CHAPTER 3:

ETHICAL AND LEGAL ISSUES

IN GROUP COUNSELING
 CASE STUDY
You have been coleading a group for college students for 10 weeks. During one of
the sessions, you realize that one of the group members works with a friend of
yours. Your friend is getting married, and you learn that both you and the group
member have been invited to attend the wedding. What are the key issues you
need to be aware of in this situation? In reflecting on what you might do, consider
these questions:

• Do you tell the client that you are friends with the same person and that you
too are invited to the wedding?
• Do you say anything to your friend who has invited you and your client? If so,
what do you say? If not, what is your reasoning?
• If you go to the wedding, would you consider bringing your partner or a
guest?
• Would you be inclined to talk to the group member at the wedding?
• Would you drink alcohol at the reception?
• How would you resolve any ethical conflicts you may have in this scenario?
 Key Terms
 Ethical issues
 Pertain to the standards that govern the
conduct of professional members. These
standards can be found in the ethics
codes of the various professional
organizations

 Legal issues
 Define the minimum standards society
will tolerate, which are enforced by the
rule of law at the local, state, or federal
level
 Key Terms
 Clinical issues
 Involve using your professional
judgment to act in accordance with
ethical and legal mandates

 Cultural Issues
 Include a person’s ethnic background,
gender, sexual orientation, religious
affiliation, values, or other differences
that affect the way we understand and
intervene with clients’ problems
 Ethical Issues in
Group Membership
 Informed Consent– is a process of presenting basic
information about a group to potential group
participants to assist them in deciding whether to
enter the group and how to participate in it
 Some information to give prospective members
 The nature of the group
 The goals of the group
 The general structure of the sessions
 What is expected of them if they join
 What they can expect from you as a leader
 Ethical Issues in
Group Membership
 Involuntary Membership
 Manygroups are composed of involuntary
members
 Showing involuntary members how they could
personally benefit from a group can increase
voluntary participation
 Basic information about the group is essential
 Avoid assuming that involuntary members will
not want to change
 Freedom to Withdraw
From a Group
 Procedures for leaving a group need to
be explained to all members during the
initial group session
 Members have a right to leave, yet it is
important to inform the leader and
members before making their final
decision
 The group leader must intervene if other
members use undue pressure to force
any member to remain in the group
 Psychological Risks
for Members
 Misuse of power-is a significant risk factor.
Group leaders can do a great deal toward
preventing damaging group experiences
 Self-Disclosure-Self-disclosure is sometimes
misused by group members. The group norm
has sometimes been misunderstood to mean
the more disclosure that takes. place, the
better.
 Psychological Risks
for Members
 Confidentiality -is a potential risk in every group.
Some of the disclosures made during a session may
not remain in the group.
 Scapegoating-is a potential risk in every group.
Some of the disclosures made during a session may
not remain in the group.
 Confrontation-a valuable and powerful tool in any
group, can be misused, especially when it is done
in a destructive manner. Intrusive interventions,
overly confrontive leader tactics, and pushing
members beyond their limits often produce
negative outcomes.
 Confidentiality
 Foundation of a working group
 Leaders need to define the parameters including its
limitations
 Members need to be taught what confidentiality
involves
 Leaders need to talk to members about the
consequences of breaching confidentiality
 Leaders need to remind members at various points
in a group of the importance of maintaining
confidentiality
 Confidentiality
 Leaders must give special consideration to the
following
 Thepotential for members to breach
confidentiality when they engage in social
media
 Theethical and legal dimensions of
confidentiality
 The multicultural dimensions of confidentiality
 Safeguarding the confidentiality of minors in
groups
 The Role of Leader’s Values
in the Group
 Essential to be aware of your values and how they
influence what you think, say, and do in groups
 Groups are not a forum for you to impose your
values on members
 Leaders’ role is to assist members in meeting
therapeutic goals consistent with the members’
worldview
 Group members have the task of clarifying their
own values and goals, making informed choices,
and assuming responsibility for what they do
 The Role of Leader’s Values
in the Group
 Ethical aspects of working with values
 ACA’s Code of Ethics
 Dealing with conflicts of values
 Seek consultation when struggling
 Difficulty
maintaining objectivity is
leader’s problem
 Ethical bracketing
The Ethical Imperative of Addressing
Diversity in Group Counseling
 Considerable harm is possible when diversity
exists within a group and the leader fails to use
a multicultural approach to assessment,
diagnosis, and treatment planning
 Some of the group norms generally associated
with group participation may not be
congruent with the cultural norms of some
clients
 Group leaders must understand the cultural
values of members
 Social Justice Approach
to Group Counseling
 As a microcosm of society, groups provide a
context for addressing issues of power, privilege,
discrimination, and oppression
 Group work often provides the potential to
further a social justice agenda
 The goal of counseling from a social justice
perspective is to promote the empowerment of
people who are marginalized and oppressed in
our society
 Special Issues Pertaining to
Sexual Orientation

 Clients come to group with a history of

victimization and fear of abandonment
 Counselors whose religious values conflict
with their ethical duty must seek
supervision and/or consultation
 Counselors must critically examine their
own biases, heterosexism, and
homophobia
 Special Issues Pertaining to
Sexual Orientation
 Counselors should establish group norms
and make interventions that facilitate the
safety and inclusion of LGBTQ group
members
 Counselors should create a climate that
allows for voluntary self-identification and
self-disclosure on the part of LGBTQ clients
 Counselors should assume an active stance
when other members express overt or
covert disrespect of LGBTQ members
 Ethical Concerns in Using
Group Techniques
 It is extremely important for group leaders to have a
clear rationale for using each technique
 Leaders might employ techniques unethically if they:
 Use techniques with which they are unfamiliar
 Use techniques to enhance their power
 Use techniques simply to create intensity between
members or within the group
 Use techniques to pressure members, even when they
have expressed a desire not to participate in an
exercise
 Use techniques to alter a group member’s personal
values or beliefs
 Competence and Training
of Group Counselors
 Counselors must market their professional
services to accurately represent their
competence
 Competence is one of the major ethical
issues in group work
 Professional group workers know their
limitations
 Best Practice Guidelines
of ASGW (2008)
 Professional competence in group work is not a final
product, but a continuous process for the duration of
one’s career
 Suggestions for increasing your level of competence
 Participate in continuing education and in personal
and professional development activities
 Seek personal counseling if you recognize problems
that could impair your ability to facilitate a group
 Seek consultation and supervision as needed
 ASGW Professional Training
Standards
 ASGW (2000) has recommendations for what
constitutes competence as a group facilitator
 Knowledge competencies: course work is
essential
 Skillscompetencies: specific group
facilitation skills are required for effectively
intervening
 Core specialization in group work: task
facilitation groups; psychoeducational
groups; counseling groups; psychotherapy
groups
 The Benefits of
Experiential Group Training
 Students need to know they can trust their
instructor’s skill, ethics, and professionalism
 Participation in experiential groups has many
benefits in the areas of personal growth and
awareness in addition to offering opportunities for
learning about group process
 Can provide insight into how future clients may
be feeling, the value of working through conflict,
and how to facilitate a group and improve their
own interpersonal functioning
 Guidelines for Ethical
and Legal Practice
 Some Legal Safeguards for Group Practitioners
 Take time and care in screening candidates for a
group experience
 Demystify the group process
 Strive to develop collaborative relationships with
members
 Consult with colleagues or supervisors whenever
there is a potential ethical or legal concern
 Incorporate ethical standards in the practice of
group work
Points to Remember: Ethical and
Legal Issues in Group Counseling
 Codes of ethics have been established by various
professional organizations, and those who belong to
such organizations are bound by them. Familiarize
yourself with these established codes of ethics and
with the laws that may affect group practice.
 Have a clear idea of the type of group you are
designing and why it is the treatment of choice. Be
able to express the purpose of the group and the
characteristics of the clients who will be admitted.
Points to Remember: Ethical and
Legal Issues in Group Counseling
 Begin and end group sessions on time. Facilitate group
sessions in a safe, private location free from distractions or
interruptions.
 Be aware of the power you possess by virtue of your role
as a leader and take steps to share this power to
empower group members.
 Protect members’ rights to decide what to share with the
group and what activities to participate in. Be sensitive to
any form of group pressure that violates the self-
determination of an individual and to any activity that
undermines a person’s sense of self, such as
scapegoating or stereotyping.
In Class Assignment
 27
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 Assignments Due This
Week!
All assignments are due on
Saturday, March 9th by 11:59PM.
Journal Entry #2
Quiz #2
Read Chapter 4 for next week’s
discussion