Ethical Standards of Counseling

 

The values of Theravive are not replacements of regulated ethics. Mental Health associations have developed standardized codes of ethics in order to govern the professional application of qualified therapists. These ethics are the basic framework that defines professional therapy, and are in no way the same as values.

 

Values are much different than ethics in that ethics define the framework of professional therapy, while values predict the motivation and mechanisms of therapy. Think of ethics as the foundation of a home, and values as the model of the home.

 

While ethics are critical to the practice of professional therapy, they alone are not enough to speak to values, or lack thereof, in counseling. The purpose of ethics are not to define values. Yes, they are certainly important, and we very strongly uphold them, but they have an entirely different purpose.

 

Counselors on Theravive are bound by ethical standards regulated by mental health associations and in addition uphold strong moral values in their practice. It is perfectly legitimate for a counselor to be completely ethical in his or her practice, and at the same time reject the idea of values in counseling. A counselor could be highly ethical, and yet at the same time view people as not having inherent value, or see no moral distinction between cohabitation vs marriage, or view marriage as merely a "contract." An counselor can be highly ethical and at the same time view "right" as anything a person feels or society defines as "right", rejecting all notion of standard morality. Indeed, this is the very reason why Theravive was created, because many people looking for help want counselors who uphold clear values, rather than sterilize or remove them altogether from the counseling room.

 

It is important, therefore, to understand that ethics and values exist in harmony, and that we believe a good counselor is one who is not only ethical in his or her practice, but also one who upholds strong values.

 

Here are some links to more on ethical standards from regulated professional bodies of mental health:

 

American Association of Marriage and Family Therapy (AAMFT) Code of Ethics

American Group Psychotherapy Association: Guidelines for Ethics

American Psychological Association (APA) Code of Ethics

American Association of Christian Counselors: Code of Ethics

American Counseling Association: Code of Ethics and Standards of Practice

British Columbia Association for Clinical Counsellors: Code of Ethical Conduct

Canadian Counselling Association: Code of Ethics & Standards of Practice

Canadian Psychological Association Ethical Standards

Canadian Traumatic Stress Network [Reseau Canadian du Stress Traumatique]: Ethical Principles

Christian Association for Psychological Studies: Ethics Statement

International Society for Mental Health Online: Suggested Principles for the Online Provision of Mental Health Services

National Board for Certified Counselors: Code of Ethics

National Board for Certified Counselors: The Practice of Internet Counseling

Avoiding Exploitive Dual Relationships: A Decision-making Model