Ethical decision-making models, colleague misconduct, and supervision
Last reviewed September 2026 by Dr. Andrew Wichterman · Aligned to the current NCE blueprint. Valid for exams through June 30, 2027.
AI-narrated overview made with Google NotebookLM. The written lesson below is by Dr. Andrew Wichterman.
The last group of ethics items asks what a counselor should do when the answer is not obvious. The Code expects a systematic process, and several named models appear on the exam.
Try to answer each from memory first, even if you have to guess. Guessing before reading makes the answer stick; reveal only after you have tried.
What the Code requires
Section I of the Code says counselors use and document an ethical decision-making model when facing a dilemma. It does not mandate a particular model. Common elements across models: identify the problem, consult the Code and law, consider principles and consequences, consult with colleagues or supervisors, generate and evaluate options, choose and act, and evaluate the outcome.
Named models
Kitchener identified the moral principles (autonomy, beneficence, nonmaleficence, justice, fidelity) that ground most models. Forester-Miller and Davis wrote the ACA's practitioner guide with a seven-step model. Corey, Corey and Callanan describe an eight-step model. Welfel offers a ten-step version. Cottone's social constructivism model treats decisions as negotiated between people rather than made alone. Rest's four components of moral behavior are sensitivity, judgment, motivation and character. You will not be asked to reproduce a model; you may be asked to recognize its author or its distinctive emphasis.
A colleague behaves unethically
When a counselor has reason to believe another counselor is violating the Code, the first step is to attempt informal resolution directly with the colleague, if doing so is feasible and would not violate confidentiality. If informal resolution fails or is inappropriate, the counselor reports to the appropriate body: the licensing board, ACA ethics committee or employer. Counselors do not file frivolous complaints and are not required to report when they are consulted about the matter under confidentiality.
Exam items nearly always want the informal step first, unless the misconduct involves serious harm that makes informal resolution inappropriate.
Supervision and consultation
Supervision is an evaluative, hierarchical relationship that continues over time; consultation is a voluntary, peer-level exchange with no evaluative authority. Supervisors are responsible for the welfare of their supervisees' clients, must be trained in supervision, and may not have sexual or romantic relationships with supervisees. Supervisees must inform clients that they are being supervised and how the supervisor may access client information. Gatekeeping, the supervisor's duty to prevent unfit trainees from entering the profession, is an exam term.
Impairment and self-care
Counselors monitor themselves for impairment from physical, mental or emotional problems and refrain from offering services when impaired. They assist colleagues in recognizing impairment and intervene as appropriate. The 2014 Code frames self-care as a professional responsibility, not a private one. Items describing burnout, compassion fatigue or a counselor drinking heavily are asking about impairment, and the answer involves seeking help and limiting practice, not simply pressing on.
Without scrolling up, write everything you remember from this lesson. Then check yourself against the key terms. Recalling the whole lesson once, right after reading it, does more than reading it twice.
Ten more questions from the whole domain, with an explanation after each answer.
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