Therapist Self-Disclosure 2026

Therapist Self-Disclosure is organized by TZK Seminars and will be held on Aug 29, 2026.

Description:
Presenter was knowledgeable and engaging. Very informative and helpful webinar. I feel more confident in the decisions that I have been making in regard to self disclosure and I feel I can look at those areas that feel more challenging with less criticism.”-Gabrielle D., Psychologist, New York

“Therapist Self Disclosure” is an introductory ethics course for practitioners who seek to navigate how to utilize self-disclosure to achieve client engagement without boundary violations in treatment environments. With the mainstreaming of peer counseling, cognitive behavioral and humanistic treatments, therapist self-disclosure is encouraged as a means to improving patient rapport & communication. Therapists need to differentiate among the nuanced differences between self-disclosure, self-involving statements, deliberate & confrontative disclosures from disclosures amounting to harmful boundary violations to avoid becoming ensnarled in questionable ethical practices.

This webinar focuses on several factors like:

1. Role played by self-disclosure in relationships
2. the history of therapist self-disclosure
3. what is therapist self-disclosure?
4. how theoretical treatments and the type of client in treatment impact therapist self-disclosure
5. when are therapists most often willing to self-disclose
6. ethics of self-disclosure and boundary violations
7. conclusions and practical clinical checklist to prevent inappropriate therapist self-disclosure. 

Given these complexities, knowledge about therapist self-disclosure is crucial.

This course will utilize “clinical” situations from film and television to highlight protective measures relating to therapist self-disclosure. Excerpts from TV shows and movies, such as, “Mindhunter,” “In Treatment,” “Ordinary People,” “Good Will Hunting,” “The Sopranos,” “The Breakfast Club,” and others will be utilized.

Learning Objectives:
At the end of this seminar, participants will be able to:

• Define self-disclosure, self-involving statements, positive and negative self-disclosures, deliberate confrontative, and harmful disclosures.
• Identify the history of therapist self-disclosure as a psychotherapy treatment technique.
• Determine how to respond to clients who express political extremist views, religious biases, and sexual preference requirements of a therapist.
• Identify how therapeutic treatment models impact decisions about making therapist self-disclosure.
• Apply therapist self-disclosure guidelines in order to build effective communication and client rapport.