Standards of professional ethics. Reinforce high ethical standards

In order for ethical principles, norms, rules and standards to become realities of business life, they must be included in the decision-making process at all levels of management, as well as in the work practices of all employees, i.e. be part of real personnel policy.

In the global economy, there are seven main mechanisms through which ethical standards can be implemented. These include:

codes of ethics;
ethics committees;
training;
social audits;
legal committees;
services that consider citizens' complaints on ethical issues;
changes in corporate structure.

The most commonly used mechanism is the code of ethics. About 90% of foreign companies implemented ethical principles through such codes. They can be developed for the company as a whole and contain ethical rules common to all.

The code may also be created for specific functional units, such as the purchasing department, and address only ethical issues specific to that department.

Code of Ethics, as a rule, is developed by a specially created body - a committee, commission, etc.

To make a code effective, certain disciplinary measures are usually taken to punish those who violate the code and to reward acts committed in accordance with the rules of the code of ethics.

The Corporation's Ethics Committee has a specific set of functions, which include the following:

bringing ethical issues to the board or top managers for discussion;
bringing the basic requirements of the code of ethics to the attention of managers at all levels and ordinary employees;
developing measures to support the code;
analysis and revision of the code based on annual internal corporate reports and depending on changes external environment organizations, especially systems of spiritual values and public opinion;
compiling reports on the committee’s activities for the board of directors;
providing top management with advice from specialists on ethical issues.

Managerial ethics training is another opportunity to introduce ethical principles into corporate activities. These are sets of ethical standards, unique ethical modules that are included in the general training program for low- and middle-level managers.

Thus, if the ethics committee serves the highest level of management of a corporation, helping to find non-trivial individual solutions to ethical problems, ethical training provides both middle and lower levels of management with a set of ready-made solutions that fit within the framework of ethical requirements.

The training promotes the practical implementation of ethical principles in the corporate decision-making structure.

Social audit, like other forms of introducing ethical requirements into corporate practice, has a relatively short history - about two to three decades. Social audit is an attempt to evaluate the social behavior of a corporation in the public environment. The adoption of the charter gives it certain rights and even privileges. For this, society demands from the corporation certain behavior that does not violate the general ethical background and certain actions that contribute to the development and prosperity of society.

A social audit is designed to verify and provide information on the extent to which a corporation's actions meet society's expectations. It can be used in a corporation for internal control over the degree of ethical actions of the management corps, over the implementation of the ethical code, for rational use resources, for reporting to shareholders, etc. However, social audit, despite its value for business development, management and public good in general, it has not received much development and is mainly used only on a corporate scale. Apparently, the point is the difficulty and high cost of carrying out audits on a scale not only of the entire country, but of at least one industry. Of those companies that conduct social audits internally, only a few make the audit results available to the public or shareholders.

Basically, social audit now comes down to determining how well a given corporation's activities comply with government health, safety, or pollution control regulations. environment.

The Legal Committee is responsible for monitoring the corporation's compliance with all laws and regulations in all areas of its activities; Part of the work of such a committee concerns monitoring the compliance of the corporation’s actions with laws and regulations of an ethical nature: environmental protection, human rights protection, etc.

Few businesses have dedicated ethical claims resolution services. Typically, employees of such services consider complaints and claims on ethical issues received both from outside and from those working in this corporation.

Given the global economy, only a small number of corporations are making internal structural changes to accommodate ethical demands.

So, is it possible, through certain management mechanisms and levers, to make corporate behavior ethical?

Yes, you can.

Government regulations in many countries have forced corporations to respond more flexibly to changing social values, spend money on pollution control, provide equal employment opportunities for minorities and women, and so on. Ethical codes developed on the basis of these regulations have repeatedly helped corporate managers find a way out of difficult ethical situations, as well as create a corporate culture.

There is no doubt that a corporation can be induced to comply with ethical principles both through internal control mechanisms (self-regulation) and through external restrictions.

However, no corporation can become a completely self-regulating system. Too many subjective and institutional barriers stand in the way of the emergence of such a system. Therefore, a system of self-regulation is unlikely to replace state regulation in the near future.

Since codes of ethics are more common than other tools for introducing ethics into corporate life, let's take a closer look at them.

Many large corporations, trying to maintain their image in the eyes of the general public and find a line of their behavior, are developing ethical codes.

The presence of such codes is further confirmation of the existence of an important and unsolved problem creating an overall ethical business climate that condemns immoral behavior in the workplace.

Most of the ethical codes of companies were developed and implemented in the 70s. They vary in length, from Exxon Corporation's one-page Statement of Business Ethics code to Citicorp's more than 60-page Standard of Ethics.

These codes are varied in content, which illustrates the existence of significant disagreements among representatives of top management regarding the subject of the code of ethics. The diversity of codes may also be a consequence of management’s attempts to adapt them to the private needs of the company in the context of national economies and the global economy that have become more complex in recent decades.

A characteristic feature of modern codes of ethics is that sections containing recommendations for eliminating ethical problems arising from conflicts of interest are developed in more detail and carefully than other sections. In this case, the emphasis is on the conflict of interests of the corporation: a) with government bodies; b) with employees or shareholders of the corporation; c) with foreign governments.

Most codes are based on internal corporate control over compliance. Public (external) - from the outside public organizations- and state control over compliance with the code requires the creation of an appropriate state structure, quite expensive, which is burdensome for the budget of any country.

In addition, the idea of organizing external control is not supported by all governments, as well as management theorists and practitioners. It is believed that there are too many obstacles to the implementation of such an idea. Such obstacles include the difficulty in identifying the person in the corporation who has the authority and power to use coercion, the difficulty (or even impossibility) of obtaining information about possible ethical violations, the problem of developing a unified system for motivating employees to comply with the code of ethics, and many other difficulties.

Obviously, it is impossible to characterize and address in a code every ethical issue that employees may encounter. However, written instructions can help resolve ethical issues that arise most frequently.

We can point out a number of advantages that the creation of a code of ethics gives to the corporation as a whole and its employees:

Codes are more reasonable, collected “guides” to correct behavior than the advice and recommendations of individuals. When individual employees have to determine the level of ethical official behavior in everyday practice, their judgments often turn out to be too subjective, depending not only on the level of ethical education of the employee, but also on the level of his education, culture, awareness of the state of affairs in the corporation, the degree of social responsibility, patriotism and many, many other factors.
Ethical codes, having absorbed all of the above, invite managers to focus their attention on the main, paramount things and suggest the most logical decisions.
The very existence of a corporation's code of ethics as a collective ethical standard helps corporate managers understand the ethics of their business decisions. And the written form gives codes even greater significance.
The Code provides a general guideline in situations where it is difficult to clearly determine what is ethical and what is unethical in the actions of the corporation’s management, i.e. when universal ethics and professional ethics come into conflict.
Codes of ethics can help control the power of those managers who sometimes ask, even command, their subordinates to do not only unethical, but even illegal things. Codes can provide a certain level of legal protection for both the company as a whole and each employee individually.

However, ethical codes have a number of disadvantages:

They require a significant investment of time and money.
They require high qualifications of those who compose them.
Sometimes their recommendations are too vague and difficult to resolve a specific ethical issue.
By their existence, codes imply the need to impose penalties for violators.
At the same time, everything that is not mentioned in the code can be assessed as acceptable actions.
Ethical codes do not guarantee managers any control over external (in relation to corporations) influences on business ethics, nor ways to solve global ethical problems.

The disadvantages of ethical codes listed above do not detract from their importance. They are especially beneficial in corporations where managers are aware that unethical practices are unacceptable.

An analysis of the codes of ethics (based on publications) of American companies shows that they focus on the following issues:

relations with the government,
relationships with customers,
conflict of interest,
honesty in reporting.

The following questions are central to most of all the codes analyzed:

personal qualities of managers;
safety of manufactured products and goods sold;
environmental protection;
quality of manufactured products and goods sold;
civil actions.

Research and polls by the American sociological service News-CNN have shown that a significant portion of Americans are confident that unethical and dishonest behavior in office is widespread.

In the global economy, many companies are now creating departments or hiring individual employees to develop codes of ethics.

At the same time, measures are being taken to familiarize managers with the provisions of these codes; A system of incentives for managers is also being created, provided that they take into account ethical issues when making decisions and that their official behavior complies with the ethical standards recorded in the codes.

When monitoring the official actions of employees, companies use lie detector tests, drug tests, etc.

Much effort is put into developing tests used when hiring new managers and employees.

However, some managers and company owners rightly believe that attempts to ethically correct the official behavior of a person who has sufficient life experience, as well as work experience at a given company (or any other), are not always successful. The manner in which a mature person has developed to act and make decisions, if it runs counter to ethical standards, is difficult to break and rebuild. It is difficult to retrain an adult who has experience behind him, with his own formed system of values and views, and companies take this into account in their personnel policies.

More productive, in the opinion of managers of many companies and their owners, is the way of hiring graduates of educational institutions where there was an extensive and extensive program of training in the basics of ethics. In this case, ethical standards are laid down in the consciousness (and subconscious) of the future employee as part of a worldview complex and, one might even say, as immutable axioms that cannot be challenged. Then the cumbersome and expensive system of developing company codes and training employees in ethical standards and monitoring compliance with ethical requirements turns out to be largely unnecessary. Therefore, large and rich companies that have their own business schools, business schools, introduce in them such programs for training students as programs in management ethics, business ethics, business ethics, and speech ethics. Sometimes it is a set of ethical principles representing ethical standards in a theory, sometimes it is specific examples and situations, the study and analysis of which allows students to formulate theoretical postulates themselves that define the ethical boundaries of actions and behavior in their future business practice.

Review questions

What mechanisms for introducing ethical principles and norms of business relations can you offer in addition to the existing ones?
Which mechanisms do you think are the most effective?
Do you have experience with ethical codes, social audits, etc.?
Develop a draft code of ethics for the organization (or division) in which you currently work.
What is the difference in the purposes of internal and external control over compliance with the organization’s code of ethics (or other document regulating morality)?
What are your forecasts for the development of documentation (codes, internal regulations, etc.) of ethical requirements in organizations?
Assess the effectiveness of the use of ethics training programs in educational institutions of the Russian Federation for the formation of a set of ethical norms and standards used in the field of official relations.

TRAINING ETHICAL CONDUCT. Another approach that organizations use to improve ethical behavior is training ethical behavior for managers and employees. In doing so, employees are made aware of business ethics and sensitized to ethical issues that may arise before them. Integrating ethics as a subject into business courses at the university level is another form of teaching ethical behavior that helps students develop a better understanding of these issues. According to a study by the Center for Business Ethics, corporations are much more concerned about ethics today than in the past, and have taken concrete steps to integrate ethics into their practices. At the same time, daily newspapers are replete with examples of unethical and illegal behavior of employees of organizations of any type; however, we believe that organizations themselves do not lack counterexamples of ethical actions of their employees. By continuing to implement the various programs and practices described above and by ensuring that high-level leaders serve as role models of appropriate ethical behavior, organizations should be able to raise their ethical standards.

Adaptation of branch plans to local government development plans Compliance with local laws, customs, ethical standards

Ethical business standards are becoming a subject of increasing interest from managers and consumers. Companies pay great attention to ethical behavior in all aspects of their activities in order to avoid negative public opinion and loss of the company’s prestige both in government agencies and in business circles. Business ethics is the study of moral standards and their application in systems and organizations through which modern society goods and services are produced and distributed. In other words, business ethics is a form of application of ethical standards. It includes not only the analysis of moral norms and moral values, but also tries to apply the results of such analysis to technology, transactions, actions and helps to carry out what we call business.

Running any business presupposes the presence of a stable society. However, the stability of society, in turn, presupposes the adherence of its members to at least minimal ethical standards. Since companies cannot survive without ethics, they are interested in promoting ethical behavior both among their employees and in society at large.

Consider two advertisements taken from newspapers or magazines and determine how well they meet ethical advertising standards.

In addition to its system of selecting the most talented specialists from around the world, Merck sees its core competence in the reliability of the process of developing new drugs. Highly qualified specialists have developed their own professional and ethical standards. Research ethics is based on the utmost scientific integrity and internal control, which prevents the release of incompletely verified drugs into clinical testing.

The growing importance of ethical marketing behavior. People are very concerned about advertising and sales practices that misrepresent or misrepresent the benefits of a product, causing people to make poor decisions. The market is extremely suspicious of any pressure from those who have no conscience, as well as attempts to get rich at the expense of other people. Marketers, like no one else, have to adhere to ethical standards in their work. The American Marketing Association has compiled a whole code of ethical conduct in the market. Marketers must act as watchdogs to maintain consumer trust and the effectiveness of their companies.

Working knowledge of all major competition, consumer and public protection laws. Many companies conduct special training sessions with employees on various aspects of the law, and proclaim ethical standards that marketers must follow.

Although the information collection techniques we offer are completely legal, some techniques are ethically questionable. It is known that some companies, in order to pump information of interest out of their competitor’s employees, specifically advertised for employment and demanded information from candidates. Although companies are prohibited from taking aerial photographs of competitors' factories, such images can easily be found in materials from the Geological Society of America or the Environmental Protection Agency. Some companies do not hesitate to buy competitors' garbage, which is considered no one's property after it is removed from the enterprise. Clearly, a company needs to develop effective ways to acquire information about competitors' activities without violating the law or ethical standards. Some of the most effective techniques are described in the box A Marketer's Cheat Sheet. Beating the competition with guerrilla marketing research.

This book is a tribute to the analytical genius of the late Benjamin Graham. The first four editions were reference books for members of the Federation of Financial Analysts and the Institute of Chartered Financial Analysts. Largely under his influence, these two organizations continue to be bastions of the commitment to high ethical standards and continuing education that have fueled relentless progress in the field of securities analysis.

The introduction of abstract provisions about the values, mission, goals and philosophy of the organization into corporate codes of ethics does not exclude the attitude of company management to them simply as beautiful words, while the ethical standards of demands placed on organizations by society are, as a rule, very high. Corporations are required to solve various social problems, improving the quality of life of employees, protecting the environment, charitable activities, and improving the quality of life of all citizens of society.

The growing importance of ethics in marketing. The public is now extremely concerned about advertisements and sales practices that misrepresent or misrepresent the benefits of a product. Marketers, concludes F. Kotler, like no one else, are obliged to adhere to high ethical standards in their work.

English supermarkets give products an equal chance, everything else depends on consumers and their desire to constantly repeat purchases of goods of a certain brand. For this there must be a certain willingness. Research by Co-op supermarkets found that "Consumers are willing to punish retailers and brands that do not meet their ethical standards, and to celebrate those that do. One in three consumers said they had been involved in boycotting a store or brand. Six out of ten are ready to do this now."

The Code sets ethical standards that should guide everyone involved in advertising, including advertisers, advertising executives, advertising agencies and the media (communications).

The second principle is a commitment to uncompromising honesty and directness. This also implies a commitment to high ethical standards in the organization and in all aspects of MH activities.

Yet the question of whether there is any place for ethics in the commercial world remains unanswered. I believe there is. Ethical standards are not a measure of how nice you are to your employees; they directly affect your ability to effectively manage your operations. Ultimately, this is a matter of trust - that is, the degree to which you are personally reliable and that of your entire organization. I will repeat the point I made in Chapter 6. If you want your people to trust you when you tell them what is expected of them, they need to be convinced that you really expect them to do what you ask them to do. Of course, you can have written contracts for all work—internally with subordinates, peers, and superiors, and externally with suppliers, customers, and other stakeholders—but at some stage you will need someone to simply believe what you say. If you want the work assigned to you to be completed without coercion,

Ethical standards. It is generally accepted that a leader must have high moral principles and act fairly towards all those who are interested in the company's activities. In the past, power, secrecy and lack of media interest made ethical standards less important. Today, leaders who act dishonestly or unethically lose the public support they need to achieve long-term success.

Domestic business structures have already begun to develop ethical codes for their employees. They believe that high ethical standards will lead to higher profits in the future.

Marketing is not a frozen dogma, but one of the most dynamic areas of economic activity. Currently, the evolution of marketing is associated with the development trends of the modern market, in particular, with the growing importance of such factors as the quality of goods and services, consumer commitment to the brand and company, the development of electronic communication lines, focus on high technology, the creation of strategic alliances, ethical standards in activities of companies, etc. In particular, the need to take social and ethical issues into account in marketing practice led to the development of the concept of socially oriented (or socially ethical) marketing. This concept defines the firm's mission as identifying the needs, wants, and interests of target markets and satisfying those needs in ways more efficient than competitors while maintaining or enhancing the well-being of the consumer and society as a whole. This concept requires a balance between the three factors of a company's profits, consumer needs and the interests of society.

Moral and ethical regulation covers all spheres of public life, including accounting. A number of social relations regulated by law are also assessed from a moral point of view. However, if the rules of law are enshrined by the state, then moral norms and principles exist in the minds of people, in public opinion, and are reflected in works of literature, art, and the media. A number of countries have adopted ethical standards for auditors and accountants, which, of course, cannot be considered as regulations enforced by government coercion. Their influence is aimed primarily at the consciousness of people, designed to influence the strength of public opinion. Similar standards are also being developed in the Russian Federation. A number of their projects have been published in the media.

The seventh task of the exchange is to develop ethical standards, a code of conduct for exchange trading participants. To carry it out, special agreements are adopted on the exchange, which allow the use of specific words and stipulate compliance with their strict interpretation; establish the place and method of trading (exchange floor, terminal, screen, telephone), as well as the time during which transactions can be made; present certain qualification requirements to bidders (mandatory passing of exams to obtain a qualification certificate or status).

The Code establishes ethical standards that must guide all participants in the advertising process: advertisers, performers of advertising products, performers and distributors of advertising.

Cultures of universal and specific truths. An attempt to avoid uncertainty by developing detailed laws and rules is not always accompanied by the desire to follow them. The Dutch scientist Fone Trompenaars studied this feature of various business cultures. 9 Based on the degree of readiness to follow laws or find reasons for breaking them, he divided national cultures into cultures of predominantly universal and predominantly specific truths. In cultures of universal truths, it is traditional to be highly law-abiding. The moral and ethical standard of these cultures is illustrated by the famous sayings Socrates is my friend, but the truth is more precious and the Law is the law. In concrete truth cultures, it is traditional to look for concrete reasons and moral justifications for breaking rules. Classical for this approach are the Russian proverbs The exception confirms the rule or the Law, that wherever you turn the drawbar, it ends up there.

The idea of ethical behavior in business is also to protect the company from attacks by unethical employees and competitors. High ethical standards also protect employees. If people work in a highly ethical company, the company's attitude towards them in terms of honesty and dignity will be compensated by the high ethical level of the workers themselves and increased productivity.

The marketer's responsibilities include a solid working knowledge of all major competition, consumer and public protection laws. Many companies conduct special training sessions with employees on various aspects of the law, and proclaim ethical standards that employees must follow. As business activity expands in cyberspace, market participants will have to develop new ethical business standards. And although Ameri a Online is a resounding success and is the most popular

The essence and subject of an audit (revision), the difference between auditing and accounting, the profession of an auditor, the certification of auditors, the requirements for conducting an audit, the auditor’s report. Ethical standards and legal responsibilities of auditors. International Federation of Accountants and the standards it develops. Conducting an audit in the USSR (Inaudit) and in other socialist countries.

Let's look at the definition of ethics. From the point of view of philosophy, ethics is a philosophical science, the object of study of which is religious and secular morality about the principles of social-normative communication. The term “Ethics” was introduced into scientific circulation by the ancient Greek philosopher Aristotle. According to the teachings of Aristotle, ethics is a science that studies human characters, morals, motives of human behavior, human vices and virtues. From the time of Aristotle to the present day, moral philosophy has been the theoretical foundation for the development of rational ethical knowledge, skills and abilities. The subject of the study of ethics is morality, the history of socio-ethnic mores, law, customs, traditions in their secular (everyday, scientific) and confessional (religious) manifestations. Since morality is an integral part of ethics, let us highlight its main functions:

Regulatory function. Regulates people's behavior in accordance with moral requirements. In terms of its scope and versatility of impact on the individual, morality is broader than law. It exercises its regulatory capabilities with the help of norms-guidelines, norms-requirements, norms-prohibitions, norms-frameworks, restrictions, as well as norms-models (etiquette).

Value-orienting function. Orients a person in the world around him cultural values. Develops a system of preference for some moral values over others, allows you to identify the most moral assessments and lines of behavior.

Cognitive (epistemological) function. It assumes the knowledge not of objective characteristics, but of the meaning of phenomena as a result of practical mastery. Thanks to this function, ethical knowledge, principles, norms, codes in specific conflict situations help to form a model of moral behavior.

Educational function. Brings moral norms, habits, customs, mores, and generally accepted patterns of behavior into a certain educational system.

Evaluation function. Evaluates a person’s mastery of reality from the standpoint of good and evil. The subject of assessment is actions, attitudes, intentions, motives, moral views and personal qualities.

Motivational function. Allows a person to evaluate and, if possible, justify his behavior using moral motivation. Pure and noble motives are the most important element of a person’s moral behavior.

Communication function. Acts as a form of communication, transmission of information about the values of life, moral contacts of people. Ensures mutual understanding and communication between people based on the development of common moral values, and hence - service interaction, “common sense”, support and mutual assistance

Thus, we see that morality occupies an important place in a person’s life and is an integral part of his life, performing important functions in the formation of value guidelines and human interaction with society.

Further important stage in our work we will consider the structure of morality, what is the object and subject in it. And so the object of study of ethics is the variety of forms of secular and confessional morality in the history of human evolution.

The subject of the study of ethics is Homo sapiens: the leaders of philosophical and ethical teachings from ancient times to the present day. Recognition of ethical standards in society makes society civilized and promotes progress social relations. The demand for ethics (in certain norms of social relations) emerged at the dawn of human civilization. The primitive origins of ideas about “norms” of behavior are found in the herd, in the flock, in the first human family, clan, community, tribe. The uniqueness of ethical teachings develops more widely in national and then in folklore. Primitive people for positive herd, and later collective communication and living, they were forced to accept and legitimize the norms of communicative morality: do not steal, do not harm your neighbor, help your neighbor, the weak, etc. But due to the complexity and contradictory nature of socio-economic evolution, some moral norms were accepted, others were rejected .

Ethics is a special way of understanding the historical reasons for the selective evolution of morality of a secular and ethno-religious nature. It can be seen that religion greatly influenced the formation of ethical standards. Pagan mythology is the bearer and custodian of pagan ethics and rituals of the ancient peoples of the world. In pagan (pre-Christian) times, people developed moral standards from the position of the authority of divine idols and idols, which imposed taboos (prohibitions) on certain acts. For example, it is forbidden (taboo) to pick mushrooms in the sacred forest of magi, shamans, and sorcerers; it is forbidden to encroach on the property of “holy” places; Pagan taboos, including the ethical commandments of the seven Greek sages, contributed to the development of the ethical commandments of the Bible. The ethics of the Bible, based on the moral commandments of Moses (in the Old Testament) and Jesus Christ (in the New Testament), obliges a person to cleanse himself from the filth of pagan sins. Fundamental differences between the ten commandments of Moses and the teachings of Jesus Christ. Moses, physically saving his people from Egyptian captivity, only prepared the ground for saving the soul from pagan filth. Jesus Christ more deeply forms the foundations and principles of saving the human soul from pagan sins. (Pentateuch of Moses) and the Sermon on the Mount of Jesus Christ. (Gospel of Matthew). Denying the moral norms of pagan teachings (Book of the Dead, Book of Pyramids, Book of Veles, Zoroaster, Vedas, Rig Veda, Ayurveda, etc.), Christianity gave humanity ten moral and ethical commandments on behalf of Moses, the founder of Judaism, the essence of which is set out in the Torah, Talmud, in the sacred books of the Old Testament.

It is important to study the history of the development of ethics in order to consider how ethical standards have changed over time. In accordance with the three class socio-economic formations in the history of ethics, as well as in the history of philosophy in general, three periods are distinguished: antiquity, the Middle Ages and Modern times. They differ in their approach to solving basic ethical problems, primarily the relationship between what is and what should be.

The first stage is ancient ethics, let's consider it in more detail. Ancient ethics is essentially the doctrine of virtues and the virtuous personality. According to this understanding, the intermediate link between moral empiricism and moral obligation and their real synthesis is the moral personality. This ethics is optimistic, it affirms the moral self-worth and sovereignty of man. In the understanding of ancient philosophers, a person is better than any rules, better than his own actions. His specificity is that he is a rational and social being; According to philosophers, a harmonious social order is a means of the virtue of citizens, their perfect discovery of the properties of a rational essence. So, for example, the two definitions of man that Aristotle gives - man is a rational being and man is a political being - are interconnected and determine each other. This understanding of morality is the result of reflection on the nature of the relations of free citizens in the ancient city-state. With the transition from the polis organization to large military-bureaucratic associations, this understanding revealed its narrowness and one-sidedness.

The next stage that we have to consider is the Middle Ages. Medieval ethics is a negation of ancient ethics. Morality in the Middle Ages was understood as a system of external, transpersonal and unchanging norms of behavior that coincide with the commandments of God. It is thought that the goal and norm of human behavior lie not in himself, but in his creator - God. Medieval religious ethics is characterized by the desire to subordinate a concrete person to an abstract person, the actual discrediting of all objective goals of human activity. As we see, in particular, in the example of Augustine’s ethics, the idea of the divine origin of moral norms actually leads to the denial of the possibility of their existence, and even more so of reality. Medieval ethics organically combines two seemingly opposite, but, in essence, deeply interconnected views: on the one hand, a moralistic view of the world, according to which morality precedes being, on the other, the denial of the moral freedom of the human person. The most consistent theorists of Christian morality are inclined to the conclusion that morality is a simple, inexpressible self-identity, which is achieved when a person renounces everything earthly, including, first of all, himself as an individual, special being, when the generic essence is God-likeness - becomes its only, all-consuming characteristic. If ancient ethics was so carried away by the idea of the moral sovereignty of the individual that it ultimately came to deny the universal content of morality, then medieval ethics, on the contrary, emphasizes the universal content of morality to such an extent that it ignores the historical and personal certainty of its manifestations.

And the last third stage that we will consider is the ethics of the New Age. In modern ethics, there is a noticeable desire to overcome the one-sided definitions of morality in antiquity and the Middle Ages, to understand morality simultaneously both as an immanent property of the human individual and as a supra-individual social phenomenon. Modern thinkers cannot accept the medieval point of view of man as an insignificant being, but they also do not share the naive belief of antiquity in the omnipotence of the moral capabilities of the individual; they see that real people and morals are very far from the ideal of virtue. Indigenous moral problem takes this form: how can the mass of selfish individuals of bourgeois society become an association whose members are in solidarity with each other? In the ethics of modern times (especially vividly in Kant), the problem of what is and what should be takes the form of a tragic, irreparable gap, which was a recognition, albeit inadequate, of the moral futility of class society. The justification for the impossibility of real synthesis, mediation between social mores and abstract moral principles was the highest point of pre-Marxist ethics, from which the direct formation of the prerequisites for a historical-materialist understanding of morality began (in the systems of Hegel and Feuerbach). Pre-Marxist ethics considered morality either from the point of view of what should be or from the point of view of what is essential. In the first case, abstract morality becomes the basis for judgment. Ethics tries to substantiate the transformed logic, the illusion of moral consciousness emancipated from the world: from what should be to what is; you can because you have to. She interpreted the moral improvement of the individual as her spiritual self-coercion, self-restraint, the result of limiting her immediate inclinations, interests, going beyond the social and natural boundaries of a living person. Representatives of this direction of ethics see their main task in philosophically substantiating the necessity and reasonableness of absolution of moral norms and outlining effective social and educational procedures for their mastery by individuals. This idea is concretized in various normative models, among which the most famous are the ethics of inner resilience, the religious ethics of love, and the rationalistic ethics of duty.

The second direction in ethics considers morality as a specific property of specific individuals. Moral norms are deprived of their original, extra-empirical status, and, accordingly, of their absolute power over the individual. It is not the world that is brought under moral principles, but, on the contrary, moral principles that are derived from the world. Ethics denies the need to suppress living inclinations in the name of abstract norms; it sees in morality the expression and continuation of natural and social characteristics person, gives normative meaning to his aspirations, needs and interests. This orientation of ethical thought was embodied primarily in the concepts of hedonism, eudonism, utilitarianism, and reasonable egoism. The difference between these approaches to understanding morality was a unique manifestation of the dispute between the main philosophical parties on ethical grounds. What in epistemology appears as a struggle between materialism and idealism, in pre-Marxist ethics is revealed as a confrontation between eudonism and self-denial, between the Epicurean and Stoic traditions in understanding the goals and meaning of human life. The main essence that separates these concepts can be conveyed by the formula: morality for man and man for morality. Materialism strives to “reduce” morality to one of the ways of self-affirmation of a specific person, and idealism, on the contrary, “raises” a real person to the level of moral abstractions; materialism deals with moral person, and idealism with a person of morality. Moral consciousness can not only express the actual degree of humanity achieved by society, but also distort and camouflage it. This is what happens in a class society: as social relations become dehumanized, which are based on the exploitation of man by man, morality takes the form of abstract demands that are in fundamental confrontation with reality, morality is emancipated from the world, it begins to imagine that it is higher than reality and can correct reality. etc. The separation of morality from social practice as an independent form of social consciousness and the formation of ethics as a science coincide - in time and in essence. This is clearly revealed in the very origins (Homer, Hesiod, early philosophers). But even in subsequent history, ethics and morality do not diverge as much as is usually thought. Ethics does not remain dispassionate, neutral in relation to the real struggle of moral values and positions in society. It not only explains morality, but also teaches morality. To the extent that ethics teaches morality, it, while remaining a science, simultaneously becomes an element of the moral consciousness of a class of society.

Currently, the importance of ethics in regulating various types of human activities in society is increasing. This is due to the desire to constantly improve professional standards in relation to changing social relations.

The ethics of society cannot represent the absolute truth in human behavior. Each generation must solve them again and again on its own. But new developments must be based on the moral stock created by previous generations. Today, when there is rapid development of technical aspects and lagging cultural aspects, it is very important to understand that ethical knowledge is necessary to stabilize society. Intelligence should be not only in knowledge, but also in the ability to understand others. It manifests itself in a thousand and a thousand little things: in the ability to argue respectfully, to behave modestly at the table, in the ability to quietly help another, to take care of nature, not to litter around oneself - not to litter with cigarette butts or swearing, bad ideas.

// Psychological diagnostics / Ed. M.K. Akimova, K.M. Gurevich. – St. Petersburg, 2003. P. 550 - 564. Copyright by the American Psychological Association (January, 1963). Reprinted (and edited) from American Psychologist (January, 1963), revised September 1965 and December 1972. These standards are also printed in the Biographical Compendium of the American Psychological Association.

The psychologist attaches great importance to the dignity and worth of being an individual. It accepts the responsibility to improve a person's understanding of himself and other people. In keeping with these commitments, he safeguards the welfare of every person who may need his assistance, as well as any person or animal who may be the object of his study. He not only does not himself use his professional position or connections, but also deliberately does not allow the fruits of his labor to be used for a purpose that is incompatible with the value of these labors. By asking for freedom to research and report results, he accepts responsibility on the following conditions: competence to which he claims, objectivity in reporting the data of a psychodiagnostic examination and attention to the interests of his colleagues and society.

Basic principles

Principle 1. Responsibility. A psychologist who has committed himself to improving human understanding between people attaches great importance to objectivity and honesty and maintains the highest level of his work.

A. As a scientist, the psychologist believes that society needs him to conduct his research where his findings are useful; he plans his research in such a way as to minimize the possibility of misuse of his results; he publishes a report of his work, without excluding from it an explanation of the data that may not fit into the general interpretation.

B. As a teacher, a psychologist understands his primary responsibility to help others acquire skills and knowledge and to maintain high standards of his erudition.

Q. As a practitioner, the psychologist knows that he bears the burden of great social responsibility, since his work may closely relate to the well-being of other people.

Principle 2. Competence. Security high level professional competence is a responsibility shared by all psychologists in the interests of society and the profession as such.

A. Unqualified people compromise psychological practice; psychologists help society in identifying those who are competent to give professional advice to society. When a psychologist or person claiming to be a psychologist violates ethical standards, psychologists with first-hand knowledge try to correct the situation. When such a situation cannot be dealt with informally, the attention of the appropriate local, state, or national professional ethics, standards, and practices committees is sought.

B. Psychologists who are considered qualified in any activity are those who either hold degrees from the American Board of Professional Psychology, or hold licenses or credentials issued by state examination boards, or hold credentials issued by public boards created by state psychological associations. . Psychologists who do not meet the qualifications required to practice independently should gain experience under the guidance of qualified specialist.

B. The psychologist knows the limits of his competence and the limitations of his methods and does not offer services or use techniques that do not meet professional standards established in individual areas. A psychologist who has engaged in practical activities assists his colleagues in obtaining professional help on all aspects of their problems that are beyond his own competence. This principle requires, for example, that data be collected for medical diagnosis and treatment of related medical problems, and for seeking advice or consultation from other professionals.

D. A psychologist in a clinic knows that the effectiveness of his work largely depends on his ability to maintain normal relationships between people, that short-term or longer-term changes in his own personality can interfere with this ability and spoil the assessment given to him by others. Therefore, he refrains from any activity in which his personal problems are likely to cause poor professional performance or harm the client; if he is already engaged in such activities, having recognized his personal problems, he seeks competent professional assistance in determining whether he should continue or discontinue servicing this client.

Principle 3. Moral and legal standards. A psychologist in his practice reveals sensitivity to social norms and moral requirements of the society in which he works; he understands that violation of accepted moral and legal standards on his part could involve his clients, students or colleagues in disgraceful personality conflicts and would be detrimental to his own name and the reputation of his profession.

Principle 4: Misconceptions. The psychologist avoids misconceptions about his own professional qualifications, connections and goals, as well as about the institutions and organizations with which he is associated.

A. The psychologist does not pretend to do what he cannot, either directly, or by attributing to himself a professional qualification that differs from his actual qualification, or by misrepresenting his connections with any institution, organization or individual, and does not give the opportunity to others attribute to oneself connections that in reality do not exist. The psychologist is responsible for correcting the opinions of others who misrepresent his professional qualifications or connections.

B. The psychologist should not have a mistaken idea about the institution or organization with which he is associated, attributing to them qualities that they do not have.

B. The psychologist does not use his affiliations with the American Psychological Association or its departments for purposes that are inconsistent with what it professes.

D. The psychologist does not associate himself or herself with or allow his name to be used in connection with any services or research results in a manner that could lead to misconceptions about him, his level of responsibility for them, or the nature of his affiliations.

Principle 5: Public statements. Restraint, scientific prudence and an understanding of the limitations of existing knowledge characterize all statements by psychologists who directly or indirectly provide information to the public.

A. Psychologists who interpret psychology or its applications to clients or the general public have a responsibility to communicate clearly and carefully. Exaggeration, sensationalism, superficiality and other types of misrepresentation must be avoided.

B. When they give information about psychological procedures and methods, seek to specify that they should only be used by persons trained in their correct use.

B. The radio or television psychologist does not engage in commercial statements recommending the purchase or use of the results.

Principle 6: Confidentiality. Guaranteeing the safety of information about an individual that is obtained by a psychologist during his training, practice or research is the primary responsibility of the psychologist. Such information is not shared with others until certain important circumstances arise.

A. Information received in confidence is disclosed only after the most careful consideration and when there is a clear and imminent threat to the individual or society, and only to members of the relevant professions or public leaders.

B. Information obtained in a clinical or consultation setting, as well as evaluations given to children, students, employees or others, are discussed only for professional purposes and only with the people concerned. Written and oral reports should reflect findings consistent with the objectives of the assessment; Every effort must be made to avoid unlawful infringement of personal privacy.

B. Clinical and other materials are used in school teaching and publications only when the identity of the subjects is appropriately disguised.

D. Confidentiality of professional communications about individuals is ensured. Confidential professional information is disclosed to appropriate individuals only when the author and other contributors give their express permission. The psychologist is responsible for making his client aware of the boundaries of confidentiality.

D. Only after explicit permission is it permissible to disclose the identity of subjects in publications. When data are published without permission of identification, the psychologist assumes responsibility for appropriately disguising the sources of his results.

E. The psychologist takes measures to ensure confidentiality in the storage and final disposition of confidential results.

Principle 7. Client's well-being. The psychologist respects the integrity and protects the well-being of the person or group with whom he works.

A. Psychologist in industry, educational institutions and other places where conflicts of interest may arise different groups, as, for example, between employers and workers or between a client and an employer using a psychologist, is obliged to establish for himself the nature and direction of his relationships and responsibilities, and to inform all interested groups about these obligations.

B. When conflict arises among professional workers, the psychologist is concerned primarily with the welfare of all clients and only secondarily considers the interests of his own professional group.

B. The psychologist attempts to limit clinical practice or consultation when it is clear to him that the client is not benefiting from it.

D. A psychologist who requests that an individual provide information about his or her personality in the course of an interview, test, or assessment, or who permits such information to be revealed to him, does so only after it has been established that the person responding is fully aware of the interviewee's objectives. , testing or assessment, and the ways in which the information may be used.

E. When a review is required, the psychologist's responsibility for the client's welfare continues until that responsibility is assumed by the professional for whom the review is requested or until the relationship with the psychologist giving the review is limited by mutual agreement. In situations where feedback, consultation, and the like are indicated in the terms of reference and the client refuses the feedback, the psychologist carefully draws his attention to the possible harm to him (the client), the psychologist and his profession, which may arise from the continuation of their relationship.

E. A psychologist who needs to use psychological tests for didactic, classification or research purposes protects his subject by warning that the tests and their results are used in a professional manner. G. When emotionally sensitive content is presented to a student, it is discussed objectively and efforts are made to constructively manage any difficulties that arise.

3. Care must be taken to provide an appropriate environment for clinical work in order to protect both the client and the psychologist from actual and perceived harm, and the profession from judgment.

I. When using conventional medications for therapeutic purposes, the psychologist must take special care to ensure that the doctor collaborating with him gives appropriate guarantees to the client.

Principle 8. Relationship with the client. The psychologist informs his future client about the main aspects of a potential relationship that may influence the client's decision to enter into this relationship.

A. Aspects of the relationship that appear to influence the client's decision include recording the interview, using interview material for training purposes, and observing others being interviewed.

B. When the client himself is not competent to assess the situation (like a child, for example), the person responsible for the client is informed of circumstances that may affect the relationship.

B. A psychologist usually does not enter into professional relationships with members of his family, close friends, comrades and other persons whose well-being may be disrupted by such dual relationships.

Principle 9. Impersonal service. Psychological services for diagnostic purposes, treatment or personal consultation are provided only in the context of a professional relationship and are not provided through public lectures or demonstrations, newspaper or magazine notices, radio or television programs, mail or other similar means.

It is unethical to report or recommend a person based on test data delivered only by mail unless the assessment is integral part long-term relationship between the client and the company, the result of which is that the consulting psychologist obtains personal knowledge about the client, and thereby ensures the adequacy of the written assessment to its goals, as well as its correct interpretation by the client.

These messages should not contain such a detailed analysis of a person’s personal qualities, which is possible only after careful interviewing of this subject. These communications should not make specific recommendations regarding the person's employment or position that go beyond the psychologist's knowledge of the company's job requirements. Messages should not imply restrictions on the company's need to conduct such activities as evaluations of work history, examination of references, and past service with the company.

Principle 10: Service Announcements. The psychologist adheres to professional rather than commercial standards in communicating his suitability for professional services.

A. The psychologist does not directly ask clients for the opportunity to provide an individual diagnosis or treatment.

B. Individual information in telephone books are limited to name, professional level achieved, diploma status, address and telephone number. They may also contain a definition in a few words of the field in which the psychologist practices, for example, the treatment of children, personality selection, industrial psychology. Messages about him specific functions are very modest.

B. Advertising for individual private practice is limited to simply stating name, level of professional attainment, diploma or credential status, address, telephone number, hours of operation, and a brief explanation of the types of services provided. Agency advertisements may include the names of service personnel with their qualifications. Otherwise they meet the same standards as individual advertisements to ensure that the correct character of the organization is present.

D. A psychologist or agency advertising nonclinical professional services may use brochures that describe the services but do not evaluate them. They can be sent to professionals, schools, trade firms, government agencies and other similar organizations.

E. The use of “recommendations from satisfied persons” in the brochure is not accepted. It is not acceptable to offer independent service expertise if the nature or effectiveness of the services provided by the psychologist are misrepresented. Claims that a psychologist has unique instruments or has unique skills that others do not have are made only when the scientifically proven effectiveness of these unique methods or instruments has been demonstrated.

E. The psychologist should not support (even to the best of his ability prohibit) the client’s exaggerated ideas about the effectiveness of the services provided. Statements to the client about the effectiveness of services should not go beyond those that the psychologist would like to inspire in the client through professionally correct publication of his results and their interpretation in a professional journal.

Principle 11. Intraprofessional relationships. A psychologist behaves honestly towards colleagues in psychology and other professions.

A. Each member of the association shall cooperate with the appropriately constituted Committee on Scientific and Professional Ethics and Conduct in the performance of its duty, answering questions with reasonable promptness and completeness. A member taking more than 30 days to respond to questions will be burdened with showing that he acted with “reasonable promptness.”

B. The psychologist usually does not offer professional services a person receiving psychological assistance from other professionals, except in those cases; when there are agreements with the latter or when the client’s connections with other professionals are over.

B. For the well-being of clients and colleagues, it is necessary that psychologists in general practice or joint activities agree in an organized and clear manner regarding the terms of their relationships and their possible limitations. Psychologists who act as employers of other psychologists have a responsibility to level the playing field.

Principle 12. Payment. Financial matters in professional practice are in accordance with professional standards that promote the interests of the client and the profession.

A. In setting rates for professional services, the psychologist carefully considers both the client's ability to pay and the prices charged by other psychologists engaged in similar activities. He is willing to contribute to a job for which he will receive little or nothing.

B. No remuneration or discount in payment, or any other form of payment, will be provided for a client's refusal of professional services.

B. A psychologist in a clinic or consultation does not use his or her relationship with a client to facilitate commercial enterprises of any kind for personal or agency gain.

D. A psychologist does not receive private payment or remuneration for professional work with a person who has acquired the right to his services through an institute or agency. The peculiarities of the activities of any agency may, to a certain extent, contribute to the private work of its employees with clients, and in these conditions the client must be fully notified of any measures of influence on him.

Principle 13: Non-disclosure of the test. Psychological tests and other research methods, the value of which depends in part on the ignorance of the subject, are not reproduced or described in popular publications in such a way as to invalidate the research method itself. Access to such methods is limited to those people who have a professional interest in them and guarantee their use.

A. Examples of problems similar to tests can be reproduced during discussion in popular articles and other places, but the tests themselves and the problems actually used in them are not published anywhere, with the exception of professional publications.

B. The psychologist is responsible for the control of psychological tests and other research methods, as well as methods of instruction, if their value could be discredited by divulging to the general public their specific contents or underlying principles.

Principle 14: Test Interpretation. Test scores, like test materials, are distributed only to individuals who are capable of interpreting and using them appropriately.

A. Materials intended for communication to parents or for the evaluation of individuals in schools, public institutions and industry are carefully reviewed by qualified psychologists or counselors to provide feedback or counseling to the individual as necessary.

B. Test scores and other data used for evaluation or qualification are communicated to employers, relatives, and other interested persons in a manner that guards against misinterpretation or misuse. The interpretation of test results is usually reported rather than the score.

B. When test scores themselves are communicated to parents or students, they are accompanied by appropriate tools and instructions for interpretation.

Principle 15: Publication of the test. Psychological tests are made available for commercial publication only to publishers who present them professionally and distribute them only to those qualified to use them.

A. Provide test manuals, test manuals, and other necessary test books that describe methods for constructing and standardizing tests and summarize validity research.

B. The guidelines indicate the groups for which the test is designed and the purposes for which it is recommended to be used. Limitations of its reliability and those aspects of validity for which research is missing or insufficient are also indicated. In particular, the guidance cautions against interpretations that may be made but are not yet sufficiently supported.

B. The catalog and manual indicate the degree of training and professional qualifications required to correctly interpret the test.

D. The manual and accompanying documents take into account the principles set forth in the Standards for Academic and Psychological Testing.

E. Test advertisements are realistic and descriptive rather than emotional and persuasive.

Principle 16: Precautions in Research. The psychologist assumes responsibilities regarding the welfare of his subjects, both animal and human.

The decision to conduct research must be based on the individual psychologist's thoughtful beliefs about how best to promote psychological science and human well-being. Responsible psychologist weighs alternative ways, which can be used to assess the energy and resources of an individual. When deciding to conduct research, psychologists must carry out those studies with respect for those people who take part in them and with concern for their dignity and well-being. The principles that should be followed clearly outline the researcher's ethical responsibilities towards participants throughout the course of the study, from the initial decision to conduct it through the steps necessary to ensure the confidentiality of the results.

These principles should be interpreted in the context of the final Ethical Guidelines for Research with Human Subjects requested by the American Psychological Association.

A. When planning work, the investigator has a personal responsibility to carefully evaluate his or her ethical appropriateness based on these principles for research involving human subjects. To the extent that this assessment, considered from the standpoint of scientific and human significance, suggests a departure from the principles, the investigator assumes a strong responsibility to obtain ethical advice and to exercise more stringent precautions to ensure the rights of the people participating in the research.

B. The responsibility for establishing and maintaining acceptable ethical practices in research always rests with the individual researcher. The researcher is responsible for the ethical treatment of research participants by all staff, research assistants, students and technical staff, all of whom, however, also have corresponding responsibilities.

B. Ethical practice requires that the researcher inform participants of all features of the study that may be expected to influence a person's willingness to participate and also explain any other aspects of the study about which the participant inquires. Failure to provide a full explanation to the subject places an even greater responsibility on the researcher to ensure the well-being and dignity of the research participant.

D. Openness and honesty are essential characteristics between the researcher and the research participant. If the methodological requirements of the study make secrecy or deception necessary, the researcher needs to ensure that the participant understands the reasons for this and restore the previous relationship between them.

E. Ethical practice requires that the researcher respect the individual's right to refuse or discontinue participation in research at any time. The responsibility to ensure the exercise of this right requires special vigilance if the position of the researcher is higher than that of the participant. The decision to limit this places an even greater responsibility on the researcher to ensure the dignity and well-being of research participants.

E. Ethically acceptable research begins with establishing a clear and fair agreement between the researcher and the research participant that clarifies the responsibilities of each. The researcher is required to respect all promises and commitments included in this agreement.

G. A researcher who adheres to ethical standards protects research participants from physical and mental discomfort, harm and danger. If there is a risk of such consequences, the researcher should inform participants, obtain their consent before proceeding, and take all possible measures to reduce harmful consequences. Research methods that could cause serious and lasting harm to participants should not be used.

3. Once data have been collected, ethical practice requires that the researcher provide the participant with a full explanation of the nature of the study and correct any misconceptions that may arise about it. If the scientific or human value of the research justifies delaying explanation or withholding data, the researcher has a special responsibility to reassure subjects that they have not suffered any harmful consequences from the research.

I. If research methods may lead to undesirable consequences for the participant, the researcher is responsible for detecting them and avoiding or correcting them; the same applies to long-term consequences.

K. Information obtained about participants during the course of the study is confidential. If there is a possibility that others could gain access to such information, ethical practice requires that this possibility, along with measures to ensure confidentiality, be explained to the participant; this explanation constitutes one of the points in the procedure for obtaining informed consent.

K. A psychologist using animals in research strictly adheres to the guidelines for the treatment of animals established by the Committee on Precautions and Standards in Animal Research and adopted by the American Psychological Association.

M. Human research involving experimental drugs should only be conducted in settings such as clinics, hospitals, or special conditions that ensure the safety of the subjects.

Principle 17. Significance of publications. Significance refers to those individuals who contributed to the publication and is determined in proportion to their participation and only in accordance with it.

A. Major professional contributions made by several individuals in general project, are considered as co-authorship. The experimenter or author who made a fundamental contribution to the publication is placed first on the list.

B. Minor contributions of a professional nature, major clerical and other professional work, and other minor forms of participation are noted in footnotes or in the introduction.

B. By special citation, unpublished and published materials that have had a direct influence on the research or publication are acknowledged.

D. A psychologist who compiles and edits for publication the work of other authors publishes the proceedings of a symposium or collection of works under the title of the symposium or committee and with his name as symposium chairman or editor among the names of other participants.

Principle 18: Responsibility to the organization. The psychologist respects the rights and reputation of the institution or organization with which he is associated.

A. Materials prepared by a psychologist as part of his ongoing work under the specific direction of his organization are the property of that organization. These materials are made available to the psychologist for use or publication in accordance with the permissions, rights, and other policies of his or her organization.

B. Other materials that are of secondary relevance to the activities of the institution and for which the psychologist bears individual responsibility are published with the institution disclaiming any responsibility for them.

Principle 19: Promotional activities. A psychologist associated with the creation or distribution of psychological instruments, books, and other products for commercial sale is responsible for ensuring that the instruments, books, and other products are presented in a professional and factual manner.

A. Claims for performance, benefit and results are scientifically based.

B. The psychologist does not use professional journals for the commercial exploitation of psychological products, and the psychologist-editor protects them from such misuse.

B. A psychologist who has a financial interest in the sale or use of psychological products is sensitive to potential conflicts with interests in promoting those products and avoids compromising his professional responsibilities and goals.

As a result of mastering this topic, the student should:

know

ethical codes and standards for the work of psychologists abroad and in Russia;
regulations regulating the activities of a psychologist;

be able to

apply in practice the requirements set out in the standards professional activity psychologist;
diagnose ethical conflict in professional practice and successfully resolve it;

own

ethical principles of psychological practice and use them in your professional activities in order to increase its effectiveness;
technologies for resolving ethical disputes and conflicts that arise in professional activities.

Ethical codes and standards for psychologists working abroad

The more random our morality, the more necessary it is to take care of the rule of law.

F. Schiller

Psychological practice requires special ethical regulation that guarantees the specialist’s compliance with the norms of professional morality and ethics, the formation and maintenance of the humanistic essence and content of psychological interaction with the client and the impact on his behavior, thoughts and feelings in order to provide psychological assistance in a difficult life situation.

In dictionary practical psychologist» the following definition of professional ethics is given: "professional ethics- implementation by a psychologist in his professional activities of specific moral requirements, norms of behavior both in relationships with clients, colleagues, the scientific community, and subjects, respondents, persons seeking psychological help.”

The professional ethics of a psychologist are regulated ethical standards, which is the code.

The interpretation of the term “code” is ambiguous. There is a code of honor, a moral code, a moral code. Codes of ethics, which outline ethical principles, rights and responsibilities, various functions, and moral standards that professionals must follow, are developed by professional and public organizations.

In the “Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary” the term “code” is interpreted as “a systematic collection of laws relating to a department or a whole set of departments of law, issued by the legislative branch,” i.e. A code of ethics is a legislative document containing systematized norms and rules related to any branch of human life.

The leading role in developing ethical codes and monitoring their compliance is given to professional psychological communities, which are responsible for:

1) for developing rules of conduct for a psychologist, determining the proper ethical level;
2) defining standards for psychological services;
3) monitoring compliance with the code of ethics, identifying violations and promptly responding to them, as well as criticism and complaints from clients;
4) consulting members of the psychological community on issues of professional ethics;
5) familiarization and training of community members with new developments in professional psychological practice and testing of innovative methods of psychological practice.

Currently, ethical codes for psychologists have been developed and adopted by professional communities in almost all countries. Much attention is paid to the professional growth and professional identity of practicing psychologists, teachers of psychological disciplines and psychological scientists.

Thus, the Belgian and Dutch ethical codes consider professional identity to be the main aspect of the formation and development of ethical competence of psychologists. The American Psychological Code pays special attention to the threat of double dependency, which results from the “treatment” of colleagues, students, close friends and relatives of psychologists, which increases the risk of abuse and can prevent the specialist from developing his own professional opinion. The French Code draws attention to the fact that the methods and criteria used in the work must be carefully checked by a psychologist from a scientific point of view, so as not to be captured by authorities. The German Code emphasizes the responsibility of the psychologist for the foreseeable scientific and non-scientific consequences of his research, and the choice of the most adequate methods. The British Code reiterates that a psychologist must endeavor to conduct research and practice in accordance with the highest standards of scientific and practical integrity and honesty.

Let's take a closer look at some of them.

Code of Ethics of the British Psychological Society. The British Psychological Society, which has an ethics committee within its structure, has developed a code that applies to all psychologists. It focuses on four topics.

1. Respect for human rights and dignity, ensuring and protecting the right to secrets personal life , privacy, self-determination and autonomy(in accordance with professional duties and laws), equal rights of the client regardless of race, religion or socio-economic status. Informed consent of the client/subject is required for any psychological assessments, interventions, or research participation; All clients/subjects must be aware that they are free to refuse at any time, without giving reasons, contact with a professional or participation in the study.
2. Competence - ensuring high standards, making maximum use of the professional’s knowledge and experience, providing only those services that he is competent to provide. Responsibility for continuous professional development, refusal to practice if qualifications or ability to form judgment are insufficient.
3. Responsibility- preventing harm, maintaining high standards, ensuring that the psychologist's services or knowledge are not used harmfully or inappropriately, accepting responsibility for the necessary continuation of professional services to the client (it is emphasized that responsibility does not end with the formal termination of professional contacts).
4. Honesty in research, teaching and practice; a precise indication of the role played by the psychologist; the obligation to objectively criticize the professional actions of colleagues; recognition of the need for precision in activities; avoidance of deception, respect for the terms of the contract, due regard to the financial implications of professional opportunities.

Purpose The ethical code of the British Psychological Society is to establish standards for the practical and research work of psychologists who are members of this association, as well as to inform and protect clients who have filed a complaint against a particular specialist or for help (the society provides a complaint procedure). All members of society must adhere to established and accepted ethical requirements and accept independent decisions about their application to a specific practical and research situation, taking into account possible contradictions between various aspects of professional responsibility. A psychologist who violates the requirements set out in the Code of Ethics may lose not only his membership in the British Psychological Society, but also his license to practice or engage in scientific and teaching activities. N. Foreman and R. Rowles describe the case of a practicing clinical psychologist who was found guilty of sexual harassment and sexual exploitation of several patients by a disciplinary tribunal of the British Psychological Association. There was no doubt that he behaved unethically towards his patients, violating both the Code of Ethics and legal norms. During the discussion, disagreements arose: if this psychologist were expelled from the association, he would be able to continue in private practice, since there is currently no law on the registration of psychologists in the UK. Therefore, the tribunal decided to leave the psychologist in the association, especially since he accepted an obligation not to practice as a clinical psychologist in the future, and to take his activities under special control and supervision.

As in other countries, the UK not only has a code for all psychologists, but also develops ethical requirements according to the psychologist's specialization. This is, for example, the Code of Ethics and Practice of the British Association of Consultants, which consists of two parts and defines the guiding principles of consulting, namely responsibility, confidentiality, setting boundaries in relation to the consultant and the client, accessibility to the client of the terms of the contract for the provision of consulting services, professional competence, safety and client autonomy.

Much attention is paid in the code to the the counseling process and its results. So, it states that the consultant works with the client until it becomes obvious that he has received the necessary help. This fact or the client’s desire to complete the work serves as the basis for ending the advisory process. If the consultant terminates the advisory relationship without completing the work, he must take steps to ensure that the client's immediate needs are taken care of. In addition, if it is necessary to take a break from counseling, the consulting psychologist must prepare the client for this and take measures to ensure his well-being during this period.

A significant role is assigned to the relationship of the consulting psychologist with colleagues, other people and the general public. In particular, it is noted that if a consultant finds violations in the actions of a colleague, he should use the grievance procedure, maintaining confidentiality and following the principles of responsibility and honesty.

It is also noteworthy that membership of a consultant association is not considered a qualification and should not be used as such. quality in advertising purposes: announcements about advisory practice, business cards, etc.

In order to promote professional excellence and effectiveness in counseling practice, it is mandatory for consultants to participate in supervision (for the definition of supervision, see Chapter 3) with an experienced supervisor (consultant) who has and understands both the supervision process itself and the technology of its implementation.

Code of Ethics of the American Psychological Association. As I. Diyankova notes, in the United States there are laws on psychological consultation, licensing of specialists, formal ethical codes have been created, on which a psychologist not only can, but should rely. There are licensing and ethical committees that monitor the professional behavior of psychologists and examine complaints received from clients, their loved ones, and fellow psychologists.

There are various professional associations in the United States: the American Psychological Association, the American Counseling Association, the American Association of Marriage and Marriage Therapists, etc. Each of them has its own code of ethics, which members of the association must follow. Ethical standards and principles vary somewhat from state to state, but this does not apply to issues related to the principles of responsibility, competence, confidentiality, etc. There may be specifics, for example, in licensing issues.

Most psychologists follow in their activities the Code of Ethics of the American Psychological Association, the first edition of which was adopted in 1952. It is based on the developments of the Committee on Scientific and Professional Ethics. It was reworked several times (in 1963, 1965, 1972); the current code in force was adopted in 1992. Its objectives are the well-being and protection of individuals and groups with whom psychologists work.

Primary requirements to the professional activity of a psychologist are set out in the ethical principles to which this activity must be subordinated.

The Code contains 19 principles.

1. Responsibility. A psychologist who has accepted the responsibility of improving mutual understanding between people and people must show objectivity and honesty to the client and try to perform their work at the highest level.

A research psychologist must be responsible for the results of his research: theoretical and applied significance; the reliability of conclusions supported by specific research data. An educational psychologist is responsible for the knowledge and skills that he teaches to pupils and students, and also maintains high standards of his erudition. A practicing psychologist must have a high level of social responsibility, since the well-being of other people depends on his work.

2. Competence. The responsibility of a psychologist is to maintain a high level of personal competence both to clients and to the entire professional community.

Unqualified psychologists compromise psychological practice. If their activities do not meet the qualification requirements, then they need to gain experience under the guidance of a qualified specialist. A qualified psychologist knows the limits of his competence, does not offer psychological services in which he is not a professional, and does not use technologies that do not meet professional standards.

3.Moral and legal standards. A psychologist in his practice is guided by the norms and moral requirements of the society of which he is a member. The psychologist understands that any disregard on his part of accepted moral standards can lead his clients, students and colleagues to personal conflicts and thereby damage both the reputation of the psychologist himself and the profession he represents.
4. Misconceptions. A psychologist is obliged to avoid erroneous ideas about his own professional qualifications and competence, as well as about those institutions and organizations with which he cooperates.

A psychologist should not use his association with the American Psychological Association or its departments for purposes that are inconsistent with what it professes.

The psychologist shall not associate himself or herself with or allow his name to be used in connection with any services or research findings in a manner that could lead to misconceptions about him, his level of responsibility for them, or the nature of the association.

5. Public statements. A psychologist in his public statements must show restraint, scientific prudence and a clear understanding of the limitations of the knowledge that he has. Exaggeration, sensationalism, superficiality and other types of misrepresentation must be avoided.
6. Confidentiality. The psychologist guarantees the safety of information obtained during practice, research or training. This information is not subject to disclosure until certain important circumstances arise.

Information received in confidence is disclosed only after careful consideration and when there is a clear and imminent threat to the individual or society, and only to members of the relevant professions or public leaders. The psychologist is responsible for informing the client about the boundaries of confidentiality.

7. Customer well-being. The psychologist respects the integrity and protects the well-being of the person or group with whom he works.

The Code provides detailed requirements for a psychologist working in an enterprise, educational institution, clinic and other institutions and organizations. In particular, it is noted that the psychologist limits clinical practice or consultation when it is clear to him that the client is not benefiting from it. When conflict arises among professional workers, the psychologist is primarily concerned with the welfare of all clients and only secondarily considers the interests of his own professional group.

8. Relationships with the client. The psychologist must inform the client, even before working with him, about the main aspects of the potential relationship that may influence the client's decision to enter into this relationship with the psychologist.
9. Impersonal service. Psychological work for diagnostic purposes, treatment or personal consultation is conducted only in the context of a professional relationship and is not provided through public lectures or demonstrations, newspaper or magazine notices, radio or television programs, mail or other similar means.
10. Service announcements. A psychologist must adhere to professional rather than commercial standards regarding his suitability to provide professional services.

In particular, the Code notes that the advertisement of an individual private practice is limited to a simple statement of name, professional level achieved, diploma or certificate status, address, telephone number, hours of operation and a brief explanation of the types of services provided.

11. Intraprofessional relations. A psychologist behaves honestly towards colleagues in psychology and other professions.

Explaining the provisions of this principle, the Code specifically notes that a psychologist does not offer professional services to a person receiving psychological assistance from other professionals, except in cases where there are agreements with the latter or when the client’s connections with other professionals have ended.

12. Payment. Financial matters in the professional practice of a psychologist are in accordance with professional standards that ensure the interests of the client and the profession.

The code specifies some requirements for payment for psychological services. For example, it is noted that a psychologist does not receive private payment or remuneration for professional work with a person who has received the right to his services through an institute or agency.

13. Non-disclosure of the test. Psychological tests and other research methods, the value of which depends in part on the ignorance of the subject, are not reproduced or described in popular publications in a manner that could invalidate the research method itself. Access to such methods is limited to those people who have a professional interest in them and guarantee their use.

The psychologist is responsible for the control of psychological tests and other methods of investigation, as well as methods of instruction, if their value could be discredited by divulging to the general public their specific contents or underlying principles.

14. Test interpretation. Test interpretations, as well as test materials, are provided only to those individuals who are capable of interpreting and using them appropriately.
15.Publication of the test. Psychological tests are made available for commercial publication only to publishers who present them professionally and distribute them only to those qualified to use them.
16. Research precautions. The psychologist assumes responsibilities concerning the welfare of his subjects - both animals and humans.

It is also noted that the decision to conduct research must be thoughtful and contribute to psychological science and human well-being. The psychologist must bear personal responsibility for the ethics of the research and take precautions to ensure the rights of the people participating in the research. He must inform participants about all the features of the study that may affect a person’s willingness to take part in it, and respect the person’s right to refuse to participate in the study. Information obtained about participants during the study is confidential.

17.Significance of publications. Significance concerns those individuals who participated in the publication and is determined in proportion to their participation and only in accordance with it.
18. Responsibility to the organization. The psychologist respects the rights and reputation of the institution or organization with which he is associated.

The materials that the psychologist prepared while working in the organization are its property. The psychologist has the right to use or publish them in accordance with the rules established by this organization.

19. Promotion activities. A psychologist associated with the creation or distribution of psychological instruments, books, and other products for commercial sale is responsible for ensuring that the instruments, books, and other products are presented in a professional and factual manner.

Some psychologists conducting research in the field of ethics, as noted by I. Diyankova, criticize the Code of Ethics of the American Psychological Association of 1992. Particular dissatisfaction is caused by the desire to protect not so much clients as the profession. Others, on the contrary, emphasize strengths this code, believing that it fully copes with its main tasks, namely: teaches and guides psychologists in the process of making ethical decisions; expands the understanding of psychologists regarding what behavior, from the point of view of the American Psychological Association, is considered unethical, thus preventing ethical violations; acquaints the public with the values of psychologists and the scope of their responsibilities, helps consumers of psychological services understand in which cases the behavior of a psychologist is considered unethical; clarifies association's views on standards of conduct and practice so that licensing committees can effectively use the code to disciplinary procedures. Thus, according to the report of the Ethics Committee for 2000, it conducted 42 preliminary investigations of received ethical complaints, and opened 43 cases in which the actions of a psychologist were regarded as a violation of the Code of Ethics. Of the 42 cases reviewed, 11 were subsequently closed for lack of ethical violations, one was referred for further investigation, in 12 cases the psychologists were reprimanded and/or had their membership rights limited, and 18 psychologists were expelled from membership in the American Psychological Association.

Despite all the pros and cons of the requirements for the activities of a psychologist set out in the Code of Ethics of the American Psychological Association, it is taken as a basis by many professional communities of psychologists in other countries.

Considering the ethical codes of professional activity of psychologists, it is necessary to note the attempt to create meta-codes and universal ethical principles activities of psychologists.

Thus, the European Federation of Psychological Associations (EFPA), which includes the Russian Psychological Society (RPO), has developed a meta-code of ethics. As J. Lindsay notes, the need for its creation arose due to the fact that codes do not exist in all countries participating in the federation, and there are disagreements between existing ones. This meta-code was developed by the federation's initiative group, formed in 1990, the result of which was to become a common code of ethics for all practicing psychologists in Europe. The basis was a set of ethical principles of psychologists in the Scandinavian countries, as well as America, Canada, Great Britain, Austria, Germany and Spain. The meta-code does not rank ethical principles by order of importance, such as the American Psychological Association's Code of Ethics, but instead emphasizes the interdependence of the core principles.

The meta-code recommends paying special attention to the behavior of the psychologist, which should be determined by the professional role within the professional relationship, as a practitioner, researcher or teacher. It is noted that in the relationship between a psychologist and clients and colleagues, inequality in knowledge always plays a huge role. And the more significant this inequality is, the stronger the influence of the psychologist on the client - i.e. the client’s dependence on the psychologist, the greater should be the professional’s responsibility for the results of his activities.

The Meta-Code has been revised several times, in particular, in 2005, new standards of behavior for psychologists were introduced into it, and some provisions related to protecting the reputation of the profession, relationships with clients, colleagues, etc. were clarified.

An attempt to develop a general code was also made in the Canadian Psychological Society. Thus, in 2002, a committee chaired by J. Gauthier developed the Universal Declaration of Ethical Principles for Psychologists. Essentially, it is an international code of ethics, which, like the meta-code, provides guidelines for the content of codes of ethics. In table 2.1 presents the basic principles set out in the meta-code of the European Federation of Psychological Associations and the ethical principles of the Universal Declaration.

Table 2.1

Basic Ethical Principles of the European Federation of Psychological Associations and the Universal Declaration of Ethical Principles (Canada)

Ethical principles set out in the meta-code of the European Federation of Psychological Associations	Ethical principles set forth in the Universal Declaration of Ethical Principles for the Professional Practice of Psychologists
The principle of respect for human rights and dignity. The right to personal space, confidentiality, independence of behavior and the right to make one’s own decisions that do not conflict with other professional duties of a psychologist and the requirements of the law	The principle of respect for the human dignity of each and everyone (taking into account national, ethnic and cultural subgroups)
The principle of competence is the psychologist maintaining high standards of performance	The principle of showing competent concern for the well-being of everyone
The principle of responsibility - recognition of professional and scientific responsibility	Principle of integrity
Principle of Integrity - Encourages integrity in the science, practice and teaching of psychology. Honesty, fairness and respect for people	The principle of professional and scientific responsibility to society

As can be seen from table. 2.1, The Universal Declaration, like the meta-code, includes four basic principles that must be included in the ethical codes of psychologists in other countries.

At their core, the basic ethical principles outlined in the meta-code and the Universal Declaration are practically the same. Both documents contain such basic ethical principles as respect for human dignity, professional competence of a psychologist, responsibility for the results of practical, scientific and teaching activities, integrity, which involves the combination of theory, experience, knowledge, skills, as well as honest and fair treatment of people. The differences are only in the particular interpretation of these principles, and also in the fact that in the Universal Declaration the principles are explained in detail in the category of values, and in the mega-code - taking into account the specifications.

As J. Lindsay notes, the meta-code is not intended for direct use by psychologists, but to be used as a template for the development of their own ethical codes by psychological associations of other European countries that are members of the European Federation. The existence of a meta-code greatly simplifies the development and adoption of national codes of ethics, since regulation concerns the principles of the existence of an ethical component in the profession, regardless of the structure and nature of the ethical code of each individual country. Psychological associations and societies of European countries are free to draw up their own codes, expanding and supplementing them taking into account the legislation of their country and the specific features of the development of psychological science and practice.

Currently, the meta-code, the Universal Declaration of Ethical Principles, the Code of Ethics of the American Psychological Association, and national ethical codes are actively used by psychological communities.

Diyankova I. Some ethical problems in modern American psychotherapy and psychological counseling. pp. 114-149.

Lindsay J. Cross-national regulation of ethical issues and the development of the EFPA metacode of ethics // National Psychological Journal. 2012. No. 1 (7). pp. 33-41.

Lindsay J. Transnational regulation of ethical issues and the development of the EFPA metacode of ethics. pp. 33-41.

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