Psychotherapy Researchers: Reported Misbehaviors and Opinions

Abstract

The ethical practices of psycho therapy researchers were surveyed online. A total of 257 completed surveys were received from researchers worldwide. Eighty-nine percent of researchers admitted to at least one of the listed behaviors. The most common faults were related to excessive work demands: 44% of the respondents reported “inadequate monitoring of research projects due to work overload” and 37% reported “cutting corners in a hurry to complete a project.” North America was lower in almost all of the reported behaviors. The results about specific behaviors related to psychotherapy research for which rules are still fuzzy reflect the disagreement among researchers. The high prevalence of misbehavior in psychotherapy research is a warning that cannot be ignored.