Morals and values is something that every individual may uphold in life. So similar to such, so do professional organizations, especially those within the human services profession. With those morals and values, which are also called professional ethics, comes codes of conduct. Codes of conduct are rules and regulations that are set in place to help avoid conflict and adversity within professional environments. These rules and regulations are also set in place to help maintain the safety and welfare of both the professionals and the clients. However, while there are several arenas within the human services field, it allows the opportunity for numerous professional associations to be available within our society. Being that I am an individual who is passionate about helping others within their times of adversity as well as advocating for diversity/equality, the American Counseling Association’s code of ethics is what I would adhere within the mentioned professional environment.
The American Counseling Association (ACA) is the world’s largest professional association that was founded in 1952. The ACA places emphasis on growth and enhancement within the counseling profession with their headquarters being located in Alexandria, VA. However, their code of ethics did not come into existence until 1963; eleven years after their existence. Since then, their code of ethics has been revised twice due changes with our society and other social justice issues. Its latest revised went into effect July 1, 2005 with the approval from the ACA Governing Council. Although its approval was by Governing Council, it was the ACA’s Ethics Code Revision Taskforce who took on the assignment of revising their code of ethics. Yet, its current code of ethic...
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...policies and procedures assist employees with conflict but they will also assist with setting the standard within the professional environment as it relates to the safety and welfare or the clients and the professionals as well. Along with the continuous changes within society, these codes of ethics and conduct would have to be updated to adhere to those changes; however not saying that they have to be changed every year.
Works Cited
American Counseling Association (2005). 2005 ACA code of ethics. Retrieved from
http://www.counseling.org/Resources/aca-code-of-ethics.pdf
Race, D. G. (2003). Leadership and Change is Human Services: Select Readings From Wolf
Wolfensberger. New York: Routledge
American Counseling Association (2005). Highlights of the ACA Code of Ethics. Retrieved
from http://www.counseling.org/docs/ethics/ethics_highlights.pdf?sfvrsn=2
Ethics and counseling. Counseling & Human Development, 13(1), 1-12. ASGW (2007) Best Practice Guidelines.
It is important as a professional health care provider to have guidelines, regulations, and ethical standards to obey when providing care to the public. The ACA is to improve the quality of professional counselors in the community with education, knowledge, and guidelines by providing an ACA Code of Ethics standard when delivering treatment toward a clientele (American Counseling Association, 2015). One particular part of the ACA mission that is essential, is the ACA Code of Ethics. The purpose of the ACA Code of Ethics is a guide to ensure counselors in training and professional counselors understand the ethical obligations toward clients, possible grievances for conduct unbecoming, and professional responsibilities, which supports the ACA
I believe that every company should encourage a relationship of trust, loyalty, honesty, and responsibility among staff members at all levels. It’s important that each staff member works together to achieve excellence in a business, so the code of conduct is put in place. The purpose of the code is to provide guidance and set common ethical standards for employees from the top of the food chain to the bottom of the food chain. Some of the areas that I find to be significant of importance in a business are sexual harassment, discrimination and simply being professional in a work environment.
The NAEYC Code of Ethical Conduct was developed to uphold the application of core values, ideals, and principles to assist teachers’ decision-making about ethical issues. The Core Values of the NAEYC Code of Ethical Conduct is based on the foundation of the field's commitment to young children. It is noteworthy that all seven of the Code's Core Values directly address our commitment to children:
After looking through the codes of ethics in which were presented, I decided to compare and contrast the American Psychological Association (APA) code of ethics to the International Association of Chiefs of Police Officer (IACP) code of ethics. When comparing the two codes, I was quite surprised as to what I came across. For example, she APA code of ethics is quite comprehensive in comparison to the IACP. For example, the APA code of ethics sets forth general principles, ethical standards, rules and procedures to follow, possible sanctions one could receive, and provides guidance for psychologists and organizations who choose to adopt them. Where as, in comparison the IACP code of ethics is barely a code of ethics as it represents more of what
The ACA Code of Ethics and the AACC Code of Ethics are both written for those involved in the field of counseling and helping others and are written with a central focus on the well being and protection of clients. The major difference leading to most other distinctions in these two codes is centered on the guiding principals and goals of each organization. The ACA code is written from a secular perspective with emphasis on human development and embracing diverse cultures, ideas, beliefs, and lifestyles while the AACC (2004) code is written from a biblical perspective with its primary goals being “to bring honor to Jesus Christ and his church, promote excellence in Christian Counseling, and bring unity to Christian counselors” (pg. 3). The AACC code is written with respect to much more specific beliefs and thus, in many areas, provides more specific ...
American Counseling Association (2005). ACA Code of Ethics. Alexandria, VA: Author. - See more at: http://www.counseling.org/knowledge-center/ethics#sthash.13ImD8Lb.dpuf
and research participants and seek training in areas in which they are at risk of imposing their values onto clients, especially when the counselor?s values are inconsistent with the client?s goals or are discriminatory in nature. (ACA Code of Ethics 2014, 2014) This is a very important point in the ACA Code of Ethics. And in the textbook ?Issues and Ethics in the Helping Professions? it is stated that one does not automatically make a referral for a client that has different value sets than the counselor. It can be worked out through consultation and supervision. (Corey, Scheider Corey, Corey, & Callanan, 2015, 2011) The following will explore these themes and hopefully put it to rest.
The National Association of Social Work's Code of Ethics is not only something that is crucial to someone in the field of Social Work but can also be applied to everyday life. These values in which the Code of Ethics mandates professionals to use are very important in knowing how to help clients in bettering their lives, and in help society as a whole become a better place. Service, social justice, dignity and worth of the person, importance of human relationships, integrity, and competence are all the core values of Ethics and should be learned and practiced by all, not only Social Workers (NASW, 2008).
Linde, L.E., Erford, B.T., & Cheung, A. (2010). Ethical and Legal Issues in Counseling. In B.T. Erford (Ed.), Orientations to the Counseling Profession: Advocacy, ethics, and essential professional foundations (pp.55-92). New Jersey: Pearson.
National Association of Social Workers [NASW]. (1998). The New NASW Code of Ethics Can Be Your Ally: Part I. Retrieved from: http://www.naswma.org/displaycommon.cfm?an=1&subarticlenbr=96
O’Conner pinpointed ( as cited in Chenoweth& McAuliffe, p. 78) that the code of ethics is clearly linked to the process of professionalization which establishes guideline for professional behavior, assist in establishing a professional identity, provide self-regulation measures, protect clients from incompetent practitioners and protect worker from malpractice lawsuits. The primary responsibility of worker is to promote the well-being of clients. As a disability worker, Code of ethics is intended to assist all workers collectively and individually to act in ethically accountable ways. It helps to identify the ideals and purpose of the social work profession. In instances when clients are not receiving services, the worker should provide information about nature and extent of services.. In the same way, in the field of disability, the code of ethics is the core document which informs and guides the ethical practice of disability worker (AAAW, 2010). The human services professional protects the integrity, safety, and security of clients records, and the professional should be aware that
Ethical issues in a counseling practice lay the foundation of a therapist in practice. Ethics are at the center of how the counseling process functions and operates in a successful manner for the clients who seek help in such a setting. In order for the counseling profession to be ethical and hold professional recognition, there are many facets that need to be examined and outlined to make sure all counselors and practitioners are functioning at the highest level and withholding their duties required by the counseling profession. The first introduction so to speak of the area of ethics also happens to be one of the first steps in counseling, which is the informed consent. The informed consent provides the basis of what happens or will be happening in a counseling setting and serves to inform the client to their rights, responsibilities, and what to expect. Most importantly, the informed consent is in place for the client’s benefit. It also is important to understand that culture and environment play a role in the treatment of a client and how theories can positively or negatively impact this treatment. Therapists need to understand how to work within the context of a theory while being able to understand the individual in their own environment. Although theories are put into place to serve as a framework, there are also alternative ways to approach counseling, one example being evidence-based practice. Such an approach is very specific, which presents a series of solutions for counseling as a whole, but also brings forth many problems. Every approach or theory introduces ethical concerns that need to be taken into consideration by the entire counseling community and how each can positively and negatively affect clients and the pr...
The ACA code of ethics “reflects the counseling profession’s understanding of changes in the role of the professional or changes in the society counselors serve” (Ponton & Duba, 2009, p. 119). The ACA code of ethics discusses many things counselors need to keep in mind when counseling an individual or a group. Some topics addressed are informed consent, confidentiality, and group work (ACA code of ethics, 2006, pp. 236-238). All three of these topics are all issues counselors will encounter in counseling a group or an individual.
Prior to having the class of Professional Values and Ethics, I assumed I understood the basic concepts of what defines a professional who has competence of values and ethics. Nevertheless, by being enrolled in this course, I have gained great knowledge of which professional values and ethical principles must be held by a social worker, which I did not know before. Progressively in this class, by learning professional values and ethics, my motivation to succeed as an upcoming social worker has gotten stronger.