Citation

Mills MJ. Behav. Sci. Law 1984; 2(3): 237-257.

Copyright

(Copyright © 1984, John Wiley and Sons)

DOI

10.1002/bsl.2370020303

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

This article discusses the much-misunderstood Tarasoff decision that requires psychotherapists to protect third parties from patients' violent acts. Through a normative approach, the paper analyzes four important issues: what to do when potential victims are unknown; what to do about the fact that the patients' potential for violence may be incorrectly perceived; the value of warning potential victims; and, the problem of discharging potentially violent patients from the hospital. The author proposes that the courts adopt a more flexible substantial departure test in most cases that involve psychiatric negligence.

Language: en