Counselling Ethics, The Law and Best-Practice (CO2007Z)

Content

As members of a profession counsellors abide by a set of ethical standards so as to enhance their ability to work for the betterment of their clients. Although our ethical obligations are set out in the ACA Code of Ethics and Practice this document cannot hope to encapsulate all the nuances of day-to-day therapeutic work. Therefore in this unit you will be asked to consider the law, morality, ethics, and virtuous behaviour. You will also be asked to aspire to best practice. However, most importantly you will be exposed to a variety of counselling contexts and their associated ethical problems and asked to reason-out justifiable solutions. In this way the present unit is intended to be highly practical.

Learning outcomes

Unit sequence

Offering: This unit is to be taught in year 2, semester 2 (term 3).
Prerequisites: CO1002Z Self, Profession and Society

Pedagogy

Problem-based learning In practice: To understand how to structure a question and use a logical process to derive an outcome which meets appropriate intellectual/professional standards is an important skill for counsellors. Through the provision of various intellectual lenses and associated problems students have the opportunity to engage problem-solving at a deeper level. While this is done effectively with online modules, at a face-to-face intensive, or during online seminars, students also get exposed to: (1) ambiguous problems; (2) problems with multiple answers; (3) problems with probabilistic outcomes; (4) problems with no good answers or no answers at all. In this way they begin to develop a rich understanding of what it is like to work with clients. Assessments are designed to enhance students’ problem-solving skills and to assess their readiness for clinical practice.

Indicative Bibliography

1. Australian Counselling Association. (2022). Code of Ethics and Practice. Australian Counselling Association.
2. Australian Psychological Society. (2018). APS code of ethics. Australian Psychological Society.
3. Cottone, R., Tarvydas, V., & Hartley, M. (2021). Ethics and decision making in counseling and psychotherapy (5th edition). Springer Publishing Ltd.
4. Gentilin, D. (2022). The origins of ethical failures: Lessons for leaders. Routledge.
5. Murphy, M., & Hecker, L. (Eds.; 2016). Ethics and professional Issues in couple and family therapy. Routledge.
6. Pelling, N., & Burton, L. (2019). The Elements of ethical practice: Applied psychology ethics in Australia. Routledge.
7. Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse. (2017). A brief guide to the final report. C’wealth of Australia.
8. Stone, C. (2022). School counseling principles: Ethics and law (5th edition). American School Counselor Association.
9. Taleff, M. (2011). Advanced ethics for addiction professionals. Springer.

Textbook is: Cottone, R., Tarvydas, V., & Hartley, M. (2021). Ethics and decision making in counseling and psychotherapy (5th edition). Springer Publishing Ltd.

Assessment