Ethics in Psychology,
PSY
Prof. Perrin Cohen
Fall, 2004


Course Overview and Objectives

Ethical concerns and issues such as privacy, fairness, harmful actions, and disrespect are increasingly important for psychologists, educators, researchers, administrators and business people. In this course, we provide tools to heighten ethical awareness as well as resources to research, make decisions, and respond to those issues. Those tools and resources will serve you well regardless of your career path. By the end of the course, you will be more confident and competent to constructively address ethical issue in routine professional matters. This will enhance your effectiveness and reputation as a professional and reduce costly mistakes. Specifically, you will be able to:

• Reflect upon/identify ethical concerns/issues that you experience in professional settings
• Constructively listen to and speak with others about such concerns/issues.
• Identify useful resources and people, on an off campus
• Conduct research that clarifies and refines ethical thinking and decision making.
• Critically think about options for constructively converting your think and decision making into practical action
• Appreciate potential benefits (and costs) to heightened ethical awareness and inquiry

Texts: Bersoff, D.N. (2003) Ethical Conflict in Psychology, Washington, D.C.: American Psychological Association. (Denoted by B)
Sales, B.D. & Folkman, S. (2000). Ethics in Research with Human Participants, Washington, DC: American Psychological Association. (Denoted by S)
NUCASE Internet Resources: Click on StepForward and NUCASE resources (Library) http://www.nucase.neu.edu
Supplementary Readings/Videotapes: Snell Library Reserve Desks

Date	Topic/Assignment
ETHICAL AWARENESS
Sept 10	Introductions and Overview
Sept 14	Reflective Conversations: Identifying Common Ethical Issues B:75-98, S:3-10, A. Weston, Ethics with a Heart (handout) Homework Due: Identify what you think are the ethical concerns your fellow students experienced in the case studies provided (see handout). Describe how it ěfeelsî to have an ethical concern? What are the motivations for considering ethical concerns?
Sept 17	Homework Due: Come prepared to share and hand in an example of an ethical issue/situation that you experienced and found challenging in the workplace, laboratory, business, etc. Describe the conditions under which it occurred, what occurred, the outcome for you and others and anything else that you think is important.. We refer to this as your ěpersonal case studyî.
Sept 21	Ethical Codes & Guidelines: Development and Roles, Normative Ethics Violations of Power & Trust, B:249-251 Homework Due: Come prepared to share and hand in an example(s) of an ethical guideline, precept, code, that relates directly to your ěpersonal case studyî. You can find this type of ěprofessional ethicsî information on websites associated with professional organizations(e.g., APA) or perhaps your texts. See NUCASE internet resources as a starting place.
Sept 24	Ethical Stakeholders & Ethics Education B: pp 123-139, pp 106-117 S: pp 97-105 Homework Due: Come prepared with a stakeholder, duty-based, and cost-benefit analysis of your ěpersonal case studyî
ETHICAL THINKING & DECISION MAKING REGARDING:
Sept 28, Oct 1	ěRESPECTî: Confidentiality, Autonomy, Privacy & Interpersonal Boundaries B:pp155-164, S:pp 35-57 Limits of Confidentiality/Privacy: tarasoff B:pp165-171, pp98-20
Oct 5, 8	ěHONESTYî Truthfulness, Competency, Deception, Plagiarism Debriefing, Assent, Informed Consent, Dehoaxing, Desensitization, Genethics, Competency/Credentials Limits of informed consent/debriefing: B:pp398-419, S: pp 35-73 Scientific Fraud/ Stampede of Zebras, Babbage S:382-389
Oct 12, 15	ěDO NO HARMî: Benevolent Interventions, Duty to Warn, Personal Safety, Non-Malfeasance, Ethical Professor Different styles of ethical Thinking: Drug S: pp 429-441 Animal: Duty Based/Cost benefit Handouts will be distributed
Oct 19, 22	ěJUSTICEî: Fair Treatment, Discrimination, Welfare of Others Distributed and Procedural Justice, Authorship and Intellectual Credit, Data Ownership, Data sharing S:pp 7-8 , pp 75-9 Recruitment of Research Participants S: pp 27-34 Related topics: Women and Minorities, Tuskegee Experiments
Oct 26, 29, Nov 2	Research Proposals/Discussions by Team Members Homework Due: Research Proposal/Project Outlines due no later than Oct 26
Nov 5, 9	CONVERTING ETHICAL THINKING AND DECISION MAKING INTO PRACTICAL ACTION (Guest, one day) (Assignment to be announced)
Nov 12, 16, 19, 23, 30, Dec 3, 7	Presentations/Discussion

Grades, Participation, Homeworks, Oral Presentation & Research Paper/Project

• Grades: Your final grade will be based upon ěparticipationî throughout the entire semester, four homework assignments, your oral presentation, and a research report that is due on the last day of class. The following points will be assigned to your work with the designated grading scale used as only an approximate basis for assigning grades. A passing grade (D- or better) will require more than 170 points.

  Item	Points
  Homework 4@10	40
  Research Paper/Project	80
  Research Project	20
  Oral Presentation	100
  Participation, Attendance, Preparedness	100
  Total Points	340

• Participation: This requirement has three parts: attendance, contribution to class discussion, and handing in homework assignments on time. If you contribute to class discussion by speaking, listening and being prepared, miss at most three classes, hand in all but one homework assignment on time, you will received full ěparticipationî credit. Anything other than full participation credit will be up to the Professorís discretion. Full participation credit can have the effect of increasing your grade by one-half point (e.g., C+ to B-). Participation is particularly important in a seminar format that relies on individuals contributing to group discussion.
• Homework Assignments: All assignments must be handed-in the weeks that they are due to receive any credit. All assignments can be no longer than one typed age. Longer ones will not be accepted.
• Oral Presentations: During the final weeks of the course, everyone will give a half-hour, oral summary and discussion of their research paper and project to the class. Presentations will be evaluated in terms of effectiveness in clearly communicating and discussing research findings, conclusions, and project and in engaging other students in discussion.
• Research Report & Project: Both the research report and project are due on the last day of class (Dec 7). Both will be evaluated in terms of guidelines handed out in class.