Child and adolescent psychiatry

Abstract

Ethical dilemmas unique to child and adolescent psychiatry are consequences of the child psychiatrist’s duty to serve as advocate for child patients while simultaneously having professional responsibilities to the parents and guardians of the children, as well as to child-related institutions inclusive of schools, juvenile justice systems, and childcare agencies. In addition, awareness of developmental differences is paramount, as continuous maturation occurs from ages zero through eighteen years and beyond. With this in mind, the chapter first reviews ethical principles and reasoning and the influence of context on such ever-present matters as assent/consent/dissent, agency, assessment, treatments, and confidentiality, and then hones in on current and future dilemmas posed by the needs of transitional age youth and the impacts of social media, marijuana decriminalization, alternative sexual and gender expressions, minority vulnerabilities, and casualties of global conflicts. A separate section focuses on ethical considerations relevant to research performed with child subjects.