APA Ethical Issues and Problems

¶ … Ethics and the American Psychological Association

The central purpose for developing the first APA Ethics Code was to establish some professional standards amongst the wide spanning community of psychologists. This collection of standards serves as a reference for conduct and behavior. According to the APA's website, "the Ethics Code is intended to provide guidance for psychologists and standards of professional conduct that can be applied by the APA and by other bodies that choose to adopt them. The Ethics Code is not intended to be a basis of civil liability. Whether a psychologist has violated the Ethics Code standards does not by itself determine whether the psychologist is legally liable in a court action, whether a contract is enforceable or whether other legal consequences occur." The purpose was to instill a common bond amongst psychologists and provide a pathway of learning towards the subject. The purpose or aim of the APA appears to be fulfilled at many levels and created a common language of ethical behavior for professionals in this field.

The updated ethics occurring in 2002 was installed to reflect a changing profession. Barnett (2003) explained in his article the necessity of the updated. He wrote "the ninth revision of the APA Ethics Code (APA 2002) since 1953 reflects evolving societal standards, advances in our understanding of mental health issues and their treatment, expansion of professional roles, and changes in how we provide services, to guide and inspire psychologists toward the very highest ethical ideals of the profession." These changes reflected a simpler code as several key principles were narrowed down to 5 in this newer version. The reflections of society were also prominent in the new APA's code, as there appears to be more of a responsibility towards the collective highlighted in the newer issue. The ethics generally remained the same, despite the alignment towards a more socially involved profession.

Question 2

Ethics are the nature of one's character and span a great deal of that individual's personal idea of him or herself. The creation of an ethic is deliver one from the confusing aspects of differentiating between the self and the other. Psychologists are human beings and must balance their personal and professional duties in harmony to be successful in either aspect of these parts of their lives. Separating oneself from personal and professional behavior should not be discouraged in many ways despite its impact on psychologists and the way they practice their science and healing.