A Practitioner’s Guide to Ethical Decision Making

Holly Forester-Miller, Ph. D. Thomas Davis, Ph. D. Copyright 1996, American Counseling Association. A free publication of the American Counseling Association promoting honour equal prop atomic number 53nt pr affectice in service to the public. Printed and bound copies whitethorn be purchased in quantity for a nominal fee from the Online Resource Catalog or by c anying the ACA Distribution Center at 800. 422. 2648.ACA grants reproduction rights to libraries, researchers and t apieceers who inclination to copy all or part of the contents of this document for erudite purposes provided that no fee for the use or possession of such copies is supercharged to the ultimate consumer of the copies. Proper citation to ACA must be given. Introduction Counselors atomic number 18 often faced with situations which require sound estimable determination making ability. Determining the appropriate business line to take when faced with a catchy ethical dilemma can be a altercate.To assis t ACA members in meeting this challenge, the ACA Ethics Committee has developed A Practitioners Guide to honest Decision Making. The intent of this document is to offer professional counselors a mouldingling for sound ethical decision making. The following will address two guiding principles that are globally valuable in ethical decision making, and a model that professionals can utilize as they address ethical questions in their sue. Moral Principles Kitchener (1984) has identified five moral principles that are viewed as the cornerstone of our ethical rule of thumbs.Ethical guidelines can non address all situations that a counselor is forced to confront. Re think these ethical principles which are at the foundation of the guidelines often helps to clarify the issues involved in a given situation. The five principles, autonomy, justice, beneficence, nonmaleficence, and faithfulness are each absolute truths in and of themselves. By exploring the dilemma in regards to these pr inciples one may come to a better understanding of the counterpoint issues. 1. Autonomy is the principle that addresses the concept of independence.The essence of this principle is allowing an individual the emancipation of choice and accomplish. It addresses the responsibility of the counselor to encourage clients, when appropriate, to make their own decisions and to act on their own values. There are two important leaseatenesss in encouraging clients to be autonomous. First, helping the client to understand how their decisions and their values may or may not be received within the mount of the society in which they live, and how they may impinge on the rights of others.The second consideration is related to the clients ability to make sound and rational decisions. Persons not surefooted of making competent choices, such as children, and some individuals with mental handicaps, should not be allowed to act on decisions that could harm themselves or others. 2. Nonmaleficence i s the concept of not ca utilise harm to others. Often explained as above all do no harm, this principle is considered by some to be the nearly critical of all the principles, even though theoretically they are all of equal weight (Kitchener, 1984 Rosenbaum, 1982 Stadler, 1986).This principle reflects both the idea of not inflicting knowing harm, and not engaging in achieves that risk harming others (Forester-Miller & Rubenstein, 1992). 3. Beneficence reflects the counselors responsibility to add together to the welfare of the client. Simply stated it spuriouss to do good, to be proactive and likewise to prevent harm when possible (Forester-Miller & Rubenstein, 1992). 4. Justice does not mean treating all individuals the same.Kitchener (1984) points out that the formal meaning of justice is treating equals equally and unequals raggedly but in proportion to their relevant differences (p. 49). If an individual is to be interact differently, the counselor needs to be able to off er a principle that explains the necessity and appropriateness of treating this individual differently. 5. Fidelity involves the notions of loyalty, faithfulness, and honoring commitments. Clients must be able to trust the counselor and have faith in the healing(p) relationship if growth is to occur.Therefore, the counselor must take care not to threaten the therapeutic relationship nor to leave obligations unfulfilled. When exploring an ethical dilemma, you need to realise the situation and natter how each of the above principles may relate to that item case. At times this alone will clarify the issues enough that the operator for resolving the dilemma will become obvious to you. In more(prenominal) than complicated cases it is helpful to be able to work through the steps of an ethical decision making model, and to assess which of these moral principles may be in conflict.Ethical Decision Making Model We have incorporated the work of Van Hoose and paradise (1979), Kitche ner (1984), Stadler (1986), Haas and Malouf (1989), Forester-Miller and Rubenstein (1992), and Sileo and Kopala (1993) into a practical, sequential, seven step, ethical decision making model. A description and discussion of the steps follows. 1. Identify the Problem. Gather as much tuition as you can that will illuminate the situation. In doing so, it is important to be as specific and objective as possible. piece of music ideas on paper may help you gain clarity.Outline the facts, separating out innuendos, assumptions, hypotheses, or suspicions. There are several questions you can ask yourself Is it an ethical, efficacious, professional, or clinical problem? Is it a combination of more than one of these? If a legal question exists, seek legal advice. Other questions that it may be usable to ask yourself are Is the issue related to me and what I am or am not doing? Is it related to a client and/or the clients profound others and what they are or are not doing? Is it related to the institution or agency and their policies and procedures?If the problem can be resolved by implementing a policy of an institution or agency, you can look to the agencys guidelines. It is good to toy with that dilemmas you face are often complex, so a useful guideline is to examine the problem from several perspectives and avoid searching for a simplistic solution. 2. Apply the ACA ordinance of Ethics. After you have clarified the problem, refer to the Code of Ethics (ACA, 2005) to see if the issue is addressed there. If there is an applicable sample or several standards and they are specific and clear, following the stratum of action indicated should lead to a resolution of the problem.To be able to apply the ethical standards, it is essential that you have read them carefully and that you understand their implications. If the problem is more complex and a resolution does not seem apparent, then you likely have a true ethical dilemma and need to proceed with further steps in the ethical decision making process. 3. witness the nature and dimensions of the dilemma. There are several avenues to follow in dedicate to ensure that you have examined the problem in all its various dimensions. cypher the moral principles of autonomy, nonmaleficence, beneficence, justice, and fidelity. Decide which principles apply to the specific situation, and determine which principle takes antecedence for you in this case. In theory, each principle is of equal value, which means that it is your challenge to determine the priorities when two or more of them are in conflict. o Review the relevant professional literature to ensure that you are using the most current professional thinking in reaching a decision. o Consult with experienced professional abetter _or_ abettors and/or supervisors.As they review with you the information you have gathered, they may see other issues that are relevant or provide a perspective you have not considered. They may also be able to ident ify aspects of the dilemma that you are not viewing objectively. o Consult your state or national professional associations to see if they can provide help with the dilemma. 4. Generate potential run-ins of action. Brainstorm as many possible courses of action as possible. Be creative and consider all pickaxes. If possible, enlist the assistance of at least one colleague to help you generate options. . go through the potential consequences of all options and determine a course of action. Considering the information you have gathered and the priorities you have set, evaluate each option and assess the potential consequences for all the parties involved. Ponder the implications of each course of action for the client, for others who will be final resulted, and for yourself as a counselor.Eliminate the options that clearly do not give the desired results or cause even more problematic consequences. Review the remaining options to determine which option or ombination of options tro unce fits the situation and addresses the priorities you have identified. 6. Evaluate the selected course of action. Review the selected course of action to see if it presents any fresh ethical considerations. Stadler (1986) suggests applying three simple auditions to the selected course of action to ensure that it is appropriate. In applying the test of justice, assess your own intelligence of fairness by determining whether you would treat others the same in this situation. For the test of publicity, ask yourself whether you would want your behavior reported in the press.The test of catholicity asks you to assess whether you could recommend the same course of action to another counselor in the same situation. If the course of action you have selected seems to present new ethical issues, then youll need to go back to the beginning and value each step of the process. Perhaps you have chosen the wrong option or you might have identified the problem incorrectly. If you can respond in the affirmative to each of the questions suggested by Stadler (thus passing the tests of justice, publicity, and universality) and you are contented that ou have selected an appropriate course of action, then you are ready to incline on to implementation. 7. Implement the course of action. Taking the appropriate action in an ethical dilemma is often difficult. The final step involves strengthening your self-importance to allow you to carry out your plan. After implementing your course of action, it is good work out to follow up on the situation to assess whether your actions had the anticipated effect and consequences. The Ethical Decision Making Model at a glitter 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. Identify the problem. Apply the ACA Code of Ethics.Determine the nature and dimensions of the dilemma. Generate potential courses of action. Consider the potential consequences of all options, choose a course of action. Evaluate the selected course of action. Implement the course of action. I t is important to realize that different professionals may implement different courses of action in the same situation. There is rarely one right answer to a complex ethical dilemma. However, if you follow a systematic model, you can be assured that you will be able to give a professional explanation for the course of action you chose.Van Hoose and Paradise (1979) suggest that a counselor is probably acting in an ethically responsible way concerning a client if (1) he or she has retained individualised and professional honesty, coupled with (2) the best interests of the client, (3) without malice or personal gain, and (4) can justify his or her actions as the best judgment of what should be done based upon the current state of the profession (p. 58). Following this model will help to ensure that all four of these conditions have been met.