The Ethical Practice of Consulting Psychology

Psychologists who work in business and other organizational settings encounter unique ethical issues that are not found in traditional clinical practice. This volume provides an overview of these issues for consulting psychologists, graduate students, and practitioners in other fields who want to transition to organizational consulting. Using the APA Ethics Code as its foundation, the book teaches readers how to make ethical decisions when conducting assessments and applying interventions with individual employees, work groups, and entire organizations, small and large.

Authors Rodney Lowman and Stewart Cooper explore common themes in ethical practice, including informed consent, confidentiality, multiple relationships, conflicts of interest, and competence. They demonstrate how these issues manifest differently in the work environment through vivid case examples that bring to life the concrete work of consulting psychologists. These informative vignettes teach readers how to negotiate complex challenges, such as when organizational demands and corrupt business practices come into conflict with psychologists'' ethical responsibilities. Special attention is also given to emerging areas of practice, including telepsychology, multinational and multicultural consulting, and coaching.

Rodney L. Lowman, PhD, ABAP, is currently Distinguished Professor, Organizational Psychology Programs, California School of Professional Psychology, and is past provost / vice president of academic affairs and past acting president of Alliant International University. The author or editor of 12 books and monographs, Dr. Lowman has published more than 130 scholarly publications and made hundreds of professional presentations all over the world. His books include An Introduction to Consulting Psychology: Working With Individuals, Groups, and Organizations;Internationalizing Multiculturalism: Expanding Professional Competencies in a Globalized World; Handbook of Organizational Consulting Psychology; The Ethical Practice of Psychology in Organizations (2nd ed.); The Clinical Practice of Career Assessment: Abilities, Interests, and Personality; Counseling and Psychotherapy of Work Dysfunctions; and Pre-Employment Screening: A Guide to Professional Practice. He is past editor of Consulting Psychology Journal: Practice and Research, series editor of APA’s Fundamentals of Consulting Psychology book series, and founding editor of The Psychologist-Manager Journal. He has also served on the editorial boards of other journals and has lectured widely both in the U.S. and internationally on professional ethics, consulting psychology, and counseling and psychotherapy of work dysfunctions. Dr. Lowman is a Fellow of APA Divisions 1 (Society for General Psychology), 12 (Society of Clinical Psychology), 13 (Society of Consulting Psychology), 14 (Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology), 17 (Society of Counseling Psychology), and 52 (International Psychology), and he is a Diplomate of the American Board of Assessment Psychology. He also heads the Scientific Advisory Board of Leadership Worth Following, a Dallas-based consulting firm. He is past president of the Society of Consulting Psychology and of the Society for Psychologists in Management. He has served in a variety of governance roles for the APA and other professional groups. Dr. Lowman has received many honors and recognitions for his professional work, including the Richard Kilburg Service Award from the Society of Psychologists in Management, the Service Award from the Society for Consulting Psychology, and the International Multicultural Provost’s Award from Alliant International University and the APA Presidential Citation.

Stewart E. Cooper, PhD, ABPP, currently serves as director of counseling service and as a professor with the psychology department at Valparaiso University. He also is the head of Life Enrichment Associates, a private consultation practice. Dr. Cooper’s professional development has followed the scientist-practitioner model of combining teaching, research, and scholarship with clinical practice. His teaching expertise is in the areas of consultation theory and process, group therapy, counselor training, treatment of addictive disorders, and health psychology. The author of four books, seven book chapters, more than 100 journal articles, and numerous conference presentations, Dr. Cooper is a longstanding member of the editorial board of Consulting Psychology Journal: Practice and Research and several other journals, including the Journal of Psychotherapy Integration and other publications. Dr. Cooper was the liaison from the Society of Consulting Psychology to the writing of the 2002 APA Ethics Code. Subsequent to its passage, Drs. Lowman and Cooper have copresented numerous workshops and conference programs with a focus on the ethics of consulting psychology. During 2007-2008, Dr. Cooper served as the president of the Society of Consulting Psychology and as an APA Council Representative for two terms. He was also chair of the APA Membership Board and chair of the APA Board of Professional Affairs and currently serves as a member of the APA Commission for the Recognition of Specialties and Proficiencies in Professional Psychology. He was elected to serve a term on the APA Board of Directors beginning in January 2017. Dr. Cooper is a recipient of the Service Award from the Society for Consulting Psychology and also an APA Presidential Citation for his service to APA Governance.