What situations do psychologists find to be ethically challenging or troubling?

American Psychological Association4

What situations do psychologists find to be ethically challenging or troubling? The purpose of the study described in “Ethical Dilemmas Encountered by Members of the American Psychological Association” (Pope & Vetter, 1992) was to have a representative sample of then-current APA members describe incidents that they found ethically challenging or troubling. These incidents were collected to be used in possible revisions of the current APA’s Ethics Code. Participants in the study were asked to describe an incident that they or a colleague faced that was ethically challenging or troubling. Some of the incidents described also detailed the psychologist’s response to the particular dilemma.

For this Discussion, you will consider whether you agree with the action taken by the psychologist and support your stance using the current version of the APA’s Ethical Principles of Psychologists and Code of Conduct.

The paper must be neatly formatted, double-spaced with a one-inch margin on the top, bottom, and sides of each page. When submitting hard copy, be sure to use white paper and print out using dark ink. If it is hard to read your essay, it will also be hard to follow your argument.

To prepare:

Read the APA’s Ethical Principles of Psychologists and Code of Conduct and the article “Ethical Dilemmas Encountered by Members of the American Psychological Associations,” which discusses real scenarios of ethical dilemmas. Then, think about two of the scenarios discussed in the article.

With these thoughts in mind:

Post by Day 3, your answer to the following:

Choose two ethical dilemmas in the article. First, choose one in which you agree with the actions the psychologist took. Discuss why you agree with those actions. Next, choose an ethical dilemma in which you disagree with the actions the psychologist took. Explain why you disagree with those actions. Be sure to use the APA’s Ethical Principles of Psychologists and Code of Conduct to support both of your responses.

Resources to use:

Readings

Pope, K. S., & Vetter, V. A. (1992). Ethical dilemmas encountered by members of the American Psychological Association: A national survey. American Psychologist, 47(3), 397–411.

Retrieved from the Walden Library databases.

Note: This is a seminal article.

American Psychological Association. (2010). Ethical principles of psychologists and code

American Psychological Association4