ABSTRACT

Ethics reflects the moral principles upon which most professional practices rest. It forms the basis to do good, to do no harm, to respect others, and ensure justice. The purpose of this study was to investigate ethical dilemmas experienced by 20 clinical psychologists in Ghana. Semi-structured interviews were used to investigate ethical dilemmas faced in professional practice. Using thematic analysis, the reported dilemmas included third-party involvement, (sub-themes: Therapy with Minors, Marital Disclosures, Source of referral, Duty to Warn), Dual relationships (subthemes: Collegial Relationships, Power Differential in Relationships), Cultural competence, and Policies and practices. The findings showed that although some of these dilemmas are universal, others arise (e.g., cultural competence) from the general cultural context of Ghana and the professional culture within which clinical psychologists are socialized. Recommendations to assist clinical psychologists address ethical dilemmas in Ghana and implications for the development of ethical regulations in the country are addressed.

摘要

伦理反映了大多数专业实践所依据的道德原则。它构成了行善、不伤害、尊重他人和确保正义的基础。本研究的目的是调查加纳 20 名临床心理学家所经历的伦理困境。半结构化访谈用于调查专业实践中面临的道德困境。使用主题分析，报告的困境包括第三方参与（子主题：未成年人治疗、婚姻披露、转介来源、警告义务）、双重关系（子主题：大学关系、关系中的权力差异）、文化能力，以及政策和做法。研究结果表明，尽管其中一些困境是普遍存在的，但其他困境也会出现（例如，文化能力）来自加纳的一般文化背景和临床心理学家社会化的专业文化。建议帮助临床心理学家解决加纳的道德困境以及对该国制定道德法规的影响。