Southern, S., Smith, R. L., & Oliver, M. (2005). Marriage and Family Counseling: Ethics in Context. The Family Journal, 13(4), 459–466.

Abstract:

Codes of ethics typically provide rules and guidelines for best practices in marriage and family counseling. An emerging model for ethical decision making emphasizes the ethics of virtues and aspirations. Exploring fundamental models of helping, as well as contemporary issues in community systems, affords context for examining the professional development of marriage and family counseling. Dialectical reasoning, professional discourse, and case study present means by which 21st-century marriage and family counselors can resolve ethical dilemmas.

1. Within the article, which model of helping can you most relate with?
2. What role does dual relationship/boundary concerns play within marriage and family counseling?
3. What can you take away from the case analysis and apply to your own practice as a counselor?