Straight Talk About Professional Ethics

Social service professionals use a unique set of principles to guide their decisions within a broad and complex array of situations. Straight Talk about Professional Ethics provides readers with the guidelines that will help them make decisions in a manner that is clinically and ethically effective. This book explains the seven core concepts that guide ethical practice in the helping professions: self-determination, informed consent, competence, confidentiality and privacy, attention to conflicts of interest, maintenance of professional boundaries, and professionalism and integrity. Developing a commitment to the ethics of a profession and an understanding of how those ethics apply to commonly occurring workplace situations is a major element of professional preparation.

Kimberly Strom, Ph.D., LISW, is the Smith P. Theimann Jr. Distinguished Professor of Ethics and Professional Practice at the University of North Carolina School of Social Work and Director of the University's Office of Ethics and Policy.

Preface
New to the Third Edition
About the Author

Part I: The Groundwork for Ethical Practice

Chapter 1. On Ethics and Ethical Behavior
Chapter 2. Ethical Decision Making

Part II: Applying Standards for Ethical Practice

Chapter 3. Self-Determination
Chapter 4. Informed Consent
Chapter 5. Conflicts of Interest
Chapter 6. Professional Boundaries
Chapter 7. Confidentiality
Chapter 8. Competence
Chapter 9. Professionalism
Chapter 10. Nondiscrimination and Cultural Competence
Chapter 11. Sustaining Ethical Habits

References
Index