Virtue ethics focus on the motives that guide ethical decision making and action, and as such, are critical to the competent application of the counseling profession’s ethical codes. Knowledge of virtue ethics deepens understanding of moral responsibilities and ethical reasoning in professional practice. This paper is an overview of virtue ethics and discusses its relevance for school counselors and counselor educators.

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Virtue ethics in school counseling: A framework for decision-making

This cross-sectional study explored 897 participants’ decision making in response to a school counseling case containing an ethical dilemma and compared respondents’ approach to the variables included in the Intercultural Model of Ethical Decision Making (IMED). Although 60% of participants identified that the school counselor’s beliefs could influence decision making, only 10% identified the ethical issue. Differences were found in the resources consulted across those who identified the ethical issue and those who did not. Results and implications are discussed.

School Counselors’ Approach to Ethical Decision Making

As schools become increasingly diverse through immigration and growth of minority groups, it is important that school counselors incorporate culturally sensitive ethical decision-making in their practice. The use of Western ethical theories in the application of professional codes of ethics provides a specific perspective in ethical decisionmaking, but may not provide school counselors with a broad cultural perspective. We discuss the use of Eastern theories of ethics (Taoism and Hinduism) and their relevance to the ASCA Ethical Standards for School Counselors to inform school counselors’ work with Asian immigrant students. ASCA Ethical Standards 3 ASCA Ethical Standards and the Relevance of Eastern Ethical Theories According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the United States has undergone a significant change in demographics over the past several decades (U.S. Census Bureau, 2008), and these changes will continue in the future. Sue and Sue (1999) noted that such changes in the U.S. population may be described as “the diversification of the United States” (p. 8). There are several groups that are predicted to show significant increases, including the Asian population. As of 2006, the Asian population reached approximately 14.9 million, which comprises roughly 5% of the total U.S. population (U.S. Census Bureau, 2007). A significant increase in the Asian population in U.S. schools will result from immigration (U.S. Census Bureau, 2008), and the pressures immigrant students frequently experience in assimilating to American culture may likely result in the need for school counselor intervention. Consequently, it is important for school counselors to consider whether mainstream counseling theories and practices, which are primarily based on Western theories, are sufficient to appropriately address the needs of Asian immigrant students. Hill et al. (2007) found that Asians’ values strongly influence their preferred type of counseling interventions. What does this mean for school counselors? School counselors working with students who hold Asian values should endeavor to fully understand and implement Eastern ethical theories not only to inform school counseling services but also to maintain respect for Asian students’ and their families’ worldview. The Asian Counseling & Referral Service (n.d.) [ACRS], (a national Asian counseling organization) also emphasizes the importance of providing Eastern ASCA Ethical Standards 4 interventions in addition to Western counseling interventions. The significant recent increase in the number of Asian youth in the U.S. coupled with the projected growth over the next several decades suggest it is essential to understand the philosophical foundations of Asian students’ and their families’ values and orientation. Houser, Houser,Wilczenski, and Ham (2006) suggested that understanding individuals’ philosophical and personal values are significant issues when considering ethical decision-making in counseling. For example, Feldman and Rosenthal (1990) as cited in Roysircan-Sodowsky and Frey (2003) found that Chinese adolescent immigrant students tend to prefer maintaining their traditional culture while adjusting to Western values. Given diverse cultural preferences among Asian immigrant students, it is important to understand how to best prepare and train counselors with respect to increasing their understanding of Asian student values and ethical decision-making. A primary concern for counselor educators has been how to best teach ethics. The most frequent approach to teaching ethics is through the review and understanding of professional codes of ethics. Professional codes of ethics are generally based upon broad ethical theories, specifically Western theories of ethics (Malloy, Hadjistavropoulos, Douaud, & Smythe, 2002). Kitchener (1984) acknowledged that the use of ethical principles can provide the practitioner with fundamental rules for ethical behavior. These fundamental rules are commonly used in developing professional codes. For example, the concepts and principles of: beneficence; justice; fidelity; nonmaleficence; and autonomy provide much of the foundation for current ethical codes in professional ethics for counselors. Parsons (2007) outlined how four of these principles (autonomy, beneficence, nonmaleficence, and justice) are represented ASCA Ethical Standards 5 in several professional codes of ethics, such as the American Psychological Association, the American Counseling Association, and the National Association of Social Workers. The American School Counselor Association (ASCA) Ethical Standards for School Counselors (ASCA, 2004) include standards addressing these four principles: beneficence (e.g., Principle A.1. Responsibility to Students); autonomy (e.g., Principle A.3. Counseling Plans); nonmaleficence (e.g., Principle A.4. Dual Relationships); and justice (e.g., Principle B. 1. Parent Rights and Responsibilities and B. 2. Parents/Guardians and Confidentiality). As schools become more and more diverse through immigration and growth of minority groups, the importance of providing culturally sensitive counseling and professional codes of ethics that are culturally sensitive is critical. While professional standards based upon Western ethical views are helpful in ethical decision-making when working with Asian immigrant students, Eastern views of ethics should also be considered. Using only a Western orientation in addressing ethics has been criticized as promoting “moral neo-colonialism” (Widdows, 2007). Widdows defined neocolonialism as “covert rather than overt attempts to convert people to one’s own way of thinking” (p. 306). The use of Western ethical and moral views has been seen as an attempt to influence others, in countries other than Western countries, to believe a certain way and that the Western views are most correct. The Western approach to ethical decision-making is founded on an analytical/linear model or cause and effect view. Eastern views of decision-making are strikingly different. Eastern theories emphasize an intuitive approach which is focused somewhat on tradition and discovering the “truth” through experience and internal reactions. Neither view is ASCA Ethical Standards 6 necessarily right or wrong, but they approach decision-making from different perspectives which can affect outcomes and courses of action. Cole (2008) cited the importance of cultural knowledge in working with clients from diverse backgrounds. She further suggested that understanding client worldviews are essential to inform treatment. School counselors can benefit from an awareness and sensitivity to Eastern ethical views and values in working with students from Asian backgrounds. To address the need for sensitivity of students with Asian backgrounds, we will discuss and review the relevance of two Eastern ethical theories: Taoism and Hinduism vis-à-vis the ASCA Ethical Standards for School Counselors (ASCA, 2004). There will not be an attempt to apply Taoism and Hinduism to every code, but to select codes to ascertain their relevancy and help inform ethical decision-making when working with Asian immigrant students and their families. The following codes will be evaluated using Taoism and Hinduism: Counseling Plans; Dual Relationships; and Parents/Guardians and Confidentiality. However, first there will be a review of basic concepts of both Taoism and Hinduism. Concepts of Taoism Taoism has a long history in China dating back over 2500 years. An underlying principle of the theory is that a simple life observing and being in tune with nature is a foundation for living. A model for living in this theory is a farmer and the simple life attuned to nature and the rhythm of the seasons. There are a number of concepts in Taoism that potentially apply to ethical decision-making: yin and yang; the harmony of opposites and relativity; simplicity; reversal and cyclicity; and nonaction (Shanahan & Wang, 2003). Many in the West are somewhat familiar with the basic ideas of the yin ASCA Ethical Standards 7 and yang although they may not necessarily be able to define the concepts. The yin and yang are opposites, but the goal is to provide a balance between them. Each of these concepts has characteristics associated with them. For example, the yin is considered to be the weaker of the two and is characterized as calm and cool, but can have a destructive component. The yang is described as: strong; positive; and full of energy. The yang is associated with constructive forces. Another set of concepts which are relevant when understanding ethics and Taoism are harmony of opposites and relativity. Harmony of opposites concerns the experience of seeing and understanding the opposite of something (Houser, Wilczenski, & Ham, 2006). In other words, if something is done well then the person must see or understand that something can be done not so well. A related concept is relativity. Relativity refers to the relative nature of events. Going back to the ideas of harmony of opposites is that opposites are still within a context. Thus, something that is done well or poorly is relative. The expectations for completing a paper for example, may result in a characterization of the paper being done well for a high school student, but this is relative because the same paper may not be considered to be done well by a college student or a college professor. Counseling a student who is seeking to go to college (and may be in an AP course) may have a different intent than working with one who is seeking to enter the trades in completing such a paper. Simplicity is another important term that refers to the idea of keeping things simple and not adding complexity to life. It involves the way of living that is in tune with nature, following the natural flow of nature (Houser et al.). A counseling example in regards to the concept of simplicity may involve helping a student choose a college. The student may express ASC

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ASCA code of ethics and the relevance of Eastern ethical theories

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ASCA code of ethics and the relevance of Eastern ethical theories