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The Ethical Standards of Psychologists was first adopted by the APA in 1953. Eight revisions of the APA’s code of ethics were published between 1959 and 1992. The current version, Ethical Principles of Psychologists and Code of Conduct (APA, 2017b), was adopted in 2002 and amended in 2010 and 2016 (see Appendix B). The APA’s Ethical Principles differs from the NASP’s Principles for Professional Ethics in that it was developed for psychologists with training in diverse specialty areas (clinical, industrial-organizational, school psychology) and who work in a number of different settings (private practice, industry, hospitals and clinics, public schools, university teaching, research).

The Ethical Principles of Psychologists and Code of Conduct consists of these sections: Introduction and Applicability, Preamble, General Principles, and Ethical Standards. The General Principles section includes five broadly worded aspirational goals to be considered by psychologists in ethical decision making, and the Ethical Standards section sets forth enforceable rules for conduct. General Principle A, Beneficence and Nonmaleficence, means that psychologists engage in professional actions that are likely to benefit others, or at least do no harm (Behnke & Jones, 2012).

Principle B is Fidelity and Responsibility. Consistent with this principle, psychologists build and maintain trust by being aware of and honoring their professional responsibilities to clients and the community. Principle C, Integrity, obligates psychologists to be open and honest in their professional interactions and faithful to the truth and to guard against unclear or unwise commitments. In accordance with Principle D, Justice, psychologists seek to ensure that all persons have access to and can benefit from what psychology has to offer. They strive for fairness and nondiscrimination in the provision of services. Principle E, Respect for People’s Rights and Dignity, encourages psychologists to respect the worth of all people and their rights to privacy, confidentiality, autonomy, and self-determination (Flanagan et al., 2005).

The APA’s Ethical Standards (enforceable rules for conduct) are organized into six general sections: Resolving Ethical Issues, Competence, Human Relations, Privacy and Confidentiality, Advertising and Other Public Statements, and Record Keeping and Fees. These are followed by four sections: Education and Training, Research and Publication, Assessment, and Therapy (APA, 2017b). (For additional information on the APA’s ethics code, see C. B. Fisher, 2017; Knapp, VandeCreek et al., 2017.)