8. Ethics and the profession Flashcards
1
Q
What is a profession?
A
- community of people organised in institutional form, bounded by the services they perform
- common theoretical background from formal education
- common interests and commitments
2
Q
What is a professional association?
A
- pathway to achieving professional status through admission to governing body
- three admission requirements
1. accredited academic qualification
2. apprenticeship with on the job training
3. professional development program
3
Q
What is professionalisation?
A
- licensing that signals acquisition of minimal skills and knowledge for a professional
- highly regarded, prestige, community respect, premium fees
4
Q
Perspectives as to why professionalisation is needed?
A
- attribute/functional approach - for a checklist of attributes to distinguish a professional from not
- power perspective - to protect its regulatory space and economic monopoly
5
Q
What is the attribute/functional approach?
A
- profession defined by checklist of attributes
- unique characteristics that set professions apart from occupations
- there are core features
- features may be absent or less prominent in non-professions
6
Q
What are the attributes/features of a profession?
A
Specialised body of knowledge 1. Knowledge 2. Professional judgement 3. Professional authority Commitment to professional and ethical practice 4. Public service 5. Code of ethics Governing body 6. Professional association
7
Q
Attributes of Knowledge
A
- professions have intellectual component
- obtained through formal education
- tertiary education supported by research
- able to tackle problems and develop solutions
- evolve with changing needs
- trades have manual skills perfected through repetition
- appropriately qualified person with mastery of knowledge can assume the title of professional
8
Q
Attributes of Professional judgement
A
- diagnose a situation
- infer from standards how to solve a problem
- understand intention of standards and interpret application
- through the exercise of judgement in the application of specialised knowledge that discipline establishes itself as a profession
9
Q
Attributes of Professional Authority
A
- skill and knowledge not obtained or understood by layperson
- dominant position through superior knowledge
- client dependant on professional
- asymmetrical knowledge
- trust that service is competent and committed to helping client
- knowledge provides professional authority
10
Q
Attributes of Public Service
A
- profession is a public service
- public requires professional’s services
- creates social contract
- for good of client and community
- self interest and greed is ethical misconduct
11
Q
Attributes of Code of Ethics
A
- set of rules to promote good, ethical behaviour
- encourages public confidence in profession
- prescribes high standards of behaviour
- disciplinary measures for breaches
12
Q
Attributes of Professional Associations. What do they do?
A
- controlling entry, maintaining standards and ethics
- Five key roles
1. advocacy
2. developing new knowledge and standards of practice
3. ensuring and maintaining levels of expertise
4. regulating conduct
5. managing image and reputation
13
Q
What is deprofessionalising?
A
- when self regulation is challenged
- external investigation when public is concerned that profession is not doing its job properly
- intervention by adding regulations, legislation etc
- increase in regulations limits application of judgement
14
Q
What is the power perspective?
A
- alternative to the attributes approach
- aims to protect regulatory space and economic monopoly
- control supply of members and scope of services
- motivated by self interest
15
Q
What is the exclusive franchise?
A
- protection of economic monopoly
- consolidates and increases gap between members and non-members
- only for appropriately qualified persons
- ways to seek exclusivity:
1. exclusionary closure
2. licensing
3. branding
4. professional/occupational space
