Sexual Boundary Violations in Psychotherapy

Psychotherapists are all potentially vulnerable to boundary transgressions, including sexual ones. Given that, a focus on sexual boundary violations (SBVs) is essential in clinical training and ongoing self-monitoring. The intent of this workshop is to promote information, clarification and discussion on the topic of SBVs in the clinical context in an effort to avert them and their often tragic consequences which tend to get downplayed.

• Define sexual boundary violations and the conditions which lead to their occurrence.
• Describe the negative consequences of SBVs and ways to manage common transference and countertransference responses to promote patient growth rather than to derail treatment.

• Arlene (Lu) Steinberg, PsyD
• Judith L. Alpert, PhD
• Christine A. Courtois, PhD, ABPP