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Psychological Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards

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Psychological Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards

As it is in any other field of practice, best practices are essential in ensuring good

conduct, confidentiality, respect, and fairness in everything that an individual is involved in. The

code of Conduct and Ethical standards are key in all fields and so it is in the field of psychology.

In the field of psychology, ethics are key, specifically as it links to therapy and research. A wide

variety of moral and ethical issues are precedent when working with patients and conducting a

psychological study and all those issues need to be keenly handled (Ethical Principles of

Psychologists and Code of Conduct, 2002). A guideline in the field of psychology is provided

through the APA ethics for the professionals so that they are fully equipped with the knowledge

and skills on the dos and don’ts when they come across some type of moral or ethical dilemma.

APA Code of Ethics and the Ethical Principles of Psychologists and Code of Conduct

provide principles and values that psychologists should purpose to exercise and outlines the

standards that are possibly enforceable as one encounters some ethical issues. APA Code of

Ethics is key in helping psychologists in making decisions when faced with moral and ethical

dilemmas when handling patients. When a psychologist implements or enforces any decision that

is not in line with the set of APA Code of Ethics, it is considered as a violation and one is

answerable to a court of law. Ethical standards point to the expectations of conduct that can

result in legal and professional consequences when a psychologist violates them. Ethical

Principles of Psychologists and Code of Conduct including 2010 and 2016 Amendments include

several sections such as Resolving Ethical Issues, Competence, Human Relations, Privacy and

Confidentiality, Advertising and Other Public Statements, Record Keeping and Fees, Education

and Training, Research and Publication, Assessment, and Therapy (O’Donohue, 2016). Every
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section points to specific aspects and elements that need to be upheld to ensure best practice in

the field of psychology.

Ethical Code Violations by the psychologists might result in several consequences such

as censure or the APA membership revoked. Some of the ethical violations might result from

billing, treatment, or fraud (American Psychologist, 2010). In the Ethical Dilemmas given in the

assignment, I will handle case number four where a clinician often uses technology and testing

conditions that are unsuitable, testing the clients without reading or taking breaks in instructions,

use of untrained staff to administer tests, and unacceptable testing rooms. Under Section 9:

Assessment, psychologists are tasked with taking tests which they later use to base their

opinions, rulings, and prescriptions as evident in their reports, recommendations, and diagnostic

or test statements. The various tests taken by the psychologists provide techniques and

information enough to substantiate their findings. Assessments are vital in providing opinions for

it is at this stage where examinations are carried out to give rise to supporting statements for any

conclusion that is arrived at by psychologists and even provides opinions on the psychological

characteristics as evident from the patient. In case a person analysis is not compulsory for a

certain opinion or warranted, the psychologists are supposed to give an explanation and issue the

necessary sources of information from which such recommendations and conclusions are based

on.

As evident from the ethical dilemma, various unethical practices were carried out

contrary to the provisions of the APA Code of Ethics and the Ethical Principles of Psychologists

and Code of Conduct. On Assessment, the instruments used in the examination of the clients by

the psychologist did not meet the ethical standards as expected. The psychologist used computer

and technology assessments which the clients under assessment were not conversant and
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comfortable with. Under section 9.02 on the Use of Assessments, psychologists are supposed to

utilize assessment techniques and instruments in such as way and for the necessary reasons

which are in line with the usefulness of the information obtained and the purpose of the research

(O’Donohue, 2016). Furthermore, the application of any techniques in the assessment should be

appropriate. The examiner in question was using assessment instruments and techniques such as

computers and other technology that the clients were not comfortable using. At this stance, the

examiner can be termed to have violated the APA Ethical Codes in their practice. The

assessment was not conducted to the best and in line with Section 9 of the APA Ethical Codes

which elaborates on instruments on assessment. A psychologist is expected to use testing

instruments whose reliability and validity have been confirmed for use with clients of the clients

tested. It can be deduced that the use of a computer did not provide validity of any results

obtained for the case study provided. The examiner at the same time did not describe the

strengths and limitations of assessments as the validity and reliability of the use of the computer

and other technologies were not established.

Another section on the Assessment section points to the use of assessments that are in

line with a client's language competence and language. The examiner in our case often carries

out testing without breaks and reading the instructions. In this case, it is a violation of the

assessment provisions as the client is not given a good approach and the questions are not asked

in a way that they could provide the information as required. The examiner will end up coming

up with the wrong opinions, recommendations, and conclusions that are falsely justified as the

information will be wrong. Tests that are offered without breaks means that the client is not

given room to brainstorm and think in line with whatever they are asked to come up with the

suitable answer to the best of their understanding. Improper way of conducting tests is a strong
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blow to any other interventions that might be carried out on the client for they might be aimed at

handling the wrong problem.

Furthermore, Section 9.07 Assessment by Unqualified persons discourages any use of

psychological assessment techniques by unqualified individuals, unless it is carried out for

training reasons with the right supervision (Miller, & Lovler, 2020). In our case, the psychologist

allowed untrained staff to administer tests to the clients. Such a move can be termed as a

violation of the APA Code of Ethics as it compromises the quality of the assessment results,

opinions, recommendations and conclusions arrived at after the testing is carried out. The use of

unqualified staff does not also adhere to section 7 on the importance of Education and Training

as any psychologist or examiner should have undergone and certified to assess the clients. Any

assessment of a client by an individual who is not a certified psychologist and the exercise is not

undertaken for purposes of learning then it is termed as a violation of the APA Ethics Codes.

Such individuals are liable for not only a violation but also a crime punishable in a court of law

as it against human rights too as far as the provision of health care is concerned. Similarly,

Section 2.01 Boundaries of Competence comes to play when discussing the use of unqualified

staff in assessing the clients. The section talks of the necessity of providing services in the areas

and limits in which one is competent based on their education, training, and professional

experience. The use of unqualified staff in the assessment under Section 2.01 remains to be a

violation of the APA Ethics Codes.

The last element in the scenario and ethical dilemma is the unsuitable conditions under

which the clinician conducted their tests and the unacceptable testing rooms. Under section 4:

Privacy and Confidentiality, it touches on the Disclosures where a psychologist is tasked with

protecting the client, himself, and others from harm (O’Donohue, 2016). The clinician in the case
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has not observed this section to the latter when handling their clients. The rooms presented some

sought of harm to the clients for they were either hot or cold which is another health hazard to

them. It is a violation of the Ethics codes when the clinician conduct tests and obtains

information from the clients in unsuitable condition. The conditions under which the clinician

carries out the assessments should be conducive for every client to obtain the best possible test

results that will be used in coming up with recommendations and conclusions on the best therapy

possible. Generally, Ethical Dilemma number four covers a series of Psychological Code of

Conduct and Ethical Standards violations for which the Clinician should be held answerable.
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References

2010 Amendments to the 2002 “Ethical principles of psychologists and code of conduct.”

(2010). American Psychologist, 65(5), 493. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0020168

Ethical Principles of Psychologists and Code of Conduct. (2002). American Psychologist,

57(12), 1060–1073. https://doi.org/10.1037/0003-066X.57.12.1060

Miller, L. A., & Lovler, R. L. (2020). Foundations of psychological testing: a practical approach

(6th ed.). SAGE.

O’Donohue, W. T. (2016). Oppression, Privilege, Bias, Prejudice, and Stereotyping: Problems in

the APA Code of Ethics. Ethics & Behavior, 26(7), 527–544.

https://doi.org/10.1080/10508422.2015.1069191