Ethics Body Psychotherapists

EABP body psychotherapists are especially concerned with ethics as their interactions with their clients or patients imply an asymmetrical position of power and responsibility on the one hand, and of vulnerability and need on the other. Ethics are a crucial part of that activity as the basis for a working therapeutic relationship is trust, and trust is only possible if the client is deeply convinced that his or her psychotherapist’s intentions are clear and transparent.

The spirit of the EABP is represented by the Ethical Guidelines, a document voted on by the General Assembly, which also includes the procedure to be followed by the Ethics Committee when receiving a complaint. Reading and accepting the Ethical Guidelines is a prerequisite to becoming a member of the EABP. This document can be read or downloaded from the EABP website.

The EABP Ethics Committee consists of five body psychotherapists who have been elected by the General Assembly and who answer directly to it. Its function is to explore how the ethical spirit of the EABP can be maintained and made as explicit as possible, while remaining attentive to the qualities of humanity, respect, honesty and transparency in the dealings of the Association and its members.

The Ethics Committee informs the Association about its activities through its Chairperson who is a non-voting member of the EABP Board. The Committee also involves the EABP Board in the processing of ethical complaints cases, whenever these involve matters of general policy, or whenever a case involves the recommendation to include or suspend a member.

The work of the Ethics Committee can be summarized as follows:

• To look for ways of maintaining the spirit of the EABP within the Association
• To promote discussion on the attitude of an EABP body psychotherapist
• To define the forms of behavior which are incompatible with the ethical guidelines and ways of dealing with members who use such behavior, as well as to collect, analyze and process complaints and information that has been received on ongoing ethics cases
• To work on possible areas of research relevant to the clarification and development of ethical positions
• To implement ways of improving self-regulation and exploration in the membership
• To promote the teaching of ethics in training schools and institutes