Value Objectivity Paper (Obj. 3.1 and 3.2)
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Jan 9, 2024
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Andrea Lasher
Grand Canyon University
505: Professional Counseling, Ethical, and Legal Considerations
Professor Tanisha Guy
November 8, 2023
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Counselors face ethical issues on the regular when it pertains to dealing with a wide
range of cultural differences, values, and standards of living. When dealing with these ethical
issues counselors should hold an ethical standard in themselves and to their profession. The
reason the Code of ethics is implemented is for this reason.
Counselors need to take into
consideration on the regular basis how they proceed in their daily practice.
It is important that
counselors do not cause harm to their clients in anyway (Wade, 2015). The ACA Code of Ethics
states directly that counselors should not inflict a client with personal views, and values (Wade,
2015). It is critical for a professional counselor to follow these standards that are set in the
guidelines. Though the article Handling Conflict brings up a solid point that needs to be taken
into consideration as well. Sometimes, in life there will be times that an individual will not be
able to proceed in a professional manor due to the severity of the issues. There are proper
procedures that need to be handled in an appropriate manor. This does not, nor will it take away
from the competency of the counselor. It can indicate that the counselor needs to progress in their
duties. Counselors should be able to maintain a professional standard, while not allowing the
implication of the client’s issues to detour away from progression in sessions. Counselors need to
remain unbiased in a session and put the progression of the client as top priority. Incidents can
occur in a profession that can be called into question when a counselor does not hold their ethical
standard to high value (Myers et al. 2015).
Counselors enter their profession with plenty of knowledge prior to sitting in a session
with clients. This is a concept that is not new to an individual becoming involved in the mental
health field. The world is rich with difference and there is no way to slide around difficult
situations. Social, cultural, and moral dilemmas are a part of the world and are not changing.
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People do not agree on everything, from gender, ‘right-to-die’, ethical views, morals, religions,
race, political views, and so much more (Elliott & Emerita, 2023).
It is important to understand that there are avenues a counselor can take to handle
difficult situations that go outside their own personal values. Ethically a counselor has a
responsibly to respect the clients view on life. The counselor has other guidelines to follow to
counselor those and keep their clients safe and not a harm to themselves or others. This is where
ethical codes can start to contradict one another. The counselor must make sure they are not
building a prejudice and implementing their own personal views into the life of the client.
Instead, the counselor needs to have the interest of the client as top priority. In doing this then it
will be possible to stay on a path that avoids addressing a bias perspective (MacLeod, 2014).
Federal legislation and regulations have implemented roles and laws to protect the rights of the
consumer (Mental Health America, 2023). Clients have their rights to be met when dealing with
mental health treatment. Each client will have a full right to refuse services, access records, the
right to receive appropriate services, and rights to protect the client’s well-being (Mental Health
America, 2023).
If a counselor is still finding difficulties in dealing with a client after the counselor has
covered all their basis in making sure the client receives the proper treatment. Counselors should
follow through with discussing these issues with other professionals, educating themselves on
the issues at hand. Counselor should always refer a client to another counselor if the professional
lacks the knowledge it would take to support with proper treatment. The professional might have
a working knowledge of the situation though feel that the client would work best with another
professional that specializes in the situation. It is the counselor professional obligation to make
sure the client receives the best care. There would be an ethical risk to not treating an individual,
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according to the American Counseling Association counselors are educated to bracket their
personal beliefs (American Counseling Association, 2023). Clients could feel abandoned if a
counselor/therapist uses personal value or belief to send them to another professional (Good
Therapy, 2023). Abandoning a client in such form could cause harm to a client and detour them
away from therapy as a hole. This then plans into more ethical guidelines or not inflicting harm
onto a client in anyway (American Counseling Association, 2023). Counselors should process
the situation and take appropriate steps to help resolve the issues when dealing with the
counseling dilemma of values. Counselors should identify the problem, this the first step to
ethical decision making (Corey, et al. 2019). Build research to outline facts, while separating any
assumptions would have in the dilemma (American Counseling Association, 2023). A counselor
should focus on the issues for the client rather themselves. Counseling professionals should step
back and take a look at the problem. Differentiate if the issue is with the client and their life or,
the morals of the counselor and their discomfort. Then the counselor should apply their ACA
Code of Ethics, once the problem is identified, consider multicultural perspective (American
Counseling Association, 2023). Counselors should always stay on track and follow the course of
action, the resolution of the problem for the client (Corey, et al. 2019). Counselors also should
also examine the autonomy, justice, and beneficence of the dilemma (American Counseling
Association, 2023). Going back and reviewing any professional papers, educational literature, or
professional opinions would be a strong way to have the most current forward-thinking support
(Corey, et al. 2019).
Counselors do not enter the profession not without knowledge of the ethical guidelines in
the profession. Counselors are also fully aware of the diversity of cultures, religions, and
political views the clients will all have. Becoming a counselor is not for those offended easily
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and those that cannot set aside their own personal beliefs. It is of best interest of the client and if
the professional counselor does not have that as the priority, then there will be many ethical
guideline infractions. There are ways to help those counselors having difficulty in their field of
work. Therapist should have their own therapist as well to be able to attend to personal matter
appropriately. It is important for therapist/counselors to understand the ethical codes and life
dilemmas that are attached to the mental health field.
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References
Ameican Counseling Assocation (2023). Practitioner’s guide to ethical decision making.
https://www.counseling.org/docs/default-source/ethics/practioner-39-s-guide-to-ethical-
decision-making.pdf?sfvrsn=f9e5482c_12
Corey, G., Corey, M. S., & Corey, C. (2019).
Issues and ethics in the helping professions
(10th
ed.). Brooks/Cole Cengage Learning. ISBN-13: 9780357690048.
Elliott, G., & Emerita. (2023). When values and ethics conflict: The counselor’s role and
responsibility.
https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ954289.pdf
Good Therapy. (2023). When should you refer a client to another professional? Retrieved from
https://www.goodtherapy.org/when-should-you-refer-a-client-to-another-
professional.html
MacLeod, B., (2014). Addressing clients’ prejudices in counseling. Counseling Today.
https://ct.counseling.org/2014/01/addressing-clients-prejudices-in-counseling/
Mental Health America (2023). Positions Statement 21: Rights of people with mental health and
substance use conditions.
https://mhanational.org/issues/position-statement-21-rights-
people-mental-health-and-substance-use-conditions
Myers, K., Morse, A., & Wheeler, J., (2014). When unchecked biases lead to impositions of
values: The case for counseling ethics. VISTAS Online.
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https://www.counseling.org/docs/default-
source/vistas/article_43955c21f16116603abcacff0000bee5e7.pdf?sfvrsn=b4a412c_8
Wade, M., (2015). Handling conflicts of personal values. Ethics Inquiries. Retrieved from
https://www.counseling.org/docs/default-source/ethics/ethics-
columns/ethics_april_2015_personal-values.pdf?sfvrsn=1e24522c_4