psy8001_Sutton_Week7 Assignment1_Ethics

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Feb 20, 2024

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Week 7 Assignment: Ethics John Sutton Capella University PSY8001 Orientation to Prof Psych Dr. Zach Held 11/26/23

2 Week 7 Assignment: Ethics Practicing clinical psychology requires not just obtaining the necessary knowledge pertaining to psychological methodologies, assessments, or treatment practices but also conducting oneself in a manner that reflects integrity, fairness, and respect towards each individual under their care (PsyD Clinical Program Overview Manual, 2022). To attain such integrity, the American Psychological Association has developed a set of core ethical foundations and standards of practice for psychologists to reference, which protect both the psychologists and patients during clinical practice and research endeavors (APA, 2017). These APA ethical foundations and standards of practice are comprised of five general ethical principles and ten ethical standards. The five APA ethical principles state that psychologists conduct themselves with fidelity and responsibility, beneficence and nonmaleficence, integrity, justice, and respect for people's rights and dignity (APA, 2017). The ten APA ethical standards cover a more in-depth policy and practice directives towards resolving ethical issues, human relations, professional competencies, client privacy and confidentiality, setting of fees and keeping client records, training and education, ethical advertising, assessments, therapy for clients, and conducting research (APA, 2017). As a future clinical psychologist in a doctoral program, it is paramount that these principles and standards are learned, understood, and developed into everyday practice to ensure the adherence to APA guidelines in the ethical treatment and care of clients while also growing as an individual and clinician to contribute in a meaningful and positive way to the field of psychology.

3 Strengths in the Area of Ethics. Incorporating APA ethical principles and standards into doctoral coursework, as well as everyday client care, will necessitate a level of self-awareness and ongoing education to learn best practices and judgments. Personally, within my own career as a clinician, I have a solid connection to the belief that ethical behavior and practices in client services/care require holding oneself to a standard that others wish not only to follow but also acknowledge the fairness of those standards. Clients' needs are often selfishly motivated, and maintaining a standard of fair and consistent practices results in buy-in and trust between themselves and a clinician (Pedersen, et al., 2002). One of the strengths I feel I possess is consistency in practices that enable fairness across all client services, which I either facilitate or train others to facilitate. This consistency in maintaining fairness within client services not only upholds the concept of integrity in practice but also greatly assists in facilitating resolutions of ethical issues and strengthening human relations. One of the ways in which I ensure that level of consistency is by regularly updating and reviewing policies and practices of services to ensure they are uniform across all client care programs but also are adaptable to individual needs while maintaining trauma-informed methodologies (within those policies and procedures). This way, clients receive uniform services but also a specific individualized care plan. Another ethical strength I feel I have concerning client care is maintaining respect for clients' rights and dignity. One of the ways I ensure that clients' rights and dignity are respected is through the practice of nonjudgment, meeting the client where they are in life, and incorporating trauma-informed care and harm reduction into clinical methodologies. A client has many experiences, and understanding that those experiences have significance in the needs of the

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4 individual is vital to ensuring that each client is afforded the opportunity to receive care without feeling judged, outcasted, or thinking they have to conform to a standard that they are not ready to meet yet. I approach each client interaction from that perspective to ensure that each client maintains a level of dignity and respect that affords them a safe environment in which to engage and receive services. Providing a safe and trustworthy environment for clients is yet another strength I feel I possess due to ensuring that my personal and clinical behaviors are ethical in nature but also by safeguarding that clinicians under my purview are also upholding the same level of ethical behaviors both in their personal interactions with each other and when conducting clinical care of clients. This fidelity and a strong sense of responsibility to ensure that trust is afforded to clients is attained through training, education, and consistent auditing of client files, notes, and treatment/service plans. Additionally, client feedback on satisfaction and surveying client outcomes allows for a level of continuity in ethical-based client care, and part of that is how a clinician provides those services. Positive client outcomes are increased by following ethically based practices and building rapport based on trust (Pedersen, et al., 2002). Areas of Ethics Requiring Further Development. Although maintaining a level of ethical behaviors and practices as a clinical psychologist requires continuous education and self-reflection, there are a few areas that I know that I have to start from the beginning and incorporate more effectively, such as ethical advertising and research design and implementation. Unfortunately, as a clinician, I have not been exposed to research practices as they pertain to conducting a human study or designing and developing a research construct and putting it into practice. Research studies during my master's program were

5 limited. I will need to study more in-depth and educate myself on the regulations for ethical practices outlined in the APA and my current doctoral program, especially as it applies to maintaining documentation/records of research participants, informing participants of the procedures and potential risks of taking part in the research accurately and honestly, as well as oversight approval and outcome publication processes (APA, 2017). Relating to ethical practices in advertising or public statements is something I have little experience with and need to learn more in-depth about to ensure that when I open my own agency, I am upholding a standard required by the APA and maintaining the trust of clients receiving services. Psychologists who advertise services must depict their education, training, and expertise truthfully and accurately (APA, 2017). This applies to how they may be portrayed in print or media, even when expressing their opinion. This requirement of accuracy also applies to any form of professional expression of qualifications, such as a flyer for services or presentations at conferences or an event. Informing others accurately of your qualifications in an ethical manner upholds trust in the field of psychology (Cherry, 2023). Strengths in Working with Individuals of a Diverse Background. Understanding the complexity and consistently undergoing training for self-awareness and personal privilege is an area I feel is a strength when working with individuals from diverse backgrounds. Ethical psychologists need the construct of practice that incorporates awareness and self-evaluation of one's biases and values that contradict those of a client's needs or are detrimental to adherence to ethical practices for client care (Sue & Sue, 2002). I feel that I am aware of any limitations I may have when working with a diverse population to ensure that I do not dismiss or project my value-based agenda on an individual. Moreover, because of the

6 ongoing training and adjustment to my self-awareness of my privilege, I am able to meet clients where they are, understand the differences in beliefs, views, and behaviors that may be barriers to buy-in and client engagement or those which may limit trust between myself and a client because of the perception of those differences. I work diligently to adapt approaches that incorporate the client's needs without my biases getting in the way of client needs or providing services. Another strength I feel I have is my exposure to an extensively diverse population over the past decade while working with homeless individuals. During this time, I have encountered many different cultures, sub-cultures, belief systems, and socioeconomic levels. This has allowed me to adjust my own beliefs from my upbringing and understand the need for ongoing education regarding the differences in how client care is affected by one's cultural upbringing, beliefs, values, and ethical reasoning. This experience is strengthened by my learned ability to compartmentalize contrary beliefs between myself and others and focus on the clinical need of a client, adapting that need to their perspective to ensure success within those services or clinical care. Working with Individuals of a Diverse Background Requiring Further Development. Personally, I feel that learning and developing methodologies and techniques that pertain specifically to a certain culture or race is an area of further development for myself as a future clinical psychologist. Within different cultures, there are expectations of mannerisms, speech, or approach, which requires adapting those specificities of interaction to be successful with client care and produce a more personally based therapeutic experience (Sue & Sue, 2002). For example, I realized that while working with Hispanic males, they were hesitant to disclose any

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7 instance of fear-based responses when questioned about their experience while living on the street. Additionally, boundary-appropriate self-disclosure allowed for the same Hispanic male to feel as though my approach to questions regarding their perception of those experiences allowed for a more open and honest exchange and eventual disclosure of those fears. These types of cultural expectations are something I need more education and personal development when working with diverse individuals, as although I have learned a lot due to the different cultures I have been exposed to, I have not studied with a therapist or psychologist who treats a specific culture and has adapted a methodology which allows for a clearer understanding of that culture through the clinical process. By educating myself on these culturally different approaches to methodologies or therapeutic skills, I feel I can provide a more ethically cultural approach to client care for diverse populations. Identify Resources to Develop Needed Skills Further. To further develop the needed skills for ethical practice and working with diverse populations, I will continue to educate myself, gain self-awareness, and incorporate differing techniques for clinical care by using several resources. Resources include utilizing my APA and CBBS (California Board of Behavioral Sciences) memberships, attending webinars, seminars, trainings, doctoral coursework, and interactions with other professionals. APA membership provides access to ongoing CE ethics training courses and webinars throughout the year. Both APA and CBBS have committees on ethics and diversity, which I can join to allow for interaction with other professionals and licensed clinical psychologists to gain the needed feedback and methods/trainings on ethical practices.

8 This will provide a greater depth of self-awareness and the ongoing needs of diverse clients. Additionally, attending conferences and presentations of clinical psychologists that highlight ethical practices and techniques in therapeutic care, assessment, and research can assist me in further developing such skills, allowing me exposure to professional methodologies firsthand. Moreover, I plan on utilizing the resources provided through Capella doctoral course work, residency, and practicum years, as well as with supervision during internship and collaborations with fellow cohort members and academic advisors to hone ethical practices and gain a deeper understanding of individuals from diverse populations.

9 References American Psychological Association. (2017). Ethical principles of psychologists and code of conduct (2002, amended effective June 1, 2010, and January 1, 2017). https://www.apa.org/ethics/code/index Cherry, K. (2023, February 14). APA Code of Ethics: The Ethical Codes Psychologists Follow. Verywell Mind. Retrieved May 4, 2023, from https://www.verywellmind.com/apa- ethical-code-guidelines-4687465 Pedersen, P.B., Draguns, J.G., Lonner, W.J., & Trimble, J.E. (2002). Counseling across Cultures . Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage. PsyD Clinical Program Overview Manual, (2022). https://assets.capella.edu/campus/doctoral-programs/Capella_University_Doctoral_Manual.pdf Sue, D.W. & Sue, D. (2002). Counseling the culturally diverse: Theory and Practice. New York, NY: Wiley

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