Counseling Chapter 6 Each Group Will Then Responsible Role Play The Ethical Dilemmas And Discuss

CHAPTER 6:

ETHICAL AND LEGAL ISSUES

NOTE FROM AUTHORS

We believe that the issue of ethics runs through everything we do in the helping

profession. Although it may be impossible to understand every ethical principle or law,

we do hope our students can begin to learn the process of critical thinking necessary for

BRIEF OVERVIEW OF CHAPTER

The importance of ethical and legal issues specific to human services is a major

theme of this chapter. An overview of both the common and special ethical and legal

issues typically encountered by human services workers is presented and briefly

discussed. Common issues include such topics as: Informed consent, confidentiality,

KEY CONCEPTS AND TERMS

Ethical Decision Making

Principle and Virtue Ethics

Ethical Dilemmas

Unethical Behavior in Oneself and Others

Informed Consent

Confidentiality

Release of Information

Safeguarding Records

Breach of Confidentiality

GOALS AND OBJECTIVES

Upon completion of this chapter it is anticipated that following goals and objectives

will have been met:

▪ Understands the dimensions of ethical decision making

▪ Knowledge of the difference between ‘principle’ versus ‘virtue’ ethics

▪ Cognizant of ethical dilemmas and tenants of various ethical decision making

models

▪ Understands the concept of Privileged Communication

▪ Cognizant of advances in technology and issues of privacy

▪ Possesses a sound understanding of child abuse: definition, types characteristics

of abusive families, risk factors, legalities, and helpful interventions

▪ Knowledge of Elder Abuse: scope of the problem, types, implications, and helpful

interventions

▪ Awareness of the issues tied to Emotional abuse

▪ Possesses a sound understanding of Intimate Partner Violence (Domestic

Violence or Spousal abuse): the cycle of violence, predictive risk factors,

reporting responsibilities, and helpful interventions.

▪ Cognizant of both the ethical and legal issues surrounding AIDS: definition of,

transmission, risk factors, psycho-social factors, and helpful interventions

IDEAS FOR EXPERIENTIALLY INTRODUCING THE CHAPTER

1. Students are asked to define the terms ‘ethical’ and ‘unethical’ based on their

personal experiences or from their work with others. This could launch into a class

discussion about ethics and their relevancy to Human Services.

2. Each student is asked to identify on a 3 x 5 card the ethical issue(s) they believe

they will struggle with the most. The cards are collected and randomly redistributed.

3. Taking #2 above a step further, the instructor could quickly tally the responses when

cards were initially collected looking for basic themes. Once complete, students

4. As the instructor you can survey the class by asking students if they have ever

experienced a situation in which they believed their privacy was invaded and/or

CONCLUDING EXERCISES AND ROLE PLAYS

1. A vignette is provided to the class that involves both an ethical dilemma and legal

issue. The class is asked to identify both the ethical and legal issues noted in the

2. Students are asked to provide a written description on 5 x 7 cards of a situation in

which they have experienced unethical behavior in themselves or by another human

3. Groups of four are each given a topic describing an ethical or legal issue. The topics

to be used include: Child Abuse, Elder Abuse, Dependent Adult Care Abuse,

(Please see text for additional concluding exercises)

IDEAS FOR DISCUSSION AND FURTHER THOUGHT

1. For a period of 3 to 4 weeks students are asked to use a journal where they keep

2. Students can interview a professional at their fieldwork placement about the most

difficult ethical dilemma they have encountered and how they handled it. Students

may present results to class.

3. Students are asked to honestly engage in an introspective process whereby they:

EXAM QUESTIONS

MULTIPLE CHOICE QUESTIONS

1. What statement below most clearly identifies with “principle ethics”?

a. The focus is on the character of the helper who aspires to engage in ethical

behaviors.

2. Informed consent relates best to which of the following

a. Safeguarding records

b. Privileged communication

3. Breach of confidentiality is

a. Considered an exception to confidentiality

b. Occurs when clients share their treatment experiences with others

4. The SAD PERSONS Scale is used to assess the risk of:

a. Child abuse

5. A court decision which mandates reporting of clients who present a serious danger

to others is called?

a. Taralton Decision

b. Department of Justice Decision

6. According to the literature AIDS can be transmitted by:

a. An airborne virus

SHORT ANSWERS

7. What are the four types of child abuse described in the text?

9. Describe a type of ‘dual relationship’. How might entering into this type of

relationship interfere with the helping process?

ESSAY QUESTION

10. Discuss the ethical/legal issues relevant to the following issues:

Child Abuse, Suicide, Homicide, Intimate Partner Violence, AIDS and Dual

ADDITIONAL SUGGESTIONS:

Movies/Videos:

My Doctor, My Lover, Breaking the Silence, Shattered Spirits, The Burning Bed,

Philadelphia Story, Antoine Fisher, Mystic River, Sleepers, Mumford

Recommended Readings:

When Rabbit Howls by Truddi Chase, The Hitting Habit: Anger Control for Battering

Self Awareness Assignments:

Final Exam

DIRECTIONS FOR TEST:

This is essentially a second Midterm as it covers material presented after the

midterm. As in the first Midterm, questions are drawn from class lectures and

discussion, course text (Chapters 6-9), and class handouts. There are three parts to

this exam:

1. Multiple Choice Questions – These are to be recorded on the appropriate scantron.

2. Short Answers – These are intended to be a succinct response to the question. A

3. Essay Questions – These are more in-depth questions which are designed to test

analytic skills and comprehension. Responses should be written in a concise, yet

thorough manner that reflects University level writing. Answers are to be drawn