Behavioral Science/Psychology
Graduation Competency: Demonstrate an awareness of ethical principles within one’s chosen professional field.
Program Competency # 4: Demonstrate an understanding of empirical and ethical issues related to the systematic study of individual and group processes
Course:     PHI 302 – Ethics and Values in Behavioral Science
Goal C:     Understand the role of professional codes of ethics
Learning Outcome:    C-4: Identify professional issues within the context of 
ethics. 
E- 2: Use ethical theories to interpret professional codes of ethics.
Rubric:Rubric to measure Graduation Competency # 4

Behavioral Science/Psychology

Graduation Competency:    Demonstrate an awareness of ethical principles within

                                                   one’s chosen professional field.

Program Competency # 4:    Demonstrate an understanding of empirical and ethical

                                                    issues related to the systematic study of individual and

                                                    group processes

Course:    PHI 302 – Ethics and Values in Behavioral Science

Goal C:      Understand the role of professional codes of ethics

Learning Outcome:         C-4: Identify professional issues within the context of

ethics. 

E- 2: Use ethical theories to interpret professional codes of ethics.

Rubric:                                  Rubric to measure Graduation Competency # 4

Assessment Activity:

Students will write one 4 to 6 page essay consisting of two parts that address the issue of professional ethics.  The project requires students to recognize the principles associated with a breach of ethics demonstrated in a film, a television show, in print fiction, newspaper and magazine columns, radio talk shows, news, and/or feature stories.  This assignment is designed to span a full block or semester class.  It cannot be accomplished in one week, so plan ahead and begin immediately.  The completed assignment will be evaluated using the attached rubric.

Assignment:                                                       This is an assignment in which students will reflect on their           ability to recognize and understand ethical dilemmas.

Understanding ethics is a graduation competency at Wilmington      University.

This assignment consists of multiple parts and requires students to think about their growth and development in understanding ethics and seeing professions from multiple perspectives

Assignment Description:              This assignment consists of 2 parts.

                                                                                                Part 1: Code of Ethics of one’s chosen profession

                                                                                                Part 2: Media Analysis Project

Final Product:                Put both parts of the assignments together into one Ethics & Values paper including the code of ethics essay for one’s chosen profession and media analysis essay. These 2 parts should be organized into one paper with a cover sheet in APA style.

Part I:  Getting Started: Developing Awareness of the Code of Ethics in One’s Chosen Field

1.            Identify your chosen profession (psychologist, educator, counselor,      police or probation officer).

2.            Go online to search for and find the ethical standards for your chosen

Profession.  Explore the many resources found at this site. 

a.            Write a short essay (minimum of 2 paragraphs) explaining

                                i.              Why you chose the specific profession.

ii.             Why it is important for professionals in the field you have chosen to be familiar with and understand the field’s code of ethics.

iii.            Identify what you think are the three most important requirements of the field’s code & explain why. Be sure to cite the code of ethics.

iv.           Part I is to be integrated with Part II to make a one complete essay w/ cover page and reference page in APA style.

Part II:  Ethics – A Media Analysis Paper

Description: For the second part of this paper, write an essay describing an ethical dilemma for a           person working in your desired profession, depicted in at least two forms of media. 

Examples:  You might select a movie and a radio talk show to discuss ethical dilemmas of a psychologist.  A newspaper article, and a short story might be used to discuss ethical dilemmas faced by a counselor. Or, a movie and a newspaper article might depict the ethical dilemmas of an attorney. 

This essay is to have a minimum of 4 pages but no more than 6 pages, double-spaced, have one-inch margins, and use TNR #12 font (follow APA style formatting requirements).

Writing the Paper: Describe the ethical dilemma in which the real, or fictitious, professional(s) is/are involved. Relate the questions below to the code of ethics of your chosen profession:

a.            What actions did the person take? 

b.            Were those actions within the profession’s code of ethics?  The code of ethics must be cited.

c.             What actions could the person have taken to remain within the profession’s code of ethics?  The code of ethics must be cited.

d.            How can and does the profession respond to ethical misconduct among its membership?  The code of ethics must be cited.

e.            Using at least two theories presented in the textbook, explain how each theory would view the ethical dilemmas and the actions taken by the real, or fictitious, professional(s).

Submission Checklist

Listed below is a checklist that can be followed to insure that all of the necessary components for your Graduation Competency # 4 assignment are included.  The assignment is to be put together in one document with a cover page & two sections identified as Part I and Part II. It is to be submitted on the day of the final class.

1.            Is the title page in accordance with APA style, as defined by APA Manual 6th Ed.?

2.            Has the code of ethics for the chosen profession been copied and pasted into Part 1?

3.            Does the Part 1 essay have a minimum of 2 paragraphs?

4.            Where necessary, is the code of ethics cited in the Part 1 essay?

5.            Has there been at least one media sources chosen that present ethical dilemmas in the professional field that has been chosen? The textbook must be cited.

6.            Have all 5 items (a. through e.) been addressed in the Part 2 essay?

7.            Are the breaches of ethics covered under at least two ethical theories as presented in the textbook or other scholarly source included and cited in the Part 2 essay? 

8.            Has the code of ethics been cited in the Part 2 essay?

9.            Is the cover sheet and running head presented according to APA style (6th Ed.)? Are in-text citations presented according to APA style? Is the reference page properly formatted according to APA style requirements?