Ethical Dilemmas in School Psychology: Which Dilemmas Are Most Prevalent Today and How Well Prepared Are School Psychologists to Face Them?

Abstract

Professional organization ethical codes are adopted to protect the public by educating their members to standards of conduct and by facilitating resolution of ethical complaints. Given that the last survey on ethics in school psychology was conducted over a decade ago, the aim of this study was to investigate the ethical dilemmas practitioners face today, along with their preparedness for resolving these dilemmas. We also examined workplace resources and whether preparedness and resolution were related to background variables (i.e., degree, setting, ethics training). Results indicated most school psychologists experienced at least one ethical dilemma over the past year, mostly in the areas of assessment and administrative pressure. Although most participants felt prepared to face ethical dilemmas, relatively few used a systematic decision-making model to resolve them. Last, most school psychologists reported feeling relatively unprepared for ethically delivering psychological services via telehealth. Implications for research and practice are discussed.

Impact Statement

Ethical school psychological practice is imperative to ensure effective and appropriate systems-level functioning and individual students’ educational and psychological needs are met. This study examined school psychologists’ experiences with ethical dilemmas and how various factors relate to their resolution of such dilemmas. The study findings are used to delineate implications for training and practice.

Keywords:

• Ethical and legal issues
• professional issues in school psychology

Associate Editor:

• Justin P. Allen

COMPLIANCE WITH ETHICAL STANDARDS

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest. All procedures were approved by and in accordance with the ethical standards of the University Institutional Review Board and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards. Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.

DISCLOSURE

The authors have no conflicts of interest to report.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Kathrin E. Maki

Kathrin E. Maki, PhD, is an Assistant Professor of School Psychology in the School of Special Education, School Psychology, and Early Childhood Studies at the University of Florida. Her research centers on the conceptual, psychometric, and decision-making issues related to Specific Learning Disabilities (SLD) identification, and the use of assessment data to drive academic intervention implementation for students with SLD and other academic difficulties.

John H. Kranzler

Dr. John H. Kranzler is Irving and Rose Fien Endowed Professor in Education and Director of the APA-accredited School Psychology Program in the School of Special Education, School Psychology, and Early Childhood Studies at the University of Florida. Dr. Kranzler’s major area of scholarly interest concerns the nature, development, and assessment of human cognitive abilities. He is a Fellow of the American Psychological Association and an elected member of the Society for the study of School Psychology.

Jessica M. Wheeler

Ms. Jessica Wheeler is pursuing a doctoral degree in the school psychology program at the University of Florida.