Which statement best describes the Tarasoff decision?

Which statement best describes the Tarasoff decision?

• A. The duty to warn or protect when a client poses a credible threat to an identifiable victim; clinicians may need to warn authorities or potential victims.
• B. Confidentiality must be maintained regardless of threat.
• C. Only when there is physical injury must clinicians notify authorities.
• D. The duty to report all crimes regardless of threat.

Answer: (A)

The essential idea is balancing confidentiality with public safety: when a client makes a credible threat against an identifiable person, the clinician has a duty to take protective action. This duty can include warning the potential victim or notifying authorities, and may involve other steps to prevent harm. The Tarasoff decision established that duty to protect overrides strict confidentiality in these specific situations, aiming to reduce the risk of violence. That’s why the statement describing a duty to warn or protect when a client poses a credible threat to an identifiable victim—and noting that clinicians may need to warn authorities or potential victims—best captures the Tarasoff principle. It isn’t about maintaining confidentiality no matter what, or about only acting when physical injury occurs, or about reporting all crimes regardless of threat; those ideas misstate the conditions under which disclosure is ethically and legally warranted.

The essential idea is balancing confidentiality with public safety: when a client makes a credible threat against an identifiable person, the clinician has a duty to take protective action. This duty can include warning the potential victim or notifying authorities, and may involve other steps to prevent harm. The Tarasoff decision established that duty to protect overrides strict confidentiality in these specific situations, aiming to reduce the risk of violence.

That’s why the statement describing a duty to warn or protect when a client poses a credible threat to an identifiable victim—and noting that clinicians may need to warn authorities or potential victims—best captures the Tarasoff principle. It isn’t about maintaining confidentiality no matter what, or about only acting when physical injury occurs, or about reporting all crimes regardless of threat; those ideas misstate the conditions under which disclosure is ethically and legally warranted.