Focus of the Discussion

Ethical and Professional

Issues in Counseling
 Understanding Ethics

• Ethics is the part of philosophy that talks about

good and evil.
• Morality is same as the ethics.
• In General, morality can be defined as right or
wrong, good or bed.
• It deals with human conduct where judgment are
made as to whether a human act conforms to
the accepted rules of rightness or virtue.
 Ethical Theories (Plato)
According to Plato
• ‘Immorality is due to lack of knowledge; and if
a men discovers what is right he will never act
curly.
• The discovery of the nature of things is an
intellectual task.
• There is fundamentally one and only one good
life for all men to lead because goodness is
something which is not depend upon man’s
preference
 Understanding Ethics (Cont..)

• Ethics is the mind set and culture to do the right

thing directed by a code of standards and values
• Ethics is the same as morality
• Ethics is about rules for behaviour
• Ethics is to do with theory
Plato Ethical Theories (Con..)
• Plato believed that each human being is a
combination of a physical body and a non-
physical soul.
• He believed that the physical world - including
our physical bodies - is not really real or
important. Therefore, his ethical theory focuses
on the well-being of the soul.
• According to the ancient Greeks Plato,
everything has a purpose.
 Ethical Theories (Aristotle )

According to Aristotle,
 Ethics starts with actual moral judgments before
the formulation of general principles.
 The good involves a teleological system that
involves actions.
 Good is that which all things aim. Something is
good if it performs its proper function
 The good involves a teleological system that
involves actions.
 Ethical Theories of Aristotle
(Cont..)
According to Aristotle,
 Virtue is the dominant and most important component
of happiness.
 Aristotle presupposes natural tendencies in people.
 Being happy is like being well feed. How much food
should a man to eat in order to well-feed?
 It varies from man to man.
 Kantian Moral Theory
According to Kantian,

 Human beings should be treated not simply as

means to one’s own ends, but also as ends in
themselves.
 Making the right decisions for the right reasons
being the ultimate goal.
 The principles ought to be universal; that is, if
everyone adopted the principle, it should not
be self-defeating.
 Spinoza Ethics Theory
According to Spinoza ,

 All things come to pass, come to pass according to the

eternal order and fixed laws of nature.
 Making the right decisions for the right reasons being
the ultimate goal.
 Good life consists in the appreciation of the truth that
all events are determined and a man will be happy
when he comes to understand that there are limits to
human power and that everything which happen
necessarily
 Ethical and Professional Issues
in Counseling

• Maintaining Professional and ethical

guidelines is the high levels of professional
activity in counseling.
• Counselor must have to follow ethical
issues in dealing with clients as well their
profession
• Ethical and professional issues are
important for counseling
Ethical and Professional Issues
in Counseling
Ethical and professional issues are
important for counseling. A counselor must
follow some basic ethics with their clients.
Some basic ethical issues are:
• Justice
• Confidentiality and Privacy
• Privileged communication
• Informed consent
• Professional responsibility
Ethical and Professional Issues
in Counseling(Cont..)
• Justice: The concept of justice involves the
idea of fairness and quality in terms of
access to resources and treatment by
others. Counselor are obligated to assure
that their, process, agencies and services
do not discriminate others.
Ethical and Professional Issues
in Counseling(Cont..)

• Confidentiality and Privacy: Confidentiality

is the obligation of professionals to respect
the privacy of clients and the information
they provide. When information is
communicated in the privacy of the formal
counselor –client relationship, it is
maintained as a secret within the
relationship.
Ethical and Professional Issues
in Counseling(Cont..)
• Privileged communication: Privileged
communication is a clients' right that
prevents the revelation of confidential
information in a legal proceedings. A
counselor can not be testify on a clients’
case if the privilege stands. Privileged
communication is owned by the client and
only the client.
 Ethical and Professional Issues in
Counseling(Cont..)

• Informed Consent: Informed consent is the

clients’ right to agree to participate in
counseling assessment. Informed consent, or
formal permission given by a client, is
necessary for the beginning of counseling
and throughout the relationship. Counselors
generally present the information to clients in
writing. The information should be clear and
presented at the level that the client can
understand.
 Ethical and Professional Issues in
Counseling(Cont..)

• Professional responsibility: Professional

responsibility can be defined as the
counselor obligation to clients and to the
counseling profession. It relates to the
appropriateness of professional action.
Professional counselors are obligated to
their employers as well as their clients.
They have a responsibility to serve their
employers with ethical sensitivity.
 ‫‪Terima Kasih‬‬
‫الحمد هلل و الصالة و السالم‬
‫على رسول هللا‬