Ethical decision making and forensic practice

Abstract

Purpose

This paper seeks to propose that approaching forensic practice from the vantage point of human dignity and its associated values can alert clinicians to a broader range of ethical issues than reliance on codes of ethics. The paper aims to present a practical framework for ethical reasoning based on this approach and to demonstrate its application using examples drawn from forensic practice.

Design/methodology/approach

Three case vignettes are used to demonstrate how the ethical framework can be used as a heuristic device to encourage practitioners to be alert to genuine, although often subtle, ethical problems and to think beyond the confines of ethical codes.

Findings

The ethical framework outlined in this paper can alert clinicians to a broader range of ethical issues than those flagged by codes of ethics and encourage them to think about the contribution of systemic, as well as individual variables, to ethical problems.

Practical implications

Enriching ethical codes with the concept of dignity and human rights can assist clinicians to detect ethical issues in their daily practice and improve their ethical reasoning and decision making.

Originality/value

Relatively few articles address ethical issues in a forensic mental health context and those that do focus on specific issues rather than the process of ethical decision making. This paper provides forensic clinicians with a practical framework that can assist them to recognize ethical problems and make considered decisions about them.

Citation

Barnao, M., Robertson, P. and Ward, T. (2012), "Ethical decision making and forensic practice", The British Journal of Forensic Practice, Vol. 14 No. 2, pp. 81-91. https://doi.org/10.1108/14636641211223648