Ethics Flashcards
(125 cards)
Principle A - Beneficence and Nonmaleficence
Strive to benefit those with whom you work and take care to do no harm
- includes animals
- minimized harm
Principle B - Fidelity and Responsibility
Establish relationships of faith and trust with those with whom they work
- aware of professional and scientific responsibility to society and communities work w/
- clarifying roles, conflicts of interest, consulting
- encouraged to contribute time for little or no cost
Principle C - Integrity
Promote, accuracy, honesty, truthfulness in science, teaching and practice
- publicly put out courses we teacher, don’t steal
Principle D - Justice
Everyone should have equal access to getting what we offer
- recognize fairness and justice entitle to all persons to access to and benefit from contributions of psych and equal quality in process/procedure/services
Principle E - Respect for People’s Rights and Dignity
Respect dignity and worth of all people, and rights to privacy, and self-determination
- respect differences (religion, sexual orientation, SES)
- if ethical standard establishes higher standard of conduct than is required by the law, psychologist must meet higher ethical standard
Competence
Psychologists are required to work within the boundaries of their competence which can be based on their education; training; supervised experience; consultation; study; or professional experience
Assume that a school principal asks a psychologist who has been hired to evaluate a student to write a report that supports the principal’s own conclusion about the student’s eligibility for special education.
In this situation, the psychologist is being asked to support a conclusion that has been reached by the principal rather than provide one that is based on the results of his/her own evaluation. Doing so would be unethical, and the psychologist should explain his/her ethical responsibility to the principal and refuse to comply with the principal’s request.
Misuse of Psychologists’ Work: Standard 1.01 requires psychologists to take reasonable steps to correct or minimize the misuse or misrepresentation of their work.
Ethical violations by colleagues
Standard 1.04 encourages psychologists to handle ethical violations informally by discussing the issue with the individual “if an informal resolution appears appropriate”; while Standard 1.05 states that psychologists make a formal report to the Ethics Committee, state licensing board, or other appropriate authority when the problem involves “substantial harm” and is not appropriate for an informal resolution or has not been resolved satisfactorily by an attempt at an informal resolution.
- Note that both Standards require psychologists to consider client confidentiality before taking any action. In other words, if an informal resolution or report will violate client confidentiality, the action is prohibited.
Tarasoff decision
“duty to warn” an intended victim, case to case by can notify the intended victim, police or taking other steps
Keith-Spiegel and Koocher (1985)
Provide the following guidelines for the ethical practice of MEDIA PSYCHOLOGY:
(1) Media psychologists should avoid offering suggestions that require radical life changes or decisions
(2) Callers who are selected for on-air participation should be given appropriate referrals
(3) Callers should be informed of the risks associated with public exposure of their personal problems
(4) Participants should not be asked to wait for prolonged periods of time before talking to the psychologist
(5) Media psychologists should make frequent disclaimers distinguishing what they do from actual psychotherapy
(6) Media psychologists should not belittle or make jokes at the expense of participants
(7) Media psychologists should not criticize the competence of other mental health professionals
(Note that this standard does not apply to psychologists who provide services to individuals over the Internet, videoconferences, etc. with whom they have an established therapeutic relationship.)
Record Keeping and Fees
Standard 6.01 requires psychologists to maintain, store, and dispose of their professional records in ways that allow the records to be used appropriately by themselves and others
Keith-Spiegel and Koocher (1985) note that legal obligations and client welfare are key factors when making decisions about the maintenance of records:
(1) Legal requirements vary from state to state, but the IRS requires professionals to keep business and financial records for at least 7 years. In addition, the APA’s (2007) Record Keeping Guidelines recommends that, in the absence of applicable laws or other requirements, psychologists retain a client’s full record for 7 years following the last date of services for adults and 3 years after a minor reaches the age of majority, whichever occurs later
(2) Client welfare concerns include balancing the possibility that records may be needed to assist with a client’s continuity of care across providers over time with the concern that, if kept too long, records may cause harm if they contain invalid or obsolete data.
What has the data on sexual misconduct by therapists consistently shown?
Pope and his colleagues (1993)
- Male therapists violate much more than female therapists
- They are usually older (42-44 y/o) than the female clients (30-33 y/o) they become involved with
What relationships have been found between risk for sexual misconduct and theoretical orientation; professional experience; or education?
None (Pope et al.; 1993)
What course of action should you take if you discover a colleague has been violating an ethical standard that puts no clients in direct harm?
Attempt to resolve the problem informally by discussing the matter with the offender
When should a psychologist make a formal report to the Ethics Committee; state licensing board; or other appropriate authority regarding unethical behavior by a colleague?
“When the problem involves ““substantial harm”” and is not appropriate for an informal resolution or has not been resolved satisfactorily by an attempt at an informal resolution”
_____ should always takes precedence over the need to educate or punish an offending psychologist, which must always be considered before filing a complaint
Client Confidentiality
When recording voices/images in research when is informed consent not required?
When the research consists solely of naturalistic observations in public places; and it is not anticipated that the recording will be used in a manner that could cause personal identification or harm
Describe the nature of informed consent when research involves recording voices/images and deception.
Informed consent is provided during debriefing
What is the legal concept that protects a client’s confidentiality in the context of legal proceedings?
Privilege
____ is typically is the holder of the privilege.
Client
When can a psychologist use client testimonials?
When they are not solicited from current therapy clients or other persons who; because of their circumstances; are vulnerable to undue influence
In a consultative relationship, when is it appropriate to disclose confidential client information?
- When the consultant and consultee have a confidential relationship
- If the consultee has obtained prior consent of the person or organization
- If disclosure is unavoidable
A psychologist has been meeting regularly with a child whose parents recently filed for divorce and have requested a child custody evaluation. What course of action should the psychologist take?
While not required; the Guidelines states psychologists generally avoid conducting such evaluations when s/he has served in a therapeutic role for the child or their family
What 4 conditions must be met in order for a client to bring a claim of malpractice against a psychologist?
- Psychologist must have had a professional relationship with the person
- Must be a demonstrable standard of care breached by psychologist
- Person suffered harm or injury
- Harm or injury was proximally caused by psychologist’s breach of duty within context of standard of care