Unit 3: Professionals and Practitioners in Counseling
Lesson 3.5: Code of Ethics for Counselors
Introduction
From the previous lesson, you were able to understand that counselors have specific rights, responsibilities, and
accountabilities that are mandated by law through the Professional Regulation Commission and the Philippine
Guidance and Counseling Association, Inc. In this lesson, we will shift our focus toward clients and understand the
specific ethical standards that must be facilitated in order to ensure a safe, helpful, and productive counseling
experience for them.
In this lesson, we will discuss various considerations, activities, and behaviors that are in line with the code of ethics
for counselors.
DepEd Learning Competency
At the end of this lesson, you should be able to distinguish between ethical and unethical behavior among counselors
(HUMSS_DIASS 12-lc-10).
Learning Objectives
In this lesson, you should be able to do the following:
• Identify ethical principles that counselors should employ in their practice.
• Distinguish appropriate and ethical behaviors in practice.
Discover
In the Philippines, counselors are mandated by the Code or Manual of Technical Standards for Registered and
Licensed Guidance Counselors that was developed by the Philippine Guidance and Counseling Association, Inc.
(PGCA) and the Professional Regulation Commission (PRC). While the code of ethics that Filipino counselors follow
is localized in the country, the components of this code do not veer away from global standards of what and how
counseling practices should be.
The purpose of this code of ethics is to ensure that professional standards are maintained in practice and that
practitioners are given an opportunity to improve, direct, and assess their service quality based on a standardized
rubric. In this lesson, we will discuss various components of the code of ethics for counselors.
Words to Remember
• feedback – reaction about an information or a performance; usually serves as basis for improvement
• publication – the process of publishing research into an academic journal
The Counseling Relationship
Contemporary research on counseling has shown that successful counseling sessions are influenced by the quality of
the counseling relationship, which can be understood as the professional relationship between the counselor and the
client. Contrary to popular belief, the therapeutic alliance of the counseling relationship is a by-product of the
counseling process that is anchored on mutual respect, openness, and trust.
Meanwhile, rapport should be established early on in the counseling relationship in order to open more opportunities
for growth. In the counseling relationship, both the counselor and the client take active roles in addressing the client’s
issue. This is one reason why humanistic perspectives in counseling are heavily integrated into many counseling
applications. One prominent theory is that of Carl Rogers’ therapeutic triad of empathy, unconditional positive regard,
and congruence. This will be thoroughly discussed in the next unit.
1
Confidentiality, Privileged Communication, and Privacy
Confidentiality is a process that protects the client’s privacy
through appropriate safekeeping of records and through
ensuring that such information is only accessible to the client.
Meanwhile, privacy refers to the clients’ right to control
information about themselves. Privacy and confidentiality are
pillars of privileged communication that imply the client’s
right to anonymity, but specifically under a court of law.
While counselors are generally tasked to maintain the
confidentiality, privacy, and privileged communication of their
clients, there are several exceptions that warrant private
information to be released to relevant third parties. These
exceptions include the following:
• when the client is a minor who has been experiencing
any form of abuse at home, school, work, or in the community
• when clients’ current functioning poses harm to themselves or others
• when the client’s case is subjugated by any court of law, for any legal case that requires this information to be
released
• when clients request for their records to be released for personal purposes
Professional Responsibility
The counselor is first and foremost a professional who is tasked
to aid clients in resolving their issues. Counselors need to ensure
that they are conscious of their professional responsibilities
before, during, and after any counseling session. The counselor’s
professional responsibilities range from establishing a good
working relationship with the client, providing regular feedback
and assessment sessions, and conducting debriefings and follow-
ups when necessary. In some cases, counselors might also need to
perform other professional responsibilities that go beyond client
interaction. These include presenting a client’s case in a court of
law, partaking in continuing development activities, and holding
administrative positions related to the counseling profession.
Relationship with Other Professionals
Similar to other professions, counseling professionals are encouraged to widen their networks through participating in
training, seminars, and workshops. Actively partaking in these events not only introduces a counselor to various
linkages, but it also provides counselors new skills and knowledge that they could apply in practice.
The code of ethics encourages counselors to view fellow practitioners as colleagues in the field who work towards a
unified goal and purpose. Nevertheless, it is important to note that counselors, in times of work-related stress, are also
encouraged to seek support from the same network to ensure that the quality of service provided to clients will not be
limited, biased, or problematic.
Evaluation, Assessment, and Interpretation
Evaluation, assessment, and interpretation can be viewed as the most
objective aspects of the counseling process. Counselors are expected
to provide accurate and reliable results to tests, including those that
only include behavioral observations and counselor feedback. This is
because the outcomes acquired from these processes will heavily
influence the course of the counseling process, particularly the
counseling goals and the counseling plan. For example, any
misinterpretation of a client’s evaluation and assessment results could
lead to more maladaptive behaviors for the client. The counseling
activities (which are heavily reliant on these processes) will fail to
target actual maladaptive behaviors.
2
Supervision, Training, and Teaching
According to the code of ethics, counselors can engage in counseling supervision, training, and teaching. However, it
is important to know that doing so would require professionals to meet specific requirements and qualifications that go
beyond getting a PRC license as a guidance counselor. For example, the PGCA and PRC recognize and certify
supervisors, trainers, and specialists when counselors meet specific exhaustive criteria that prove their experience and
exposure to the profession. Some of these qualifications include a minimum number of years in active practice,
certifications for specialized programs and counseling areas, and registration as a licensed practitioner in the
Philippines.
Research and Publication
One of the professional responsibilities of counselors is to conduct research and produce publications. While this is
not required in practice, engaging in these activities would allow counselors to increase their Continuing Professional
Development (CPD) points and facilitate knowledge-building in their field. In the code of ethics, counselors are
expected to engage in research and publication initiatives that value participant safety, privacy, and beneficence. At the
same time, ethical standards of research practice would also require counselors to report accurate results using reliable
and appropriate methodologies.
Resolving Ethical Issues
At times, counselors may encounter issues that may be too difficult to resolve by themselves. In these situations,
specific and appropriate measures might be mandated by the PGCA, alongside with experts in the field, on how to
address such issues. One way of doing so is to engage in objective consultation with other counseling professionals
and with the regulating institutions. Legal obligations and standards falling beyond the realm of counseling must also
be considered. According to existing research, one method of resolving these complex ethical issues would be to
conduct an in-depth exploration of potential solutions and choose which would be the best for the client in terms of
potential outcomes and safety considerations.
Wrap-Up
• The purpose of the code of ethics is to ensure that professional standards are maintained in practice and that
practitioners are given an opportunity to improve, direct, and assess their service quality based on a
standardized rubric.
• The code of ethics for counselors includes provisions on the following:
a. counseling relationship
b. confidentiality, privileged communication, and privacy
c. professional responsibility
d. relationship with other professionals
e. evaluation, assessment, and interpretation
f. supervision, training, and teaching
g. research and publication
h. resolving ethical issues
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