Applied Research in Consulting

Codes of ethics in couple therapy: a review of three professional ethics systems

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

Vahideh Javadi 1
Mahdieh Mohammadi Jam 2
Marzieh Haiaty 3
Zahra Heidari 4
Omid Saed 3

1 zanjan unevrsity of medical science

2 zanjan university of medical science

3 Zanjan university of medical science

4 zanjan university of zanjan, zanjan, iran

Abstract
All jobs and professions follow certain ethical principles, the basic purpose of which is to reduce harm and increase effective service. The field of family and couple counseling, especially from the ethical aspect, has certain issues and complications, which sometimes puts couple and family therapists in two much more complicated moral paths than individual therapy. The most important document in any profession is the ethical code of that profession. This document connects specialists to achieve goals and defines the scope of their work. The code of ethics clarifies the ideal standards as a professional. Considering the limitations of the professional code of ethics of psychologists and counselors in Iran in the field of ethical codes related to working with couples and families, the purpose of this article is to review three valid codes of professional ethics in Iran. The field of work was with couples and families, so that the therapists of this field could be familiarized with the special content of these codes, and in this way, provide the ground for solving ethical challenges in this context. The review of these systems adds to the knowledge of therapists about some challenges and practical suggestions are suggested to face these issues. The specific codes of each system are provided, and if some of these codes overlap, the different codes provided in other systems are highlighted. Despite the high agreement of these systems on a large part of the ethical codes, there are still differences regarding some others.

Keywords

code of ethics
couple therapy
comparison of three professional ethics systems
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