Ethical Decisions in School Psychology
Transcript of Ethical Decisions in School Psychology
SchoolPsychologyProgram Department of Educational Psychology
Ethical Decisions in School Psychology
AnnieHansen-Burke,PhD,ElyseM.Farnsworth,PhD,&AmandaSullivan,PhD
Department of Educational Psychology
Learning Objectives • IdentifyanddeEineethicsandNASPethicalobligations
• Explainwhyethicsarefoundationaltoschoolpsychologicalpractices
• Identifycommonethicalpitfallsandstrategiestopreventthesemissteps
• Articulateandapplythe8-stepethicalproblem-solvingmodeltoaddressethicaldilemmas
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WHAT ARE ETHICS?
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Think – Pair – Share Whatareethicsandwhyaretheyimportant?
Ethics Broadly
A system of principles that guide behavior • Acceptable social and
personal behaviors
Distinct from morals, which are fundamental
Applied Professional Ethics
A system of principles and rules for professional
practice
Guide conduct in professional interactions
Protect the clients of the profession
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Basis of Our Practice
Public trust
Sensitivity to ethics
Awareness of law
Proactive conduct
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Practical Definition of Ethics
Moral Judgment
Common Sense
Ethical Behavior
Application of moral values to daily decision making
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Professional Ethics
Prescribe how professionals in a given field pursue their common ideals
Describe obligations to the profession, consumers, and the public
Contextualize our professional work
Are dynamic
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Group Discussion
Whyareethicalcodesimperfectguidesforourbehaviorasschoolpsychologists?
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Ethical Competence
Aware
Informed Proactive
and Positive
Analytic
Reflective
Flexible
Committed
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NASP ETHICS CODE REVIEW
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NASP Ethics Code = School-focused Code
School psychologists as state actors
Obligation to protect all students
Balancing parent and school authority
Multidisciplinary problem-solving and intervention
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What is enforceable?
Principles Standards
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Which theme?
RESPECTING THE DIGNITY AND RIGHTS OF ALL PERSONS • School psychologists engage only in professional
practices that maintain the dignity of all individuals. In their words and actions, school psychologists demonstrate respect for the autonomy of persons and their right to self-determination, respect for privacy, and a commitment to just and fair treatment of all persons.
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Which theme?
HONESTY AND INTEGRITY IN PROFESSIONAL RELATIONSHIPS • To foster and maintain trust, school psychologists
must be faithful to the truth and adhere to their professional promises. They are forthright about their qualifications, competencies, and roles; work in full cooperation with other professional disciplines to meet the needs of students and families; and avoid multiple relationships that diminish their professional effectiveness.
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Which theme?
PROFESSIONAL COMPETENCE AND RESPONSIBILITY • Beneficence, or responsible caring, means that
the school psychologist acts to benefit others. To do this, school psychologists must practice within the boundaries of their competence, use scientific knowledge from psychology and education to help clients and others make informed choices, and accept responsibility for their work.
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Which theme(s)?
RESPECTING THE DIGNITY AND RIGHTS OF ALL PERSONS
• School psychologists engage only in professional practices that maintain the dignity of all individuals. In their words and actions, school psychologists demonstrate a commitment to just and fair treatment of all persons.
RESPONSIBILITY TO SCHOOLS, FAMILIES, COMMUNITIES, THE PROFESSION, AND SOCIETY
• School psychologists promote healthy school, family, and community environments. They maintain the public trust in school psychologists by respecting law and encouraging ethical conduct. School psychologists advance professional excellence by mentoring less experienced practitioners and contributing to the school psychology knowledge base.
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Respect for Dignity • Promoteimprovementinqualityoflife• Protectdignityandrights
– Autonomy– Self-determination– Privacy– ConEidentiality– Fairness– Justice
• Children’sinterestsandrightsasthehighestpriority
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Privacy & Confidentiality
Establish boundaries of confidentiality at the outset of the relationship.
Do not seek or store information not needed for the provision of services.
Discuss confidential info only with people with legitimate need to know.
Where confidentiality is promised/implied, seek permission for disclosure
Whencaninformationbereleasedwithouttheclient/parent’spermission?• Dangertoself• Dangertoothers• Abuse/Neglect
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Fairness & Justice
Cultivate safe and welcoming school climates for all.
Do not engage in or condone discriminatory practices or
policies.
Work to correct discriminatory practices.
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Responsibility to Society Promote healthy
environments
Speak up for the needs and rights of children
Know and respect federal and state laws and
policies
Contribute to teaching, mentoring, supervision,
and research
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Honesty & Integrity
Be truthful
and open.
Explain competence and services clearly.
Engage in cooperative,
respectful relationships.
Avoid harmful relationships and
conflicts of interest.
Do not exploit others.
Do not take credit for others’ work.
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Accurate Presentation of Qualifications & Services
Accurately identify qualifications
Correctly identify misrepresentations
Do not misrepresent affiliations
Don’t use affiliations to imply competence
Accurately represent the scope and nature of services
Explain services
Establish clear roles
Explain commitment to children as clients
Make priorities and commitments known
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Example: Goodtown Wellness Clinic
• JamesDean,MA,LMFT,CouplesandFamilyTherapy,(123)456-0789
• CharlieBrown,RN,MA,LifeCoach,(123)456-9078• JaneDoe,PhD,ABD,LicensedSchoolPsychologist,ChildPsychology,(123)456-7890
• KimScott,CMT,TherapeuticMassage,(123)456-8907
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Example: Goodtown Charter • JamesDean,MA,SchoolPsychology,(123)456-0789• CharlieBrown,BA,SchoolPsychologist,(123)456-9078
• MeredithGrey,PhD-ABD,LicensedSchoolPsychologist(123)456-7890
• StevenTyler,EdS,NCSP,Psychologist,(123)456-8907
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Competence & Responsibility
Engage in practices
that will benefit or
at least do no harm.
• Practice within bounds of competence.
• Use scientific knowledge to help clients
• Accept responsibility for work.
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SCHOOL PSYCHOLOGISTS BEHAVING BADLY – COMMON MISSTEPS
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Common Ethical Violations: State Boards 1. Dualrelationships(sexualand/ornonsexual)2. Unprofessionalornegligentpractice3. Fraud4. Convictionofcrimes5. Inadequateorimpropersupervision6. Impairment7. ConEidentiality8. Recordsanddocumentation9. Usingfalseinformationinapplyingforalicense
Pope, K. S., & Vasquez, M. J. T. (1998). Ethics in Therapy & Counseling, Second Edition. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
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Common Malpractice Claims 1. Sexualviolations2. Incompetenceindevelopingorimplementingatreatmentplan3. Lossfromevaluation4. BreachofconEidentialityorprivacy5. Improperdiagnosis6. Other(amysteriouscategoryofindividualclaimsnotfalling
intoanyothercategory)7. Suicide8. Defamation9. Countersuitforfeecollection10. Violationofcivilrights11. Lossofchildcustodyorvisitation12. Failuretosuperviseproperly13. Improperdeathofpatientorthirdparty14. Violationoflegalregulations15. Licensingorpeerreviewissues16. Breachofcontract
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Ethical Transgressions Witnessed by School Psychologists • Assessment–conditions,out-of-datetests,notprovidinginterpretations,unsubstantiatedrecommendations,inappropriatetestselection,blindlysigningoffoncomputergeneratedreports,allowingunqualiEiedpeopletoadministertests(86%)
• Intervention–failingtomonitorinterventions,makingnon-research-basedrecommendations,makingpunitiverecommendations(79%)
• Yieldingtoadministrativepressureagainstbestinterestsofchild(76%)
• Yieldingtoparentpressureagainstbestinterestsofchild(48%)Dailor, A. N., & Jacob, S. (2011). Ethically challenging situations reported by school psychologists: Implications or training. Psychology in the Schools, 48, 619-631.
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Ethical Transgressions Witnessed by School Psychologists • Recordkeeping–transmittingdocumentsunsecured,withholding/destroyingrecordsbeforeparentreview(38%)
• Competence–failingtomaintain,practiceoutsideboundsof,misrepresenting(36%)
• ConEidentiality–disclosingtootherswithoutneedtoknow(33%)
• Dualrelationships–providingservicestofriends/family;solicitingschoolclientstoprivatepractice,enteringrelationshipwithstudent(20%)
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Ethical Transgressions among School Psychology Trainees 1. Servicesoutsideofcompetence2. Sexualharassment3. Academicmisconduct–e.g.,forgery,fabricationofassignments
orhours,cheating,gradechanging4. ConEidentiality–e.g.,leavingEilesunattended,gossipingabout
client5. Researchmisconduct–plagiarism6. Impropercomplaints7. MisrepresentationofqualiEications8. Failuretoobtaininformedconsent
Tryon, G. S. (2000). Ethical transgressions of school psychology graduate students: A critical incidents survey. Ethics & Behavior, 10, 271-279.
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It’s Not Unethical If…
• Thecodenevermentionsit• Nolawisbroken• Wedidn’t/couldn’tanticipatetheconsequences• Itwouldhavebeenreallyhardtodoitanotherway• Anadministratorsuggestedit• Aconsultantsuggestedit• Ireadsomethingsuggestingit• Othersaredoingit• Wedidn’tmeantohurtanyone• Wegotsomethingreallygoodoutofit• Wearevictimsofsomethingtoo
Pope, K. S., & Vasquez, M. J. (2011). Ethics in psychotherapy and counseling: A practical guide (4th ed.). San Francisco, CA: John Wiley & Sons.
Common Ethical Fallacies
(Well, actually it is.)
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It’s Not Unethical If…
• Wecansayanyofthefollowing:– "WhatelsecouldIdo?"– "Anyoneelsewould'vedonethesamething."– "Itcamefromtheheart."– "Ilistenedtomysoul."– "Iwentwithmygut."– "Itwasthesmartthingtodo."– "Itwasjustcommonsense."– "Ijustknewthat'swhattheclientneeded."– "Look,Iwasjuststuckbetweenarockandahardplace."– "I'ddothesamethingagainifIhadittodoover."– "Itworkedbefore."– "I'monlyhuman,youknow!"– "What'sthebigdeal? (Yep, still
unethical.)
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It’s Not Unethical If…
• Wepassivelyacknowledgeitandmoveon• Weacknowledgetheimportanceofjudgment,consistently,andcontext
• Theaffectedpersonwasn’tthatgreat• Theaffectedpersondidn’tcomplain• Thereisn’tdeEinitivescientiEicproofthatwhatwedidwasthecauseofharm
• We’rean“expert”init• Weknowpeoplehighup (Still
unethical...)
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Think – Pair - Share
• Whatfactorscancontributetovulnerabilitytoethicalmissteps?• Howcanwebolsterourresilience?
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What Interferes with ethics? • Time• Peerpressure• Administratorpressure• Cost• Avoidance• Arrogance• ConElictingrules,standards,guidelines• Ignorance
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Non-rational Processes
Processes Example
Why should we attend to these processes?
How can we reduce the effects of these processes?
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Continuum of Affected Functioning
Stress Distress Impairment Improper behavior
Intervention/ Sanction
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Potential Dilemmas
Competing ethical principles
Ethics-law conflict
Conflicting interests
Dual role conflicts Poor practices
Applying broad principles to
specific situations
➢ Think of an example of each.
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ETHICAL DECISION-MAKING
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3 Approaches to RESOLVING ETHCIAL PROBLEMS
Common sense • Common situations • Minimal risks • Often addressed without conscious deliberation
Simple resolution strategies
• Minimal conflict • Relatively obvious solutions that are easy to implement
Systematic problem solving
• Significant conflict • High stakes outcome
• Few clear-cut options for resolution
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Ethical Decision-making
• Principled
• Reasoned
• Universalized
Ethical aspirations
Contextual
considerations
Actions should be:
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So What Informs Ethical Decision-Making?
• Professionalknowledge– Professionalethics– Reasoning
• Personalvalues
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Think – Pair - Share
Whatareyourcorevaluesasaschoolpsychologistorschool
psychologisttrainee?
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When In Doubt, Consult • Colleagues• APAEthicsCommitteeMembers• NASPEthicsandProfessionalPracticeCommittee
• StateAssociationEthicsCommitteeMembers• UniversityCommittees• IRB
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Map Your Network
Inacrisisordilemma,whoorwhatwouldyouconsult?
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Simple Problem Solving Steps • Whatistheproblem?• Whataremyoptions?• Decision&action• Howdiditwork?
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8-Step Problem-Solving Model 1. Identifytheproblem2. Identifypotentialethicalissues3. Identifylegal,caselaw,policyissues4. Namepotentialresourcesandconsultations5. Identifyrightsandresponsibilitiesofallparties6. Generateseveralpotentialsolutions7. Identifypotentialpositiveandnegativeconsequencesof
eachsolution8. Chooseasolutionandexplainwhyitisthebestcourseof
action
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Other Resources • http://nasponline.org/standards/index.aspx• http://idea.ed.gov• http://wrightslaw.com/• http://www.pacer.org/• http://www.apa.org/topics/ethics/index.aspx• http://www.apa.org/topics/law/index.aspx• http://kspope.com• http://ori.hhs.gov
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PROBLEM-SOLVING APPLICATION
Ingroups,applythe8-stepethicalproblem-solvingmodeltoacommonethicalscenario.
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PROACTIVE ETHICAL PRACTICES
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Continuous Ethical Development
Seek new information
Think critically Be aware of vulnerabilities
Always question
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NASP Essential Ethics: Developing Ethical Practice
• Developapositiveapproachtoethics–striveforexcellence
• Beethicallyproactive• Keepuptodateinethicsandlaw.• Useasystemicdecision-makingprocess• DiscussconEidentialitywitheveryclientattheoutsetanddoaspromised
NASP. (2011). Essential ethics for early career school psychologists. Bethesda, MA: Author.
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NASP Essential Ethics: Developing Ethical Practice
• DeEineyourroletoencompassadvocacyforevidence-basedpracticeandadherencetoethics
• Whenadvocatingforchanges,emphasizepositives• Worktobuildsystemcapacitytosupportbetteroutcomes
• Beclearaboutyourrolewhenspeakingaboutpoliciesandpractices
• Berespectfulofothersatalltimes.
NASP. (2011). Essential ethics for early career school psychologists. Bethesda, MA: Author.
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10 Ways to Avoid Ethical Pitfalls 1. Knowwhatconstitutesmultiplerelationships,howtoanalyzerisks,andhowtoresolveissues
2. ProtectconEidentiality–discussthelimits,ensureappropriatestorage,knowthelaws,obeymandatoryreporting
3. Respectautonomy–striveforinformedconsent
Smith, D. (2003). 10 ways practitioners can avoid frequent ethical pitfalls. Monitor on Psychology, 34(1), 50.
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10 Ways to Avoid Ethical Pitfalls 4. Knowsupervisoryresponsibilities–establish
proceduresforfeedback,detailnatureofrelationshipatoutset,betransparentwithclients,ensureappropriatedelegation
5. Clearlyidentifyclientandroles–strivefortransparency
6. Document,document,document
Smith, D. (2003). 10 ways practitioners can avoid frequent ethical pitfalls. Monitor on Psychology, 34(1), 50.
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10 Ways to Avoid Ethical Pitfalls 7. Onlyengageinworkforwhichyouhaveexpertise8. Knowthedifferencebetweenabandonmentandtermination9. Sticktotheevidence–baseevaluations(inassessment,
expertopinion,testimony)ontheavailabledata.Knowthereferralquestion,selectappropriatetests,dothoroughassessments,recognizelimitations
10. Billaccurately–services,dates,diagnoses
Smith, D. (2003). 10 ways practitioners can avoid frequent ethical pitfalls. Monitor on Psychology, 34(1), 50.
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Self-Check
Would I want it made
public?
Would I recommend it to a peer?
Is the action fair?