What does the code of ethics consist of?

We will discuss the code of ethics for psychologists, written by the Dutch Institute for Psychologists (NIP). All psychologists who are registered at the NIP need to conform to this code of ethics. The code of ethics is a framework, based on national an international legislation, like the European convention on Human Rights. There are four principles of the code of ethics: responsibility, integrity, expertise and respect. The principle responsibility forms the basis, but none of the four principles are more important than the others. A psychologist is responsible for it's own actions and should therefore be able to justify his/her actions. Being a psychologist is a professional profession and consists of four elements: expertise, the social role, the professional standard and ethics. Expertise consists of the knowledge and ability of the psychologist. The social role is the acknowlegdement of this expertise, in such way that this expertise can be applied in practice. The professional standard consists of acting in a professional way, as other colleagues would do in the same situation. Ethics consist of the norms and values which are used in this professional standard. The NIP tries to professionalize psychology through these aspects.

What does the code of ethics consist of?

We will discuss the code of ethics for psychologists, written by the Dutch Institute for Psychologists (NIP). All psychologists who are registered at the NIP need to conform to this code of ethics. The code of ethics is a framework, based on national an international legislation, like the European convention on Human Rights. There are four principles of the code of ethics: responsibility, integrity, expertise and respect. The principle responsibility forms the basis, but none of the four principles are more important than the others. A psychologist is responsible for it's own actions and should therefore be able to justify his/her actions. Being a psychologist is a professional profession and consists of four elements: expertise, the social role, the professional standard and ethics. Expertise consists of the knowledge and ability of the psychologist. The social role is the acknowlegdement of this expertise, in such way that this expertise can be applied in practice. The professional standard consists of acting in a professional way, as other colleagues would do in the same situation. Ethics consist of the norms and values which are used in this professional standard. The NIP tries to professionalize psychology through these aspects.

The ideas about what is ethical and what is not keep changing, that is why the code of ethics is often adjusted. It has been agreed that these adjustments will not take place more than once every five years, though an explanation may be added to the code, which may contain some minor changes. The four principles of the NIP are first elaborated in a general way in the code of ethics, and then they are elaborated in a more specific way. The general rules are guidelines, in such a way that psychologists know how to act professionaly. To check whether someone conforms to the code of ethics, the specific rules are written: to test someone in a more concrete way. Namely, one of the functions of the code of ethics is to be a criterion to test the professional behaviour of psychologists. A second function is to offer guidelines for ethical decisions psychologists need to make during their work. Lastly, the code of ethics serves as a guide, in which clients can look up all their questions concerning the work of psychologists. In the latest version of the code of ethics, extra attention has therefore been given to clearly writing out the articles, which makes them more readable and easier to understand for everyone. We will now discuss the four principles of the code of ethics.

What does the principle responsibility consist of?

The first principle, responsibility, consists of six aspects:

1. The first aspect is the quality of acting professionaly. This means that the psychologist should act thoughtful and should not perform behaviour that may damage his/her reliance. Also, his/her professional conduct must be of good quality, whereby he adheres to ethical norms and is careful with trying out new methods.

2. The second aspect is the continuity of acting professionaly. This means the psychologist is during the whole treatment responsible for the client and also responsible for the potential transfer of the client. This also means that the psychologist is responsible for the client's dossier. All these responsibilities don't immediately when the professional relationship between psychologist and client ends.

3. The third aspect is the prevention and limitation of harm, by exposing the client as little as possible to bad experiences. When a psychologist says something about a person on television or through social media, it is expected that he/she takes the possible harm for this person into account and tries to limit this harm as much as possible. However, the psychologist does not need to ask permission from the person before making statements in the media. In addition, a psychologist is directly responsible when he/she is testing people without their permission. Also, the psychologist should realise that his/her treatment may have bad indirect consequences. This third aspect also included minimising the use of animal testing, when conducting experiments.

4. The fourth aspect is to prevent misuse. The main thing in this aspect is that the psychologist does everything he can to ensure that dossiers and reports prepared by him/her, are not being misused.

5. The fifth aspect, the work environment of the psychologist, prescribes the guidelines for a collegiate environment. The psychologist himself is responsible for his own work and qualities. However, the psychologist also bears joint responsibility for his team and the qualities of his team. Within a team, psychologists should help eachother, but must also be open for discussion about their own acting. In addition, a psychologist is responsible for the ethical and technical qualities of the people working under his leadership.

6. The sixth and last aspect, accountability, says that a psychologist should be able to account for his own handling through dossiers and files. When a complaint is made against him, he is expected to cooperate as well as possible. The psychologist may use the dossier when defending this complaint.

What does the principle integrity consist of?

The second principle, integrity, consists of three aspects:

1. The first aspect is reliability, which means that the psychologist only has a professional relationship with the client, when this is ethically and professionaly justified. In addition, does this mean that it is being discussed when this relationship with the client will be ended. Lastly, this means that the psychologist acts in an objective and independent way and will not help others, who do things that go against the code of ethics.

2. The second aspect is honesy, which means that the psychologist does not mislead people and does not create unrealistic expectancies about his/her treatments. Moreover, he must be honest about the financial costs. This also means that he/she should nog misuse his/her knowledge and should always carefully (statistically) process and analyze it. The psychologist should always be honest about his education and experience, and inform it's clients about alternative treatments. This second aspect also includes the obligation to report sources in articles or presentations.

3. The third aspect is role integrity, which means that the psychologist does not let his/her personal interests in matters of affairs, religion and politics play a role in his/her work. The psychologist must try to prevent him/her to play multiple roles for clients, for example when he sees a client outside of his/her job. Role integrity also includes that a psychologist does not enters a personal (sexual) relationship with a client and does not exhibit sexual behaviour towards the client. Also, a psychologist must acknowledge that the interests of the client and other involved parties might sometimes be incompatible, and that it is sometimes for the best to not accept assignments that are incompatible.

What does the principle respect consist of?

The third principle, respect, consists of five aspects:

1. The first aspect is general respect, which means that the psychologist respects the knowledge, experience and insight of the person concerned. Also, a psychologist may not interfere with someone's private life more than necessary and must ensure that the dignity of people is not affected. The psychologist must focus on the individual client and his characteristics. This also includes that the psychologist may not discriminate anyone.

2. The second aspect is autonomy and self-determination. This means that the client is always able to end the relationship with the psychologist. When the self-determination of a client is limited, should the psychologist give him/her as much autonomy as possible. Also, the psychologist need to have permission from the client to work together and the client must be well informed about the treatment. The client can also indicate what he would like and he/she may also view his/her own dossier. The client is also able to comment on the dossier, insist to remove aspects in the dossier and is even able to submit a request to remove the entire file. This rule does not apply when the client has submitted a complaint, because then the psychologist is entitled to use the dossier in his defence. When third parties wish to few the file, permission from the client is required, unless these third parties have the right by law to view the dossier.

3. The third aspect is confidentiality, which means that the psychologist is required to maintain confidentiality. The psychologist needs to handle his own knowledge with care and, without permission, not pass it on to third parties. This confidentiality may only be broken when otherwise there might be direct danger for other people. When the psychologist already expects this situation to arise, he must tell the client that he will break the confidentiality obligation when the situation actually arises. If a psychologist in court has to answer questions that are in contradition with confidentiality, he may invoke the right to exuse him and therefore does not need to give an answer.

4. The fourth aspect is data provision, which includes the distribution of information from the dossier and giving a professional opinion by the psychologist. In the first instance, this is only allowed when the psychologist has received permission from the client. When a psychologist is legally obliged to provide data, the client does not have to give permission for this. The psychologist may provide information to researchers, but only in a way that the identity of the client can not be traced. This also applies to providing information for publications and education.

5. The fifth aspect is reporting. The (written) report is dicussed with the client and when the client finds errors, the psychologist must adjust this or remove this from the report. When the psychologist wants to share the report with a third party, the client is given an opportunity to view the report in advance. Moreover, the client has the blocking right, which means that he has the right to withhold reporting to an external client. This right does not apply if the blocking right is not permitted by law.

What does the principle expertise consist of?

The fourth ans last principle, expertise, consists of three aspects:

1. The first aspect of expertise is ethical reflection, which means that the psychologist must be aware of the ethical aspects and legal provisions. Also, the psychologist must critically think about his actions and his own norms and values.

2. The second aspect is professional competence, which means that the psychologist is professional competence and continues to develop his expertise through literature and further training. Professional competence also includes that the psychologist uses effective methods.

3. The last aspect of expertise is the limit of professional conduct. This means that the psychologist knows what he is capable of and does not accept assignments that could be outside his own capability. When he does have an hard assignment, he must call in help himself. Also, the psychologist only uses methods that he may use due to his education. In addition, the psychologist must always be able to justify his actions, through his reports. The psychologist should prevent himself from getting psychical or physical complaints, which may result in him acting less well. Nevertheless, if he does receive these complaints, he must temporarily put down his work.

What are possible special circumstances?

The code of ethics is not a manual that can determine what is best to do in every situation. The best thing to do is to look at each situation specific, especially when two guidelines contradict eachother and cause an ethical dilemma. If two rules cannot be followed at the same time, the pscyhologist should weigh up the consequences of the choices between the two. In some cases, the psychologist needs to deviate from the code of ethics, even though there are no conflicting rules, and then he has to consult the professional association or an outsider (a collegue). A decision that deviates from the code of ethics must be grounded. Sometimes the law may require a psychologist to deviate from the code of ethics, in that case he must adhere to the other rules of the code of ethics as much as possible.

How does the code of ethics apply to under-aged children?

When a client hasn't reached the age of 16 years yet, or is older than 16 years old but is not capable of self-determination, his/her legal representatives have the rights described in the professional code. When a client is 12 years or older, he/she must be involved in these rights as much as possible.

What does the complaints procedure consist of?

If a NIP-registered psychologist does not comply with the professional code, someone is able to submit a complaint agains him/her. The complaints procedure is recorded in the Regulations for Supervision of the NIP. The complaint will at first be handled by the Board of Supervision and appeals will be made to the Board of Appeal. When a complaint is justified, the psychologist can be punishes in four different ways. The first is a warning and the second is a reprimand, a somewhat stricter warning. The third way is to temporarily suspend the psychologist, for a maximum of two years. In this case the psychologist will not longer be a member of the NIP. The fourth and highest punishment is to end the membership of the NIP. The psychologist therefore may never again become a member of the NIP. The Board of Supervision and the Board of Appeal both have the same possibilites regarding punishments, but both do not have the power to fire the psychologist.