I love stories. I love ethics. And I especially love good stories about ethics and ethical issues. As a psychologist who has had experience with psychotherapy in multiple ways (as a client, a practitioner, a supervisor of practitioners, and an author who writes about the topic) I have lots of good stories about ethical issues and have seen many examples of ethical and unethical psychotherapist behavior. So, how would I answer the question above? I'd answer with-- (c) aspiration of or desired outcome of most practicing psychotherapists.

My experience as a psychologist and a supervisor of practitioners tells me that most psychotherapists don't enter the profession to be unethical. They enter the helping professions to do good by their clients, to treat them with respect and dignity, and to make the world a better place for human beings. In short, most individuals who enter the helping fields do so with the aspiration and desire to be competent and caring psychotherapists. But let's face it: Therapists like everyone else are human beings with the capability of losing perspective, of doing harm and /or of being self-serving. Many of us have probably heard or read about (or experienced) a therapist who acted unethically: was sexually involved with a client, violated a client's confidentiality, or was incompetent in their practice.