Ethical Practice in Psychology: Reflections from the creators of the APS Code of Ethics

214 Pages·2010·2.5 MB·English

Ethical Practice in Psychology
“This important book chronicles the development of the 2007 APS Code of
Ethics, analyses key aspects of the extensive developmental process that under-
lies the Code, and explores the principles that have fashioned its content. It
will substantially enhance both ethical understanding of the contemporary
practice of psychology and the basis for ongoing regulation of psychologists.”
Dr Ian Freckelton, SC, Professor of Law, Forensic Psychology and Forensic
Medicine, Monash University, Australia
Ethical Practice in Psychology: Reflections from the creators of the APS Code of Ethics
Edited by Alfred Allan and Anthony Love
© 2010 John Wiley & Sons Ltd. ISBN: 978-0-470-68365-1
Ethical Practice in Psychology
Refl ections from the creators of the APS
Code of Ethics
Edited by Alfred Allan and Anthony Love
A John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., Publication
This edition fi rst published 2010
© 2010 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
Code of Ethics in Appendix
© The Australian Psychological Society Limited
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Ethical practice in psychology : refl ections from the creators of the APS Code of Ethics / edited
by Alfred Allan and Anthony Love.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-0-470-68365-1 (pbk.)
1. Psychologists–Professional ethics. 2. Professional ethics. I. Allan, Alfred. II. Love, A.
(Anthony), 1950–
BF76.4.E818 2010
174′.915–dc22
2009043697
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
Set in 10 on 12 pt Minion by Toppan Best-set Premedia Limited
Printed and bound in Singapore by Markono Print Media Pte Ltd
1 2010
Contents
List of Tables vii
Notes on Contributors ix
Foreword xiii
Preface xvii
1 Introduction 1
Alfred Allan
2 The Development of the 2007 Code 13
Alfred Allan and Mick Symons
3 The Functionality of the Australian Psychological Society’s 25
1997 and 2007 Codes of Ethics
Alfred Allan
4 Is a Psychologist Always a Psychologist, Ethically? 41
Some Observations Through a Wide Lens
William Warren
5 The Australian Psychological Society’s 2007 Code of Ethics: 53
An Observer’s Perspective
David Collier
6 The Principles that Underlie the 2007 Code 61
Alfred Allan
7 Consent, Privacy and Confi dentiality 77
Graham R. Davidson, Alfred Allan and Anthony W. Love
vi Contents
8 The 2007 APS Code in Relation to Professional Ethics Education 93
Anthony W. Love
9 Exploration of Psychologists’ Social Responsibilities:
How Does the 2007 APS Code of Ethics Measure Up? 103
Graham R. Davidson
10 Reviewing the APS Code of Ethics with Young People in Mind 123
Marie R. Joyce
11 Boundaries and Multiple Relationships 135
Sabine Hammond
12 The Regulation of Sexual Activity Between Psychologists and 149
Their Clients and Former Clients
Alfred Allan and Donald M. Thomson
13 Looking Forward 161
Anthony W. Love and Alfred Allan
Appendix: Code of Ethics 171
Index 203
List of Tables
Table 2.1 Papers presented at Roundtable meeting 15
Table 2.2 Structure of the 2007 Code of Ethics 22
Table 6.1 Principles in the authors ’ model 62
Table 6.2 Codes reviewed 64
Table 6.3 Shared principles 64
Notes on Contributors
Alfred Allan , LLB PhD, is Professor of Psychology at Edith Cowan University,
Australia. He is a member of the inaugural Psychology Board of Australia, the
former Chair of the Ethics Committee of the Australian Psychological Society
(APS), a former member of the Ethical Guidelines Committee of the APS and
a former Chair of the Ethics Committee of the Psychological Society of South
Africa. He is a member of a number of Institutional Ethics and Disciplinary
Committees. He is the author of two books on ethics and law in psychological
practice.
David Collier is currently the Chief Executive Offi cer of the Australian Insti-
tute of Radiography and is the former Chief Executive Offi cer of the Psy-
chologists Registration Board of Victoria, a position he held for fi ve years. In
this role he was intimately involved in the registration of psychologists and the
investigation and adjudication of complaints. He is also a former chair of the
Council of Psychologists Registration Boards of Australasia.
Graham R. Davidson , PhD, is an Emeritus Professor of Central Queensland
University, where he was Foundation Professor of Psychology from 1997–
2 004, writing and teaching in the areas of research and professional ethics. He
is a Fellow of the Australian Psychological Society and has served as Chair of
the APS Ethics Committee, a Member of the APS Ethical Guidelines Advisory
Group, Editor of the A ustralian Psychologist , and as APS Director of Com-
munications and APS Director of Social Issues. He has also served on the
Northern Territory Psychologists Registration Board and the Queensland
Psychologists Board.
x Notes on Contributors
Anthony W. Love, BA (Hons), MA (Clin Psych), Dip Ed (Tert), PhD, is Pro-
fessor of Psychology at the University of Ballarat. He is deeply interested in the
ethics of psychological practice and has been a member of a number of Insti-
tutional research ethics committees as well as the Ethics Committee of the
Australian Psychological Society. He teaches ethics and has done so to students
at all levels, from fi rst year through to professional doctorate, as he is a fi rm
supporter of the value of integrating ethics across all areas of psychological
curricula.
Sabine Hammond, PhD, is Associate Professor and Head of the national
School of Psychology at the Australian Catholic University. She is a former
member of the Ethics Committee of the Australian Psychological Society and
has served as a member of the Psychologists Registration Board of Victoria
since 2004.
Marie R. Joyce, PhD, is a Visiting Senior Research Fellow in the Quality of Life
and Social Justice Flagship at Australian Catholic University in Melbourne,
Australia. She is a practising Clinical Psychologist in the State of Victoria, a
Fellow of the Australian Psychological Society (APS) and is the current Chair
of the Ethical Guidelines Committee of the APS. She is a former Chair of the
APS Ethics Committee and has served as Chair of her university institutional
research ethics committee.
Mick Symons, BA (Hons), BEd (Counselling), MA, joined the National Offi ce
of the Australian Psychological Society (APS) 10 years ago and is currently the
Manager Member Services. In this capacity he is intimately involved in the
administration of ethics by the APS and plays a pivotal role in the functioning
of the Ethical Guidelines Committee of the APS, which creates and revises
ethical guidelines, and the Ethics Committee. He is also the author of a number
of publications on professional issues and ethics in publications of the APS.
Donald M. Thomson, BA, LLB, MA, PhD, is Honorary Professor, Centre for
the Mind, The University of Sydney, and Adjunct Professor, Sellinger Centre,
School of Law and Justice, Edith Cowan University. He was Foundation
Professor of Psychology at Charles Sturt University and Edith Cowan Univer-
sity, and was a barrister at the Victorian Bar. He is a former Chairman of
the Victorian Psychological Council and a former President of the Victorian
Psychologists Registration Board and a Fellow of the Australian Psychological
Society.
William Warren , BA (Hons), MA, M Psych (Clin), PhD, Dip Law (LPAB), is
a Conjoint Associate Professor in the University of Newcastle, Australia. He is
Notes on Contributors xi
a Fellow of the Australian Psychological Society, a member of the Clinical and
Forensic Colleges and is presently Chair of the Ethics Committee. A member
of the NSW Psychologists Registration Board since 1998, he has been in part-
t ime private practice and held an honorary appointment at the HNEAHS
Centre for Psychotherapy since 1980.
Foreword
A hallmark of any profession is its ability to be self - regulating. Members of a
profession agree on standards of practice that can be expected of them all and
resolve to adhere to those standards in their everyday professional activities.
As a result, the clients, the public, the government, and other members can be
assured of the quality of services provided by individual members of that pro-
fession. The standards of a particular profession are usually encapsulated in
documents such as codes of ethics. The Australian Psychological Society (APS),
since its inception, has prided itself in the standards of excellence its members
set themselves and their demonstrated capacity to be a self - governing, socially
responsible profession. Its practice standards are captured in the APS Code of
Ethics and the accompanying Ethical Guidelines, both of which are updated
and revised on a regular basis. The previous update of the Code of Ethics took
place in 1997 and several minor amendments have been incorporated since
then, culminating in the version published in 2003.
W e live in a time of rapid change, however, and the Code can become
outdated. Every decade or so, it becomes necessary to revisit the Code and
scrutinize it thoroughly. Developments in practice, in community standards,
in the legal context, in the scope of psychological practice and in the profi le of
the Society ’ s members are some of the changes that necessitate a close exami-
nation of the assumptions, the form, and the content of the Code, to ensure
it can refl ect the standards and aspirations of the Society into the foreseeable
future. In 2006, major shifts in the Australian cultural context had occurred
or were appearing on the horizon, particularly in relation to health care and
the role that psychologists play in health care delivery. The APS recognized
that it was time for another careful examination, from fi rst principles, of the