Читать книгу Ethics and Law for School Psychologists - Susan Jacob - Страница 21

Codes of ethics serve to protect the public. However, ethical conduct is not synonymous with simple conformity to a set of rules outlined in professional codes and standards (J. N. Hughes, 1986). As Kitchener (2000) and others (Bersoff, 1994; Welfel, 2012) have noted, codes of ethics are imperfect guides to behavior for several reasons. First, ethical codes in psychology are composed of broad, abstract principles along with a number of more specific statements about appropriate professional conduct. They are at times vague and ambiguous (Bersoff, 1994).

Second, competing ethical principles often apply in a particular situation (Bersoff & Koeppl, 1993; Haas & Malouf, 2005), and specific ethical guidelines may conflict with federal or state law (Koocher & Keith-Spiegel, 2016). In some situations, a primary or overriding consideration can be identified in choosing a course of action. In other situations, however, no one principle involved clearly outweighs the other(s) (Haas & Malouf, 2005). For example, the decision to allow a minor child the freedom to choose or refuse to participate in psychological services often involves a consideration of law, ethical principles (respect for autonomy and self-determination versus the welfare of the child), and the likely practical consequences of affording choices (enhanced treatment outcomes versus refusal of treatment).

A third reason ethical codes are imperfect is because they tend to be reactive. They frequently fail to address new and emerging ethical issues (Bersoff & Koeppl, 1993; Welfel, 2012). Committees within professional associations often are formed to study the ways existing codes relate to emerging issues, and codes may be revised in response to new ethical concerns. Concern about the ethics of behavior modification techniques was a focus of the 1970s; in the 1980s, psychologists scrutinized the ethics of computerized psychodiagnostic assessment. In the 1990s, changes in codes of ethics reflected concerns about sexual harassment and fair treatment of individuals, regardless of their sexual orientation. In recent years, codes have emphasized the need for practitioner competence in the delivery of services to individuals from diverse experiential, linguistic, and cultural backgrounds. Codes also have been scrutinized to ensure relevance to the use of digital technologies.

Ethical codes thus provide guidance for the professional in their decision making. Ethical conduct, however, involves careful choices based on knowledge of broad ethical principles and code statements, ethical reasoning, and personal values. In many situations, more than one course of action is acceptable. In some situations, no course of action is completely satisfactory. In all situations, the responsibility for ethical conduct rests with the individual practitioner (Eberlein, 1987; Jacob et al., 2021).