| Abstract: | Maintains that the consumer movement has grown to be a recognized force in the mental health field. One can find strong support in the literature for the principle of client input into treatment planning and delivery. Views, however, that advocate unconditional and total control by the consumer over clinical decision making go too far. Among other things, the fact that some clients are extremely fragile and dependent, coupled with the power position of the therapist, suggests that certain clients in certain therapist-treatment situations cannot be considered as legitimate consumers (i.e., wholly capable of self-direction in regard to the clinical process). Researchers are asked to accept the challenge of developing a consumership grid that would identify what types of clients confronted with what types of situational conditions should have given degrees of influence in clinical decision making. (French abstract) (25 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved) |
