This article examined the attitudes of 195 school counselors in Israel regarding (a) the decision to maintain or breach confidentiality in a variety of ethical dilemmas, and (b) the reasons given for justifying their decisions. Eighteen ethical dilemmas in three domains were presented to respondents in a questionnaire. School counselors were most willing to breach confidentiality regarding dilemmas in the domain of dangerous behaviors or situations, less willing in the domain of unlawful behaviors, and least willing in the domain of personal and family information. Ethical reasons, legal and procedural reasons, and professional-personal priorities of counselors were the three types of reasons used by counselors, although they varied in the use of each type of reason according to their decision and the domain of the dilemmas.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
AchmonI. (2004). Confidentiality. In ShefflerG., AchmonI, & WeilG. (Eds.), Ethical issues in the counseling and mental health professions (2nd ed., pp. 137–157). Hebrew University, Jerusalem:Magnes.
2.
American Counseling Association. (2005). ACA code of ethics.Alexandria, VA: Author.
3.
American School Counselor Association. (2004). Ethical standards for school counselors.Alexandria, VA:Author.
4.
BakerS. B. (1996). School counseling for the twenty-first century.Englewood Cliffs, NJ:Merrill.
5.
BeauchampT., & ChildressJ. F. (1979/2001). Principles of biomedical ethics (1st & 5th eds.). New York: Oxford University Press.
6.
BodenhornN. (2006). Exploratory study of common and challenging dilemmas experienced by professional school counselors.Professional School Counseling, 10, 195–202.
7.
BondT. (1992). Ethical issues in counseling and education.British Journal of Guidance and Counselling, 20, 51–63.
8.
CapuzziD. (2002). Legal and ethical challenges in counseling suicidal students.Professional School Counseling, 7, 162–171.
9.
ChoudhoryD., GlauserA., & PeregoryJ. (2004). Guidelines for writing a qualitative manuscript for the Journal of Counseling & Development.Journal of Counseling & Development, 82, 443–446.
10.
CollinsN., & KnowlesA. (1995). Adolescents’ attitudes towards confidentiality between the school counsellor and the adolescent client.Australian Psychologist, 30, 179–182.
11.
CrenshawW.B., LichtenbergJ. W., & BartellP. A. (1993). Mental health providers and child abuse: A multivariate analysis of the decision to report.Journal of Child Sexual Abuse, 2, 19–42.
12.
DavisJ. I., MickelsonD. J. (2003). School counselors: Are you aware of ethical and legal aspects of counseling? In RemleyT. P.Jr., HermannM. A., & HueyW. C. (Eds.), Ethical and legal issues in school counseling (2nd ed., pp. 36–47). Alexandria, VA:American School Counselor Association.
13.
DavisT., & RitchieM. (2003). Confidentiality and the school counselor: A challenge for the 1990s. In RemleyT. P.Jr., HermannM. A., & HueyW. C. (Eds.), Ethical and legal issues in school counseling (2nd ed., pp. 197–207). Alexandria, VA:American School Counselor Association.
14.
FarberN. K. (2006). Conducting qualitative research: A practical guide for school counselors.Professional School Counseling, 9, 367–375.
15.
FisherG. P., & SorensonL. (1996). School law for counselors, psychologists and social workers (3rd ed.). White Plains, NY: Longman.
16.
FroeschleJ., & MoyerM. (2004). Just cut it out: Legal and ethical challenges in counseling students who self-mutilate.Professional School Counseling, 7, 321–356.
17.
GlosoffH. L., HerlihyB., & SpenceB. (2000). Privileged communication in the counselor-client relationship: An analysis of state laws and implications for practice.Journal of Counseling & Development, 78, 454–462.
18.
GlosoffH.L., PateR. H.Jr., (2003). Privacy and confidentiality in school counseling. In RemleyT. P.Jr., HermannM. A., & HueyW. C. (Eds.), Ethical and legal issues in school counseling (2nd ed., pp. 164–178). Alexandria, VA:American School Counselor Association.
19.
Hadari Research and Development. (1996). Survey of school counselors.Jerusalem:Israeli Ministry of Education, Division of Psychological and Counseling Services.
20.
HendrixD. H. (1991). Ethics and intra-family confidentiality in counseling with children.Journal of Mental Health Counseling, 13, 323–333.
21.
IsaacsM. L., & StoneC. (2003). School counselors and confidentiality: Factors affecting professional choices. In RemleyT. P.Jr., HermannM. A., & HueyW. C. (Eds.), Ethical and legal issues in school counseling (2nd ed., pp. 179–196). Alexandria, VA:American School Counselor Association.
22.
Israeli Association of School Counselors. (2001). Code of ethics.Tel Aviv, Israel:Author.
23.
Israeli Association of School Counselors. (2002). The use of the code of ethics.Tel Aviv, Israel: Author. Israeli Ministry of Education. (2001). A guide for school counselors in emergency and crisis situations in schools.Jerusalem:Israeli Ministry of Education, Division of Psychological and Counseling Services.
24.
KitchenerK. S. (1984). Intuition, critical evaluation and ethical principles: The foundation for ethical decision in counseling psychology.The Counseling Psychologist, 12, 43–55.
25.
KitchenerK. S. (2000). Foundations of ethical practice, research, and teaching in psychology.Mahwah, NJ:Lawrence Erlbaum.
26.
LawrenceC. W., & KurpiusS. E. R. (2000). Legal and ethical issues involved when counseling minors in nonschool settings.Journal of Counseling & Development, 78, 130–136.
LincolnY., & GubaE. (1985). Naturalistic inquiry.Beverly Hills, CA:Sage.
29.
MayK. M., & SowaC. J. (1992). The relationship between a counselor's ethical orientation and the stress experienced in ethical dilemmas.Counseling & Values, 36, 150–160.
30.
MitchellC. W., DisqueJ. G., & RobertsonP. (2002). When parents want to know: Responding to parental demands for confidential information.Professional School Counseling, 6, 156–161.
31.
PattonM. (2002). Qualitative research and evaluation methods (3rd.ed.). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
32.
RemleyT. P.Jr., HermannM. A., & HueyW. C. (Eds.). (2003). Ethical and legal issues in school counseling (2nd ed.). Alexandria, VA:American School Counselor Association.
33.
RitchieM.H., & PartinR. L. (1990). Ohio school counselor's involvement with parents. Unpublished manuscript.
34.
SeidmanI. (1991). Interviewing as qualitative research: A guide for researchers in education and social sciences.New York:Columbia Teachers Press.
35.
StoneC. (2000). Advocacy for sexual harassment victims: Legal support and ethical aspects.Professional School Counseling, 4, 23–31.
36.
StoneC. (2005). School counseling principles: Ethics and law.Alexandria, VA:American School Counselor Association.
37.
TatarM. (2000). Kinds of support anticipated and preferred during counseling: The perceptions of Israeli school counselors.Professional School Counseling, 4, 140–147.
38.
Wasserstein-FassbergC. (2004). Ethics and law. In ShefflerG., AchmonI, & WeilG. (Eds.), Ethical issues in the counseling and mental health professions (2nd ed., pp. 52–71). Jerusalem:Magnes.
39.
WeilG. (2004). Ethical issues in counseling-therapeutic work in the educational system. In ShefflerG., AchmonI, & WeilG. (Eds.), Ethical issues in the counseling and mental health professions (2nd ed., pp. 442–451). Hebrew University, Jerusalem:Magnes.
40.
WelfelE. R. (2002). Ethics in counseling and psychotherapy.Pacific Grove, CA:Brooks/Cole.
