Ethical Issues in School Consultation

Abstract

Selected principles from ethical codes published by the American Psychological Association (1981) and the National Association of School Psychologists (1985) are applied to the task of articulating the consultant's ethical responsibilities to consultees, pupils, parents, and the employer-school. Although the discussion is based on the premise the child is the primary client of the school psychologist, it is recognized the consultant has responsibilities to protect the well-being of all persons affected by consultation. Ethical issues that apply across consultation models are discussed first Next, issues with particular relevance to mental health, behavioral, and process consultation are examined. Finally, meta-ethical issues and training for ethical consultation practice are discussed.