. For any reason. No matter how hot or seductive the client might be.

Sex Therapists

That includes sex therapists. Sex therapists don't have sex with their clients or watch their clients have sex. There's talk about sex, sure, but that's about it.

Former Acquaintances

That also means a therapist does not do therapy with someone they were involved with before therapy (ethics outside site). Therapists also can't get involved sexually with a close friend or family member of a client.

Sexual Attraction

Clients may find themselves attracted to therapists; in many cases, this indicates the kind of strong bond that makes therapy work. For a therapist to cross the line into a romantic or sexual relationship (ethics code outside site) not only violates the client's trust, it violates psychologists' ethics. Though the ethics code allows for romantic or sexual relations years after (ethics outside site) a client-therapist relationship has ended, this tends to be looked down upon, and is acceptable only in the most unusual of circumstances.

Serious Consequences

Violation of this part of the ethics code is far too often one of the reasons people lose their licenses to practice psychology.