Chapter 2 Flashcards
Ethics
a philosophical discipline that is concerned with human conduct and moral decision making” They are normative in nature and focus on principles and standards that govern relationships between individuals.
Professional ethics
beliefs about behavior and conduct that guide professional practices, such as those between counselors and clients
Morality
involves judgment or evaluation of an action. It is associated with such words as good, bad, right, wrong, ought, and should
beneficence
doing good and preventing harm
nonmaleficence
not inflicting harm
autonomy
respecting freedom of choice and self-determination
justice
fairness
fidelity
faithfulness or honoring commitments and promises
veracity
truthfulness
Punishment orientation
At this stage, the counselor believes external social standards are the basis for judging behavior. If clients or counselors violate a societal rule, they should be punished.
(The ethical behavior of counselors in terms of a five-stage developmental continuum of reasoning)
institutional orientation
Counselors who operate at this stage believe in and abide by the rules of the institutions for which they work. They do not question the rules and base their decisions on them.
(The ethical behavior of counselors in terms of a five-stage developmental continuum of reasoning)
Societal orientation
Counselors at these stages base decisions on societal standards. If a question arises about whether the needs of society or an individual should come first, the needs of society are always given priority.
(The ethical behavior of counselors in terms of a five-stage developmental continuum of reasoning)
Individual orientation
The individual’s needs receive top priority at this stage. Counselors are aware of societal needs and are concerned about the law, but they focus on what is best for the individual.
(The ethical behavior of counselors in terms of a five-stage developmental continuum of reasoning)
Principle (conscience) orientation
In this stage, concern for the individual is primary. Ethical decisions are based on internalized ethical standards, not external considerations
(The ethical behavior of counselors in terms of a five-stage developmental continuum of reasoning)
principle ethics
type of ethics that are based on a set of obligations that focus on finding socially and historically appropriate answers to the question: “What shall I do?” In other words, “Is this action ethical?
virtue ethics
type of ethics that focus on the “character traits of the counselor and nonobligatory ideals to which professionals aspire”
The “slippery slope effect”
Condoning or ignoring a situation they risk eroding their own sense of moral selfhood and find it easier to condone future ethical breaches,
1993 Napa County, California case
Gary Ramona sued his daughter’s therapists, “charging that by implanting false memories of sexual abuse in her mind they had destroyed his life” Ramona was awarded $475,000 after the jury “found the therapists had negligently reinforced false memories”
duty to care
health providers’ legal obligation not to act negligently.
Jaffee v. Redmond
communications between licensed psychotherapists and their patients are privileged and do not have to be disclosed in cases held in federal court. The importance of the case for counseling is that a legal precedent was set regarding confidentiality between a master’s-level clinician (in this case a social worker) and her client. The case also brought positive attention to mental health services, including counseling.
amicus curiae brief argued before the United States Supreme Court in 1997
This brief dealt with mental health issues associated with “physician-assisted suicide”. In this court action, the ACA joined with several other mental health groups to protect the rights of counselors and other helping specialties to play a part in hastened death, in particular by protecting the suffering person, the person’s significant others, and society as a whole from the potential problems associated with aid-in-dying. There is now a section in the 2014 ACA Code of Ethics dealing with end-of-life issues
Weldon v. Virginia State Board of Psychologists Examiners-1974
the case that resulted in counseling was a profession distinct from psychology.
Iowa Law Review Note-1974
Law note that state counselors were legally recognized as professionals who provided personal as well as vocational and educational counseling.
Confidentiality
the ethical duty to fulfill a contract or promise to clients that the information revealed during therapy will be protected from unauthorized disclosure
