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CHAPTER 9
Human Services and Ethical Practice
CHAPTER GOALS
2. To explore the ethical dilemmas encountered in human service delivery
3. To introduce a model for ethical decision-making in human services
CHAPTER OBJECTIVES
At the end of the chapter, students will be able to:
1.2 Summarize the influence of law, diversity, and technology on codes of ethics
3.1 List the steps in the ethical decision-making model
3.2 Apply the ethical decision making model to an ethical dilemma
READINGS
Introduction to Human Services – Chapter 9
Introduction to Human Services: Cases and Application – Chapter 9
CHAPTER SUMMARY
Chapter Nine introduces the professional concerns that are part of every human
service professional’s work. These include ethical considerations and dilemmas that are
part of day-to-day human service delivery.
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They have a number of purposes. One is to assist members of the profession in
establishing a professional identity. Other purposes include providing criteria for
evaluating the ethics of a professional’s practice and serving as a benchmark in the
They are only binding on the members of an organization and are based on the
premise that a profession polices itself. The law is generally supportive of ethical
standards or codes of ethics, although it may intervene and override when necessary to
Ethical concerns in a diverse society occur at both the individual level and the
cultural or societal level. Cultural competence in awareness, understanding, and skill is
one response to ethical concerns and diversity.
Four areas receive attention in codes of ethics. Competence is defined by
identifying standards for practice within the profession and is addressed by statements
area of concern, is the helper’s assurance that information is not shared. Two types are
privileged communication and relative confidentiality. Finally, clients’ rights refer to
privacy and informed consent. Professional disclosure statements provide information to
the client about the helper and his/her credentials.
The recently adopted Ethical Standards of Human Service Professionals is an
example of a code of ethics for a helping profession. It includes a preamble that
introduces the profession’s goals and standards that divide responsibilities into six areas:
clients, the community and society, colleagues, the profession, employers, and self.
CHAPTER OUTLINE
I. Ethical considerations
A. Codes of ethics
1. Purposes
a. Establish guidelines for professional
2. Limitations
3. Ethics and the profession
4. Codes of ethics and the law
a. Law is generally supportive of ethical standards
5. Ethics and diversity
a. Basic tenets of Codes of Ethics may not always apply to all
Formatted: Indent: Left: 1.5″
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6. Ethics and technology
a. Concerns include access to personal information, online
B. Competence and responsibility
2. Responsibility concerns obligations to others
C. Confidentiality
2. Some situations may require a breach of confidentiality
3. Types
D. Clients’ rights
2. Informed consent is the client’s agreement that information about the
3. Professional disclosure statements provide information about the
worker and his/her credentials
II. Ethical standards of human service professionals
A. Preamble introduces the profession’s goals
B. The standards divide responsibilities into six areas
1. Clients
3. Colleagues
5. Employers
6. Self
III. Ethical decision making
A. Model can be applied to many dilemmas
1. Key question: “what is the best action under the circumstances
and with individuals involved?”
3. Model has four steps
a. Identify the problem
b. Consult with colleagues or experts
INTRODUCING THE CHAPTER
Ask students to write a description of a time when they had to make a difficult decision.
They should include the following information:
2) Who was involved
4) The decision and how it was reached
LEARNING ACTIVITIES
Personal Ethics
Ask students to write a description of each of the following situations:
1) A time when it might be difficult to keep a client’s confidence
3) A time when the goals of your agency conflict with the goals of the client
4)5) A time when technology and confidentiality are in conflict.
Ethics and the Human Service Professional
Interview three human service workers about ethics. The following questions should
guide the interview:
1) What is the most common ethical dilemma you face?
2) Provide an example.
READING AND STUDY GUIDE: READ, REVIEW, APPLY
These questions may help the student’s identify important concepts as they read the
chapter.
1. What has increased the public’s awareness of ethical concerns for professional?
2. What is a code of ethics? Summarize its strengths and limitations.
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3. Provide an example of a conflict between standards.
4. Who is bound by a code of ethics?
5. What is the relationship between the law and a code of ethics?
6. What is the significance of Tarasoff vs Regents of the University of California?
7. Define competence.
9. List four types of dilemmas a human service professional may face in the area of
competence and responsibility.
11. Distinguish between privileged communication and relative confidentiality.
13. What is a professional disclosure statement?
14. Explain the obligation of protection.
16. Define ethical dilemma.
17. What is moral responsiblenss?
19. List the areas of standards identified by the Ethical Standards of Human Service
Professionals.
The following questions will help students in their review of the chapter.
1. What are codes of ethics? What is their purpose? What are their limitations?
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2. Why are competence and responsibility ethical issues? How will each influence a
human service professional’s relationship with a client?
3. Describe the components of the Ethical Standards of Human Service
Professionals.
6. How do professionals make ethical decisions?
7. How might a human service professional use the model for ethical decision–
making?
The following exercise allows students to apply what they have learned from the
chapter.
TEST ITEMS
Multiple Choice
1. Which of the following assists in the establishment of a professional identity for
members of a profession?
2. Which of the following intervenes and overrides professional codes of ethics only
when necessary to protect public health, safety, and welfare?
3. A code of ethics includes all but
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a. the goals of the profession
b. guidance for professional behavior
c. contributions to a professional identity
d.* instructions for all ethical dilemmas
4. Professionals have responded to the dilemmas of service provisions by
5. Tarasoff vs Regents of the University of California underscores the responsibility
of the helping professional to
6. A lack of confidentiality, limited training, and unequal access are ethical concerns
about
7. Statements in codes of ethics about academic training and supervised experience
refer to
8. The common ground between responsibility and competence is
9. The worker’s assurance that information the client divulges will remain between
the two of them reflects a commitment to
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a. friendship
b.* confidentiality
c. service
d. competence
10. What type of communication is a right granted to a group of professionals by state
law-making bodies?
11. The informal sharing of information that occurs in an agency or organizational
setting among co-workers or treatment team members and supervisors is referred
to as
12. To think through issues of confidentiality, the beginning human service
professional can use all EXCEPT
13. What term refers to the client’s right to know about helper qualifications,
treatment procedures, costs of services, confidentiality and access to records?
14. The helper “experiences conflict in determining an appropriate standard of
conduct regarding obligations to two or more constituencies” in which of the
following situations?
15. Which are two necessary components of moral reasoning?
16. The ethical decision making model includes all but one of the following steps
DISCUSSION
2. Briefly define “code of ethics” and discuss some of its purposes and limitations.
4. Discuss the types of confidentiality and provide examples of each.
5. Describe the concept of privileged communication. When is it important for the
human service worker?
7. Explain the steps involved in the ethical decision-making model.
8. Explain the ethical dilemmas that a professional encounters in daily human