Principles

and
standards
of Ethics in
Clinical
Psychology
 🞄 A case
• What is example
🞄 H ow to act w i t h
Ethics clients, family and
and why colleagues
should 🞄Guidelines for the right
one be action
ethical
 🞄 Nazis in
WWII
🞄 Issued by the Nuremberg Military Tribunal
Examples in 1947, the Nuremberg Code is a 10-point
statement meant t o prevent future abuse
of of human subjects.
violation 🞄 Milgram study.
🞄 Stanford prison experiment
🞄 Ethics in psychology
research
 🞄 Belmont Report (National Commission for the Protection of
Human Subjects of Biomedical and Behavioral Research, 1979),
which identified the principles of respect for persons, beneficence,
and justice in human subjects research.
🞄 In 1981, Beauchamp and Childress built on this work and
Steps applied it to health care in the first edition of their book Principles
of Biomedical Ethics, now in its seventh edition (Beauchamp &
towards Childress, 2012). They proposed four key principles: respect for
autonomy, beneficence (the obligation to do good),
ethical nonmaleficence (the duty not to harm), and justice.

practice 🞄 Others in bioethics have suggested additional derivative

principles, including veracity (the obligation to tell the truth),
fidelity (the duty to keep promises), and avoidance of killing
(Veatch, Haddad, & English, 2010).
 General principles are aspirational and do not
represent obligations and should not form the
Principles basis for imposing sanctions
of Ethical Standards of ethical practice on the other hand
Conduct are obligatory and form basis for sanctions.
 🞄 Beneficence and Non-
Maleficence
Nonmaleficence
1.One ought not to inflict evil or harm.
Beneficence
2.One ought to prevent evil or harm.
Principles 3. One ought to remove evil or harm.
of Ethical 4.One ought to do or promote good.
Conduct
 🞄 Fidelity and
Responsibility

Principles
of Ethical
Conduct
 🞄
Integrity

Principles
of Ethical
Conduct
 🞄
Justice
Principles
of Ethical
Conduct
 🞄 Respect for people's rights and
Principles dignity
of Ethical
Conduct
Problems 🞄 W h a t if there is a conflict between fulfilling
with one or the other principle (foster autonomy vs
avoid harm)
principlist 🞄 Which of them is more important
approach 🞄 Who decides w h a t is beneficial for the
for Ethical client
🞄 Context of a specific client is ignored
Conduct by universal nature of principles
 🞄 Case 1: A clinical psychology trainee refused to continue seeing
a client.

Ethical
standards
 🞄 Case Vignette 2: A distressed couple brought their adolescent son
for consultation. During the session the psychologist finds out
that the son is engaging in sexual practices that is not approved of
by the parents. Later the parents wanted to know what transpired
in the session with their son.
Ethical
standards
 🞄 Resolving ethical issues
🞄 Competence
🞄 Human relations
🞄 Privacy and confidentiality
Ethical 🞄 Advertising and public
statements
standards 🞄 Record keeping and fees
🞄 Education and training
🞄 Research and publication
🞄 Assessment
🞄 Therapy
 🞄 Misuse or misrepresentation of P's
work
🞄 Conflicts between ethics and law (Clarify the nature
of the conflict, make known their commitment to
codes, resolve within reasonable limits adhering to
the general principles of codes of conduct)
🞄 Conflicts between ethics and organizational
Resolving demands
ethical 🞄 Informal resolutions of ethical violations
issues 🞄 Reporting ethical violations
🞄 Cooperation with ethics committee body
🞄 Improper complaints
🞄 Unfair discriminations against complainants
 🞄 Boundaries of competence
🞄 Services in emergencies
🞄 Maintaining competence
🞄 Bases for scientific and professional
Competence judgements
🞄 Delegation of work
🞄 Personal problems and conflicts
 🞄 Unfair
discrimination
🞄 Sexual harassment and other
harassment
🞄 Avoiding harm
🞄 Multiple relationships
🞄 Conflicts of interest
Human 🞄 Third party requests for
relations services Exploitative
relationships
🞄 Cooperation with other
professionals
🞄 Informed consent
🞄 Serice through other
organizations
🞄 Interruptions of psychological
services
 🞄 Maintaining confidentiality, discussing limits of
confidentiality
🞄 Recoding
Privacy and 🞄 Minimizing intrusions on privacy.
confidentiality 🞄 Disclosures with and without consent.
🞄 Consultations (eg. Supervision)
🞄 Use for didactic and other purposes.
 🞄 Avoid false or deceptive
statements
Advertising 🞄 Media presentations
and other 🞄 Description of workshops
public 🞄 Testimonials from current clients
statements 🞄 Soliciting in person for business
 🞄 Record and Documentation of professional and scientific
work
🞄 Maintenance, Dissemination and disposal of records
🞄 Withholding records for nonpayment
Record 🞄 Fees and financial arrangements (Prior information,
no misrepresentation, as per law)
keeping and 🞄 Bartering?
fees 🞄 Reports to payors and service funding agencies
🞄 Referrals and fees?
 🞄 Design and description of education and training
programs
🞄 Accuracy in teaching
🞄 Student disclosure of personal information
Education 🞄 Mandatory therapy (not by teachers)
and training 🞄 Assessment of trainee and supervisee performance
🞄 Sexual relationship with supervisees
 🞄 Institutional
approval
🞄 Informed consent
🞄 Informed consent for recording
Research and 🞄 Protecting prospective participants (if
publication declined)
🞄 Dispensing with Informed consent if...
🞄 Offering inducements for research
🞄 Deception in research
🞄 Debriefing
 🞄 Human care and use of animals in
research
🞄 Reporting research
Research and 🞄 Plagiarism
publication 🞄 Publication credit
🞄 Duplicate publication of data
🞄 Sharing data for verification
🞄 Review
 🞄 Bases for assessment
🞄 Use of assessment
🞄 Informed consent in assessment
🞄 Release of test data
🞄 Test construction
🞄 Interpreting test results
Assessment 🞄 Assessment by unqualified
persons
🞄 Obsolete and outdated tests
🞄 Test scoring and interpretation
🞄 Explaining results
🞄 Maintaining test security
 🞄 Informed
consent
🞄 Couple and family
therapy
🞄 Group therapy
🞄 Therapy to those served by others
🞄 Intimacy with current clients

Therapy 🞄 Intimacy with relatives of current

clients
🞄 Therapy with former sexual partners
🞄 Sexual intimacy with former clients
🞄 Interruption
🞄 Termination
Ethical
Dilemmas
and
personal
decision This Photo by Unknown author is licensed under CC BY-NC-ND.

making
model
 An ethical dilemma is a circumstance confuses the
counselor/therapist/researcher because
🞄 (a) there are competing or conflicting ethical standards that
What is apply,
🞄 (b) there is a conflict between what is ethical and moral,
ethical 🞄 (c) the situation is such that complexities make application of
dilemma ethical standards unclear, or
🞄 (d) some other circumstance prevents a clear application of
standards.
 What is ethical (even legal) practice in medicine may be immoral by
certain religious standards (e.g., abortion).
What is ethical in counseling practice also may be immoral by
Examples certain religious standards. For example, a
for ethical fundamentalist Christian may be faced with a dilemma in
counseling gay partners specifically about their sexuality.
dilemma A Roman Catholic counselor may be uncomfortable providing birth
control information to a teenage client.
In professional practice in the United States, ethics is separated
from morality at the level of professional and legal directives.
 Consider sexual relations outside of marriage. Are they acceptable
or unacceptable? Does your religion guide you on this matter?
Exercise... Would you “keep the secret” from a spouse while counseling a
person who admits, without remorse, to an extramarital sexual
relationship? Attempt to define several guiding and absolute
principles that influence you in your day-to- day life. What are
the foundations of these beliefs? Finally, consider circumstances
that would modify your stance.
 Be alert to ethical and legal standards.
Be educated as to what is considered acceptable and competent
practice.
Be educated about the ethical nuances involved in practice with
When faced special populations or in types of specialty practice.

with an Have a sense of their own morals and values and how those morals
and values interplay with professional standards.
ethical To recognize ethical dilemmas, so that they may make informed
dilemma and ethical decisions.
Always act in a way that is ethically sensitive.
 Practicing counselors make many decisions throughout any single
day of practice.
Study decision-making processes and models,
Making Acquire the knowledge to understand professional ethics and the
means to make wise professional decisions when faced with an
ethical ethical challenge.

decisions
 🞄 Develop ethical sensitivity.
🞄 Clarify facts, stakeholders, and the sociocultural context of
the case.
🞄 Define the central issues and the available options.
Welfel’s Model 🞄 Refer to relevant laws and regulations.

(2010) 🞄 Search out ethics scholarship.

🞄 Apply ethical principles to the situation.
🞄 Consult with a supervisor and colleagues.
🞄 Deliberate and decide.
🞄 Inform a supervisor and take action.
🞄 Reflect on the experience.
 Stage I: Interpreting the Situation Through
Awareness and Fact Finding
🞄 Component 1: Enhance sensitivity and awareness.
🞄 Component 2: Determine the major stakeholders.
Cottone and 🞄 Component 3: Engage in the fact-finding process.

Tarvydas Stage II: Formulating an Ethical Decision

🞄 Component 1: Review the problem or dilemma.
Integrative 🞄 Component 2: Review applicable ethical codes, laws,
Model ethical principles,
🞄 and institutional policies and procedures.
(2007) 🞄 Component 3: Generate courses of action.
🞄 Component 4: Consider potential positive and
negative consequences.
🞄 Component 5: Consult with supervisors and peers.
🞄 Component 6: Select a course of action.
 Stage III: Selecting an Action

Cottone and 🞄 Component 1: Engage in reflective recognition and analysis of

Tarvydas competing, nonmoral values, personal blind spots, or prejudices.

🞄 Component 2: Consider contextual influences on values
Integrative selection at all levels.
Model 🞄 Component 3: Select a course of action.

(2007) Stage IV: Planning and Executing a Course of Action

🞄 Component 1: Figure out a sequence of actions.
🞄 Component 2: Anticipate and work out barriers to effective
execution.
🞄 Component 3: Carry out a course of action.
 Identify the problem
Identify the potential issues involved
Review relevant ethical guidelines
Summary Know applicable laws and regulations
of steps Obtain consultation
Consider possible and probable courses of
action
Enumerate consequences of various courses of
action
Decide on the best course of action
 Maintain professional boundaries
Avoiding
ethical Restrict your area of practice
problems Consult with others
Connect with other professionals
Strive for self awareness
Be transparent with clients
 Understanding and using an ethical decision-making
model when resolving ethical issues is a requirement
for professional counselors.
The process used when making an ethical decision is
often more important than the actual outcome of the
decision.
Points to There are many subtleties in the wording of ethical
remember codes, and wording often changes over time.
Therefore it is critical to review codes of ethics for
oneself and not rely on a previous understanding or
others’ interpretations.
When faced with a legal decision, professional
counselors should seek out and consult with an
attorney or other legal expert.
Take steps to avoid ethical problems