"The overwhelming majority have communicated about patients to other health professionals and insurers, and a substantial majority have done so to family, friends and public authorities. Very few have communicated to potential victims. Psychiatrists are most likely to have made extratherapeutic communications, social workers the next most likely, and psychologists the least likely. For four of the five forms of communication, California psychiatrists lead the other five groups in percentage making the communication. Thus, while confidentiality may well represent an important ethical and therapeutic value, it is apparently a value which therapists, in their work, will frequently be forced to compromise.

The infrequency of warnings deserves comment. It is hardly surprising that fewer therapists warned than communicated with other health professionals, or insurance companies, or family and friends, but it is striking that so many more therapists communicated with public authorities than with potential victims. These differences may reflect either the relative difficulty of locating warnable victims, or a therapist's preference to discharge his or her obligation for the welfare of others by dealing with public authorities." [Daniel J. Givelbe, William J. Bowers and Carolyn L. Blitch, "Tarasoff, Myth And Reality: an Empirical Study of Private Law in Action," 1984 Wis. L. Rev. 443, 468-469].