A guide to violating an injunction in psychotherapy: On seeing acquaintances as patients.

After a review of the prohibition against seeing acquaintances in therapy and the frequency with which the prohibition is violated, reasons favoring the injunction are presented. These include loss of the previous relationship, complication of transference and countertransference, and stimulation of therapist grandiosity. Guidelines are offered to offset the difficulties in seeing acquaintances as patients. The problem of seeing acquaintances in therapy is discussed in terms of the profession as a whole and the need for research, training, and a more articulated code of ethics. (15 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)