Dual relationships in the practice of school psychology: A study of ethical beliefs

Abstract

The purpose of the present study was to determine the various demographic characteristics of school psychologists and their respective ratings of the frequency of ethical dilemmas they encounter involving dual relationships, and to determine what types of dual relationships are most frequently reported in occurrence. In addition, the present study evaluated the ratings of school psychologists regarding the types of dual relationships that they encounter in the schools and to determine the level at which they rate these situations as ethically troublesome. Two thousand randomly selected members of the National Association of School Psychologists were sent surveys regarding ethical beliefs and practices. 1,000 were sent Form A, which consisted of demographic questions, and a series of multiple relationship situations, on which they were asked to give an ethical rating. 1,000 were sent Form B, which consisted of demographic questions, and a series of multiple relationship situations, on which they were asked to report the occurrences of these situations in their practices. A response percentage of 29.9% (N = 299) was achieved for Form A, and 37.7% (N = 377) for Form B. Significant differences were found between respondents grouped by gender and degree for Ethical Rating Scores. Females were more ethically conservative, rating more items as "never ethical" than males. In addition, practitioners with Master's degrees rated items as more ethically conservative than those with Specialist's degrees. Significant differences were also found between practitioners grouped by school setting for Total Occurrences Scores. Practitioners from rural areas reported that these situations occurred more often than practitioners in other settings.