Once Upon an Ethical Dilemma: Exploring Boundaries, Power, and Autonomy Through Fairy Tales
CE Credit: 3 Hours Ethics
Format: Self-Study Article + Post-Test
Audience: LPCs, LMFTs, and MSWs
Location: Oklahoma
Course Description
Ethical decision-making is rarely a black-and-white endeavor. Much like the forests, castles, and crossroads found in fairy tales, the ethical landscape of therapy requires clinicians to navigate ambiguity, intention, and power with care. This 3-hour self-study CEU explores the enduring relevance of classic fairy tales as metaphors for clinical ethics, focusing on boundaries, autonomy, power dynamics, and the importance of ethical presence in trauma-informed care.
Through the lens of four well-known tales—*Little Red Riding Hood*, *Rapunzel*, *Rumpelstiltskin*, and *The Handless Maiden*—clinicians will reflect on real-life ethical challenges, enhance their cultural and narrative sensitivity, and sharpen their clinical decision-making skills through metaphor.
Learning Objectives
After completing this course, participants will be able to:
- Identify at least three core ethical challenges frequently encountered in clinical practice through symbolic analysis of classic fairy tales.
- Analyze the relationship between power, autonomy, and boundaries within client-therapist interactions using metaphorical frameworks.
- Apply narrative and reflective strategies to deepen ethical presence in trauma-informed and relational work.
Module 1: Into the Woods — Why Fairy Tales?
Fairy tales have always been about more than dragons and witches. At their core, these stories mirror human psychology: the search for identity, the navigation of danger, the tension between independence and connection. Like therapy, they ask big questions: Who am I? What do I want? Who can I trust? And what happens when I stray from the path?
In therapy, our ethical principles—like autonomy, non-maleficence, and fidelity—are our compass. But applying these in the real world is messy. Boundaries blur. Clients regress. Transference floods the room. Fairy tales, by exaggerating the human condition, can help us see ethical tensions with fresh eyes.
As therapists, we are often invited into the vulnerable narratives of our clients. When we use symbolic frameworks like fairy tales, we invite both safety and insight. Metaphor creates just enough distance for clients—and clinicians—to confront truths that are too raw or overwhelming in plain language.
Reflective Prompt: What was your favorite fairy tale growing up? How might its themes relate to your work as a clinician?
Clinical Note: The use of metaphor in narrative therapy can serve as a non-threatening vehicle for discussing complex ethical decisions, including transference, dual relationships, and informed consent.
Module 1: Little Red Riding Hood — Consent, Naivety, and Supervision
In Little Red Riding Hood, we meet a young girl sent on a solo journey through the woods. She’s warned to stay on the path, but curiosity—or perhaps natural developmental exploration—leads her astray. She is met by a wolf who manipulates, disguises, and ultimately consumes.
This tale serves as a symbolic case study in informed consent and risk. Red is not equipped to anticipate harm, yet she is entrusted with significant responsibility. Her journey highlights the ethical tension between autonomy and protection.
Key Ethical Issues:
- What does informed consent look like when our clients lack insight or developmental maturity?
- How do we balance a client’s right to self-determination with our duty to prevent harm?
- What constitutes appropriate clinical supervision for trainees navigating trauma disclosures?
Case Example: A pre-licensed clinician working with a 19-year-old client who is romantically involved with an older partner begins to feel concerned about grooming. The therapist wants to step in but also values the client’s right to choose. Where is the ethical line between warning and paternalism?
Reflection: In what ways might you unconsciously play the “mother” who gives rules—or the “wolf” who knows best? How do we keep the therapeutic path visible without overstepping?
Code of Ethics Tie-In: ACA A.2.a — Informed Consent; NASW 1.01 — Commitment to Clients
Module 2: Rapunzel — Power, Enmeshment, and Isolation
Locked in a tower “for her own protection,” Rapunzel represents the ethical complexity of enmeshment. Whether as parents, partners, or therapists, we may rationalize control as care. In this story, the witch who raises Rapunzel insists on absolute obedience, yet believes she is shielding her from harm.
In therapy, we sometimes unconsciously replicate this dynamic:
- We create a treatment plan and feel frustrated when a client diverges.
- We foster deep emotional safety but become the client’s sole emotional outlet.
- We mistake client dependence for clinical alliance.
Key Questions:
- Are we fostering independence or creating dependency?
- How do we ethically hold space without becoming the client’s only ladder out?
- When does long-term therapy create a false sense of emotional captivity?
Case Example: A client with attachment trauma repeatedly tells their therapist, “You’re the only one I trust.” The therapist feels gratified but also pressured to never take breaks or refer out.
Reflection: Think of a client who depends heavily on you. How might the therapeutic frame be both a tower and a ladder? Are you the rescuer, or the keeper of the tower?
Code of Ethics Tie-In: ACA A.4.b — Personal Values; NASW 1.06 — Conflicts of Interest
Module 3: Rumpelstiltskin — Contracts, Secrets, and Desperation
This tale is all about the fine print—and the emotional costs of making deals under pressure. The miller’s daughter, desperate to survive, makes a contract with a magical stranger to spin straw into gold. Later, she must guess his name or forfeit her child.
In clinical work, implicit and explicit “contracts” often emerge:
- Clients may expect extra availability or waived fees.
- Therapists may make unspoken promises to stay, rescue, or never challenge.
- Shame and desperation can fuel secrecy, collusion, or unethical compromises.
Key Issues:
- How do we honor clinical boundaries while maintaining rapport?
- What are the “deals” we make with ourselves or our clients out of fear or avoidance?
Case Example: A therapist agrees to meet a client at a coffee shop “just this once” due to the client’s anxiety. It becomes a pattern. Later, the therapist feels resentful and stuck.
Reflection: What contracts have you entered (implicitly or explicitly) that felt ethically fuzzy in hindsight? Did secrecy play a role?
Code of Ethics Tie-In: ACA A.12 — Abandonment and Client Neglect; NASW 1.13 — Payment for Services
Module 4: The Handless Maiden — Agency, Restoration, and Presence
https://youtu.be/46jo8r7R6is?si=y4q3di7Dkg52glb8
This lesser-known tale is a powerful metaphor for trauma recovery. A young woman’s hands are cut off by her father, under coercion by the devil. She wanders in silence for years, slowly regaining her voice and agency through a series of deeply relational and painful encounters.
Ethically, the story invites us to examine:
- How do we sit with suffering that cannot be fixed?
- What does presence mean in long-term trauma therapy?
- When is “doing less” the most ethical path?
Case Example: A therapist working with a client with complex PTSD from religious abuse finds herself overwhelmed by the client’s loss of trust in any form of authority. The therapist worries she’s “not doing enough.”
Reflection: When has your ethical presence been more important than your interventions? Can witnessing itself be a form of justice?
Code of Ethics Tie-In: ACA A.1.c — Counseling Plans; NASW 1.04 — Competence
Integration: Writing Your Own Ending
These stories don’t offer easy answers. Neither does therapy. But by entering the symbolic landscape, we expand our imagination and ethical clarity. Fairy tales dramatize moral dilemmas in exaggerated form, giving us a safe way to rehearse courage, creativity, and responsibility.
Ethical decision-making is not only about right and wrong—it’s about presence, humility, and the willingness to engage complexity with open eyes.
Final Prompt: Which fairy tale most reflects the challenges in your current clinical work? What ethical dilemmas do you now see differently?