Ethics for Psychologists: Promiscuous Principles or Ideological Pluralism?(Review)

Ethics for Psychologists: A Handbook

By Ronald Francis. Leicester, UK: BPS Books, 1999. v + 255 PP. Cloth, [pounds]29.95; paper, [pounds]15.95.

Ingrid Lunt, in her short Foreword to this book, describes ethics as an area of professional practice that has recently been paid growing attention (Lunt is outgoing president of the British Psychological Society and president of the European Federation of Professional Psychologists Associations [EFPPA]). This common identification of ethics as one of several professional practice issues is one reason why it is currently a marginal subject in psychology. The ethics that many professional psychologists are introduced to is limited to discussion of practical problems and putative solutions, without any of the history or ideas of this ancient subject (Wheeler, 1998).

There are many manuals, guides, and textbooks on ethics in psychology. Some (Canter, Bennett, Jones, & Nagy, 1994; Nagy, 1999; Sinclair & Pettifor, 1991) develop explications of particular national ethics codes; others (Bersoff, 1999; Koocher & Keith-Spiegel, 1998; Pryzwansky & Wendt, 1999) expand their horizons beyond just explaining a particular code, but are still based squarely within professional psychology (and North America). Others, including Francis's book, try to give a wider account of ethics in psychology, beginning with conceptual and theoretical matters and going on to consider particular issues from there (Anderson, Needels, & Hall, 1998; Richardson, Fowers, & Guignon, 1999; Steininger, Newell, & Garcia, 1984). Francis's guide is one of a few that points in all the right directions.

The book is divided into three parts and includes two appendices. Part I (five chapters) surveys theoretical and legal aspects of ethics, outlines some European and Anglophone ethics codes (although without discussing any particular non--English-language codes), and considers the basis of an ethical infrastructure for organizations. Part II (five chapters) discusses a number of practical issues, including teaching the subject and ethical decision making, and presents six key ethical principles for psychologists. Part III is a compendium of brief advice on about 170 particular ethical issues. The appendices are "The United Nations: Universal Declaration of Human Rights" and "EFPPA: MetaCode of Ethics."

Strengths of the book

Francis says that his book "is intended for psychologists who do not have a detailed background in professional ethics but who want a professional account that will assist in showing how to make ethics work in practice" (p. 2), and it generally hits the mark. He writes in crisp prose, and with occasional dry humor that is welcome in a sometimes portentous field. His background in forensic psychology and philosophy has been put to good use, giving both legal and conceptual issues better treatment than they commonly get in psychological ethics.