Waterboarding Ethics: Psychology's Dangerous "Mission Drift" from Professional to Guild Ethics
A Saturday Morning Seminar
presented by
William MacGillivray, PhD, ABPP
Saturday, September 10, 2016
9:00am–12:15pm
NEW VENUE
University of Tennessee Medical Center
Morrison Education and Conference Center
1924 Alcoa Highway
Knoxville, TN, 37920
Directions for Parking at UTMC and Getting to the Center
Description of Program:
The American Psychological Association (APA) issued a new Code of Ethics in 1992. With this and its subsequent revisions, APA took a fateful and controversial step toward developing an ethical code based on protecting psychologists rather than protecting the public. This transformation from professional ethics to guild ethics took place within an increasingly challenging environment for psychologists, not the least being the increasingly litigious nature of American society and the decline in authority of the professions in general. As a result, the aspirational ethics codes prior to 1992 were increasingly seen as posing a danger to psychologists' ability to function and to defend their actions in a court of law. At its simplest, the problem can be stated thus: while it may be all well and good for the psychologist to aspire to the highest demands of ethical behavior, would you want the slightest deviation from such behavior to result in punitive and potentially financially ruinous litigation?
However reasonable at the time, the unforeseen consequences of this decision meant that ethical decision-making was increasingly focused on pushing the boundaries of ethical behavior to protect the psychologist's scope of practice and authority. The most egregious example at the organizational level has been the PENS Report that essentially sanctioned as ethical psychologist participation in interrogations of detainees at Guantanamo and other illegal detention sites (black hole sites) as long as psychologists did not participate or in other ways seem to condone torture. This report and subsequent attempts of psychologists to overturn the report's findings have led to the greatest shake-up in APA's history and has exposed to our members and the public much of the questionable participation of psychologists in highly illegal government activities.
In this seminar, we will address three broad themes: 1) the consequences of APA's shift from professional to guild ethics, 2) the specific example of the PENS Report as a quintessential guild ethics position paper along with the revelations of the Hoffman Report, and 3) the need for a new code of ethics (or perhaps codes of ethics) to address the realistic needs of psychologists to protect themselves from litigation that has no connection to ethical behavior while still emphasizing a full commitment to human rights.
This program is designed to meet the requirement for psychologists licensed in the state of Tennessee to obtain continuing education in ethics and the law. For further information, please refer to the Rules and Regulations of the Tennessee Board of Examiners in Psychology.
Schedule:
8:30am Registration and Continental Breakfast
9:00am APA’s Abandonment of Professional Ethics:
The PENS Report
9:45am Film: Interrogate This
10:30am Break
10:45am Hoffman Report and its Aftermath
11:45am Professional Versus Guild Ethics
12:15pm Complete Evaluations and Adjourn.
Educational Objectives:
After attending this intermediate-level program in full, participants will be able to:
1. Critically analyze the strengths and limitations of the APA Ethics Code as a whole.
2. Describe the consequences of APA's shift from professional to guild ethics and the recent attempts within APA to reaffirm our professional commitment to human rights.
3. Examine and articulate our individual as well as group ethical responsibilities to address ethical conflicts within APA, as well as other entities within which we work, as stated in APA’s Ethical Standards 1.02 and 1.03.
4. Discuss how clinical practice often involves us in eager, unwitting, reluctant, or disillusioned willingness to collaborate with social/corporate/ governmental intrusions into clinical work.
5. Articulate ways that psychologists can address these ethical principles and dilemmas within the context of Tennessee licensure and law.
Presenter:
Bill MacGillivray is a clinical psychologist in private practice in Oak Ridge, TN. He has served in a number of different capacities within Division 39 and APA governance and has been involved at least on an informal level in discussions and debate with almost all the principals in the controversy regarding APA’s support for psychologists’ involvement in interrogation of illegally held detainees. He has previously presented ethics seminar with local mental health groups, including APS.
Participants:
This program is open to all APS members and other interested mental health professionals who may not be members. It is not limited to individuals practicing in a predominately psychoanalytic mode. The material will be appropriate for clinicians with intermediate levels of experience and knowledge.
Registration Fees and Policies:
Members and Scholars: $45 through September 5, 2016, $55 after September 5, 2016.
Non-members: $60 through September 5, 2016, $70 thereafter.
Free to Early-Career Professional and Graduate Student Members until September 5, 2016, $10 thereafter.
Online registration will close on September 8, 2016.
Although walk-ins will be accepted, please register online at www.aps-tn.org in advance to assure adequate food and seating.
If you prefer to pay by check, please print the form: Saturday Morning Seminar Registration, and mail with your payment to:
Elaine Erickson, PhD
APS Treasurer
515 Booth Street
Knoxville, TN 37919.
Refunds honored with written/electronic notice at least 24 hours before date of conference. Contact Elaine Erickson, PhD.
Contact the APS President Heather Hirschfeld, PhD to negotiate fees, if needed.
Facility is accessible to persons who are physically challenged. If participants have special needs, we will attempt to accommodate them. Please address requests, questions, concerns and any complaints to Heather Hirschfeld, PhD.
APS Membership:
Eligible professionals can join APS or renew their membership for the 2016-2017 program year for $70. Scholars can join/renew for $50 and Early-Career Professionals can join/renew for $35. Graduate students may join or renew for $25.
American Psychological Association Approval Statement:
Division 39 is approved by the American Psychological Association to sponsor continuing education for psychologists. Division 39 maintains responsibility for this program and its content.
Continuing Education:
This program, when attended in its entirety, is available for 3.0 continuing education credits. With full attendance and completion of a program Evaluation and Learning Assessment, a certificate will be issued. Psychologists will have their participation registered through Division 39.
APS and Division 39 are committed to conducting all activities in conformity with the American Psychological Association’s Ethical Principles for Psychologists. APS and Division 39 are also committed to accessibility and non-discrimination in continuing education activities. Participants are asked to be aware of the need for privacy and confidentiality throughout the program. If program content becomes stressful, participants are encouraged to process these feelings during discussion periods.
This program is designed to meet the requirement for psychologists licensed in the state of Tennessee to obtain continuing education in ethics and the law. For further information, please refer to the Rules and Regulations of the Tennessee Board of Examiners in Psychology.
See http://www.apa.org/ethics/code/index.aspx for the American Psychological Association’s Ethical Principles of Psychologists and Code of Conduct.
http://www.lexisnexis.com/hottopics/tncode/ for Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 63, Chapter 11.
http://share.tn.gov/sos/rules/1180/1180.htm for an Official Compilation of the Rules and Regulations of the State of Tennessee, Chapters 1180-1, 1180-2, 1180-3, and 1180-4.
Please click here to review the ASPPB Code of Conduct (2013).
Contact:
Please address requests, questions, concerns and any complaints to APS President Heather Hirschfeld, PhD.
There is no commercial support for this program nor are there any relationships between Division 39, APS, presenter, program content, research, grants or other funding sources that could reasonably be construed as conflicts of interest. During the program, the validity/utility of the content and risks/limitations of the approaches discussed will be addressed.