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Psychology Professional
Code of Ethics

On October 16, 100, the 50th General Assembly of the Taiwan Psychological Association passed and authorized the resolution of the Board of Supervisors
On January 4, 101, the fourth meeting of the 49th board of directors and supervisors was revised and approved
Revised and approved at the 3rd meeting of the 50th Board of Directors and Supervisors on September 16, 102

1. Basic ethical principles

1. Culture and Mission

Domestic psychologists should be based on their own cultural atmosphere and social environment, not stick to the established rules and Western thinking, review the process of their own development and the trend of world academics, and do their best to innovate in connotation and practice. To break through, to seek the most complete development of psychology academic and service in the local society, to establish a psychology with cultural characteristics, in order to keep pace with other traditional psychology. Psychologists also shoulder the responsibility of disseminating correct psychological knowledge and correcting social myths, and should actively create a good social culture.

2. Human dignity and social well-being

Psychologists should respect the dignity and value of human nature based on the local social and cultural atmosphere, and consider the possible impact of their actions on the well-being of others and society at any time when engaging in professional work.

3. Integrity and responsibility

Psychologists should attach importance to honesty, truthfulness, clarity, fairness and responsibility, and avoid conflicts of interest or improper influence on the people they serve or the society through their professionalism. Psychology professionals should be responsible for promoting the integrity of the psychology profession and take responsibility for the consequences of their actions.

4. Professionalism and Perseverance

When teaching, researching or providing various services, psychologists should uphold their personal persistence in knowledge, try their best to maintain the highest professional standards, and should recognize the limitations of their own learning and abilities, pay attention to and absorb new knowledge related to their profession at any time, and only Provide services to the extent of their professional competence and without prejudice or discrimination based on the individual characteristics of the client.

V. Privacy and Confidentiality

The materials obtained by psychologists in the process of research or work must strictly abide by the principles of respecting privacy and confidentiality, and shall not be disclosed without the consent of the parties concerned. Even if the subject's consent is obtained, when citing his data (such as writings, speeches or seminars), appropriate methods must be used to conceal the subject's identifying information.

6. Morality and Law

Psychology professionals should pay attention to laws, government policies, community regulations, and ethical norms, and recognize the possible impact on society of agreeing to or violating these standards; The fundamental principles of human rights and compliance with this Code of Ethics, take appropriate measures to resolve these conflicts.

2. Psychological research on participants over 18 years old (inclusive)

1. Before researchers study a topic, they should think about various methods of studying the topic, and then choose the most appropriate research design. The design and conduct of research must comply with the "laws of the country" and the "ethics of the researcher's professional body".

2. Psychological research should respect the dignity and well-being of participants. When planning a study, the researcher should first assess whether the plan is "ethical" and whether it will harm the physical and psychological state of the participants. When a scientific research has the above-mentioned concerns, the researcher should consult the relevant persons first to protect the rights and interests of the participants.

3. All ethical matters related to the research shall be the sole responsibility of the researcher. Other participating researchers (eg, research collaborators and research assistants) are also responsible for the behavior of the participants; of course, the actors are also responsible for their own actions.

4. In addition to legal regulations or other ethical norms that clearly state that the informed consent of the participants is not required, any individual research conducted by the researcher through various forms and the participants are over 18 years old must be informed Participant research process, and obtain their consent to conduct. Investigators should properly keep records of their written or oral consent.

5. When the participants are incapacitated to sign informed consent, and the legal consent is signed by others, the informed consent of their legal guardian (or representative) should be obtained before the study can be conducted. In addition, investigators should still provide appropriate explanations and solicit participants' wishes.

6. Informed consent may be waived in the following situations where it is reasonable to assume that the research will not cause pain or harm to the participants: (1) Research on educational training, curriculum or class management methods conducted in an educational setting; (2) Conducted Anonymous questionnaires, natural observations, or even disclosing the results of an individual's responses would not expose them to criminal risk, civil liability, or loss of property, employment, or reputation; (3) conduct in organizational contexts with work or organizational interests Research that is relevant but does not pose an individual professional risk and is confidential. However, under the above conditions, the researcher should also inform the participants about the purpose, process and related rights and obligations of the research before the research.

7. Informed consent, whether written or oral, should state: (1) the purpose of the research, the duration and process of the research; (2) when the research begins, the individual still has the right to reduce participation or withdraw from the research; (3) ) reduction of possible outcomes after participating in or withdrawing from the study; (4) possible factors affecting the willingness to participate in the study, such as potential risks, discomfort or adverse effects; (5) any potential research benefits; (6) confidentiality restrictions; ( 7) Incentives for participation; (8) Research-related issues, rights of research participants; (9) Investigator's name and contact information.

8. For studies or experiments on psychotherapy, the investigator should inform the participants at the beginning of the study:

(1) The nature of the experimental treatment;

(2) If appropriate, the participants should be informed that the control group will or will not perform the experimental treatment;

(3) The method of assigning participants to the experimental group and the control group;

(4) Alternatives if the participant is unwilling to participate in the study or wants to withdraw from the study after the start of the study.

9. When the consent of an institution or a specific ethnic group is required to conduct research, the researcher shall provide correct information related to the research plan and obtain the consent of the institution or the ethnic group before conducting the research.

10. Before making audio or video recordings, the researcher needs to obtain the consent of the participants, except in the following cases:

(1) When the research is observed in a public place and will not cause harm to the participants or reveal their identity;

(2) The research design must conceal the purpose of the research.

11. Participants have the right to "refuse to participate in the research" and "exit the research at any time". When participants drop out of the study, they should still be treated with due respect. If the status of the researcher is enough to affect the well-being of the participants (such as case therapists, teachers or supervisors), the researcher should be more careful to protect the rights of the participants to "refuse to participate in the research" and "exit the research at any time".

12. When participation in research is a course requirement or an opportunity to obtain additional points, the researcher shall provide the participant with another fair alternative. However, researchers should avoid other incentives such as excessive or inappropriate financial incentives to induce individuals to participate in the study.

13. When providing professional services as an incentive for individuals to participate in research, researchers should clarify the nature, risks, responsibilities and limitations of such services.

14. When researchers need to conduct concealed research, they should obtain the informed consent of the participants, minimize the risk of harm, and inform the participants of the true purpose of the research as soon as possible when they can tell the truth, and allow the participants to withdraw their data of.

15. After the data is collected, the researcher should inform the participants of the purpose of the research, and should clarify the participants' doubts or misunderstandings about the research. If the researcher knows that the participant may have some false knowledge or belief with short-term or long-term adverse effects, the necessary procedures should be taken to clarify and minimize the harm. If due to other reasons, it cannot be explained to the participants immediately, the researcher is obliged to explain it to the participants as soon as it is possible to explain.

16. The researcher shall not conceal the physical pain or negative emotions that may arise from participating in the research. If the research may harm the physical and mental state of the participants, in addition to stating in the "informed consent", the researcher should also remind the participants (or their guardians) of this situation before the participants (or their guardians) sign their consent.

 

Psychological research on children and adolescents

1. When children and adolescents under the age of 18 are used as participants, researchers must obtain the informed consent of their parents (or their guardians) before using children and adolescents as participants.

2. When conducting research with minimal risk, and there are other ways to ensure the rights and interests of the children and adolescents to be tested, the informed consent of parents or guardians may be waived in the following cases:

(1) Conduct anonymous questionnaires, or natural observations in public places;

(2) Curriculum evaluation or class management research in educational contexts.

3. Individual teenagers over the age of twelve but under the age of 18 are selected as participants. The researcher should inform them of their importance or steps in a language they can understand, and the researcher must obtain their consent before conducting the research.

4. When conducting group research in schools, researchers must obtain the consent of the schools to which children and adolescents belong before conducting research in schools.

5. When the researcher provides any form of reward, the participants in the same research project need to be treated fairly, and the reward should not exceed the scope of children's daily experience.

6. When the researcher seeks the written consent of the children to participate in the research, if in order to achieve the purpose of the research, it is necessary to collect the information in a way of concealing the research objective, so that the research information cannot be fully informed to the children and the parents (or guardians) of the research. After the data collection is completed, the reasons for concealment must be explained to the child in a way that the child can understand; and the concealment method used must have no known negative effects on the child or his family.

7. For research on children and adolescents, the research steps or procedures such as research topics, variable manipulation, and data collection methods must not have any adverse consequences that hinder the normal development of children or their families.

8. During the research process, when the researcher finds information that is irrelevant to the research, but may endanger the welfare of the participants (such as the "prohibited" behavior specified in the "Children and Juvenile Welfare and Rights Protection Act"), the researcher should communicate with parents ( guardians) to discuss this information, and with professionals in the relevant fields, to arrange ways to support children and young people.

9. The research results should inform the participating children (adolescents), their parents (or guardians) and their schools, and clarify the participants' misunderstandings about the research in a way that the participants can understand; In the hope of further understanding of the research results, the researchers have the obligation to continue to provide consultation.

10. Special attention should be paid to appropriateness or limitation if there is any word of evaluation or suggestion in the research results report provided to participants, parents or schools.

 

4. Cognitive Neuroscience Experiments and Animal Experiments

1. The research on human body using behavioral or physiological measuring instruments should be carried out under the premise of the lowest risk and with informed consent. The relevant regulations on human biological specimens should refer to the requirements of medical ethics committees.

2. The researcher acknowledges and respects the contribution of animal subjects to psychological research, and conducts animal experiments only when it helps to promote psychological knowledge or education and cannot be replaced by other means under the existing conditions.

3. Experimental animals should be treated reasonably and in good faith, and their discomfort during the experiment should be minimized. Any illness or infection should be treated or managed aggressively.

4. Procedures for obtaining, transporting, raising, conducting research, and final treatment of experimental animals should refer to the rules set by the National Laboratory Animal Center, and must not violate the relevant laws and regulations promulgated by the state for the protection of animals.

5. Personnel who take care of animals and conduct animal experiments must have knowledge related to the experiment and receive appropriate training. The host of the experiment has the right and obligation to prevent any person who does not have the above qualifications from contacting the experimental animals, or entering the animal laboratory and breeding place, so as to prevent the animals from being harmed.

6. The experimenter must monitor the daily care of the animals and the state of the experiment. If necessary, he should consult relevant experts for advice and seek their assistance to deal with the problems that occur.

7. Animal surgery should be performed under proper anesthesia. After surgery, the experimenter must take the necessary steps to improve the chances of the animal's recovery and recovery, and to reduce the possibility of discomfort and infection.

8. Based on research needs, when researchers must deprive animals of their basic needs, impose physical and mental pressure, or cause pain, they should carefully monitor the progress of the research and discontinue any measures that may endanger the lives of animals.

9. When the experiment host must end the life of the experimental animal, he should do it in a humane, quick and painless way, and continue to monitor it until the end of his life.

 

Wu, testing, assessment and diagnosis

1. Psychology professionals shall respect the intellectual property rights of the test and assessment tool compilers, and shall not possess, reproduce, adapt or modify without their authorization.

2. When compiling or revising psychological tests and other assessment tools, psychology professionals should follow established scientific procedures, take into account the social and cultural context, and follow the standards of the Taiwan Psychological Association, so that the tests can be standardized.

3. When using testing and assessment techniques, psychology professionals should have appropriate professional knowledge and experience, and interpret the testing in a scientific manner to enhance the well-being of the client.

4. When choosing a test, psychology professionals should pay attention to the individual differences of the parties, carefully review the validity, reliability and norm of the test, and select assessment or diagnostic tools that they are familiar with and have practical value in understanding the current state of mind of the client . The choice of test or tool should be based on sufficient psychological evidence.

5. When implementing psychological tests or assessments, attention should be paid to maintaining the standardized procedures of the tests to ensure the reliability and authenticity of the test results.

6. The use and interpretation of psychological tests in the research requires professional training.

7. In order to avoid misleading and adverse effects, psychology professionals should indicate the reliability of the evaluation or judgment results in their reports.

8. The original data of the test, assessment or judgment reports and suggestions are professionally confidential, and the researcher shall fulfill the duty of confidentiality and shall not disclose it without the consent of the parties concerned. If it is unavoidable that the disclosure must be made, the information disclosed shall be in the best interests of the parties concerned. When properly used for counseling, research and educational training purposes, the identity of the person concerned shall not be revealed.

9. The test should be used within a legal scope, and users should try their best to keep the content or technology of the test and other assessment tools confidential, and shall not be displayed in the mass media or given to those who are not qualified to use the test. In non-professional speech, writing or discussion, only simulated projects can be used as examples, so as not to damage the original function of the test because the general public is familiar with its special content and related test-taking skills.

 

Writing and publishing of papers

1. The researcher should faithfully report the findings of the research, and must not falsify, modify or conceal the information.

2. Researchers should take full responsibility for the authenticity of their research materials; after the research paper is published, if any errors are found in the paper materials, they should contact the editor-in-chief or publisher of the journal as soon as possible in order to correct the errors and make them public to readers.

3. Researchers should not appropriate other people's research results as their own. If they occasionally use other people's materials or works in the text, they should indicate the source.

4. In a paper, the researcher can publish the contributions of all parties to the research in the "Author" and "Author's Note". Persons who have made significant and direct contributions to research are listed as authors of the paper; these persons include:

(1) Those who form research concepts or hypotheses,

(2) Design researchers,

(3) Those who analyze the data,

(4) Those who judge the significance of the data,

(5) Those who wrote the thesis.

Paper authors should be ranked in order of each person's overall contribution to the research.

5. Each paper should indicate the "corresponding author" in the "Author's Note". The corresponding author plays an important role in the research, should have made a significant contribution to the research, and is familiar with the research content.

6. For the publication of works rewritten as dissertations, the main author should be determined according to the contribution. Advising professors and students should communicate and decide the author order based on the contribution of the five major issues listed in the fourth point above in the process of research and publication.

7. When problems occur in the research or the paper (for example, someone suspects that the paper is plagiarized), all authors should also share the responsibility. Therefore, all authors should read the manuscript after the manuscript is completed. The principal investigator should prepare documents, and when all authors agree with the content of the paper, they should sign together to show responsibility.

8. If you repeat other people's research, use other people's opinions, or quote other people's words, you must state the source in the paper and add citations, otherwise you will be suspected of "plagiarism".

9. Researchers are not allowed to "one manuscript and two submissions", that is, the same article cannot be submitted to two (or more than two) academic journals at the same time, nor can they use the same batch of data to write two articles with similar views, and divide them into two. Submission. The following situations are similar to "one manuscript and two submissions", except that if the situation is detailed in the submission process and the paper, it is still allowed by the academic community:

(1) Re-included articles once published in journals in "Proceedings" or other monographs.

(2) A dissertation that re-analyzes the published data with a new method, and produces new viewpoints, or re-evaluates the old data with a new theoretical perspective, and produces a new conclusion.

(3) Publish part of the content of the paper in advance in the form of "excerpt" or "newsletter".

(4) Translate the full text or excerpts of the dissertation in another language.

10. Researchers should keep the original data for inspection within five years after the publication of their research results. Investigators may also share their data if other researchers need additional analysis. The information shared should still comply with the principle of confidentiality and the legal rights and interests of the research participants should be protected.

11. Psychology professionals should abide by the principle of confidentiality and respect the author's ownership when reviewing conference publications, journal works, grants or research projects.

 

Seven, clinical psychological assessment, treatment and counseling

1. The professional services and teaching research provided by psychologists (including clinical psychologists and counseling psychologists) must be within the scope of their own abilities. This range of competence is defined by the psychologist's education, training, counseling, and professional practice experience.

2. Before the psychologist performs the psychological assessment work, the parties (or their legal representatives or their guardians) may request that they learn the nature, purpose, and reference value and limitations of the results in a language they understand. The psychologist can only carry out the assessment work after clarifying all the questions raised by the client about the psychological assessment and obtaining their consent.

3. When interpreting the results of psychological assessment, psychologists should strive to be objective and correct, and prudently cooperate with other materials and other valid evidence, write a assessment report with rigorous inferences, and put forward suggestions that are helpful to the parties.

4. Clinical psychologists should clearly inform the client (or his guardian) of the reasons, goals, methods, costs, and confidentiality principles for psychotherapy before formal psychotherapy, and clarify all the client’s (or his guardian’s) concerns about psychotherapy. doubt. A psychologist may only perform psychotherapy on a client after the client (or his guardian) agrees to receive treatment.

5. The clinical trainee psychologist shall conduct psychotherapy under supervision, and shall inform the client (or his guardian) of his own role and provide psychotherapy services together with his supervisor.

6. After the psychologist establishes the therapeutic/consulting relationship, he should make every effort to take the client's well-being as the highest consideration until the therapeutic relationship ends. The psychologist shall not terminate the treatment/consultation relationship with the client for no reason; if the treatment/consultation relationship needs to be terminated due to various necessary factors, the client's well-being shall also be the highest consideration. When psychologists terminate the therapeutic relationship and make referrals, they should carefully maintain the integrity and confidentiality of data transfer.

7. The psychologist and the client shall maintain a professional relationship at all times: shall not be involved in the client’s financial problems outside the therapeutic/consulting relationship; shall not establish a therapeutic or consulting relationship with a person who has an intimate relationship; Within two years after the end of the counseling relationship, no non-professional relationship with the client shall be established; even two years after the end of the therapeutic relationship, the psychologist shall not have any inappropriate contact with the previous client that is exploitative or exploitative.

8. The psychologist shall keep the psychotherapy/consultation information of the client strictly confidential to prevent the client from being harmed. Only in the following circumstances, the psychologist may disclose the client's information without the consent of the client (or his guardian):

(1) To provide professional assistance or consultation required by the parties;

(2) In order to avoid various injuries (including his own injury and self-injury) to the client;

(3) To clarify the unpaid treatment fee; however, the disclosure of the above three information is limited to the minimum necessary scope related to the incident.

9. If a psychologist involves disclosing the personal data of an identifiable client in his research, teaching, professional training, writing, speech, and mass media activities, he must obtain the client's prior written consent. 10. Psychologists shall respect the basic human rights of children and shall not substitute or force children to make decisions. If the psychologist finds any violation of the juvenile and child welfare law (such as corporal punishment, abuse or sexual assault), he must take the initiative to report to the relevant unit.

 

8, counseling and social services

1. When psychological professionals implement consulting services, they should be aware of their personal responsibilities to the client, the entrusting institution and the society, and be cautious in their words and deeds, so as not to harm the client, the entrusting institution and the society.

2. Psychology professionals are responsible for explaining their professional qualifications, consultation process, goals and application of techniques to the client or the entrusting agency when negotiating or consulting a case, so that the client or the entrusting agency can decide whether to accept the consultation or not.

3. Psychological counseling is a special professional relationship. Before starting counseling, psychological professionals should explain to the client or the entrusting agency various factors that may affect the relationship, such as mutual trust, joint discussion, role conflict and resistance to change, so as to help The parties or the entrusting agency decide whether to establish or continue to maintain a consulting relationship.

4. At the beginning of the consultation, the parties or the entrusting agency shall explain the rights and responsibilities of both parties regarding the confidentiality of the consultation, as well as the behavior, nature, purpose, scope and limitation of confidentiality.

5. If there is a conflict with the consulting role due to administration, supervision, and evaluation, etc., psychology professionals should avoid establishing a consulting relationship with the client or the entrusting agency, and should make a referral.

6. There should be a written agreement on the collection of consulting fees to avoid unnecessary disputes.

7. Before providing counseling services, psychology professionals should reach an unanimous understanding with the client or the entrusting agency on the truth of the matter, the main problems and expected goals, and then provide methods and strategies to solve the problem, and predict the possible results.

8. When implementing consulting work, you should recognize your own consulting roles and functions, and recognize your own professional capabilities, experience, limitations and values, avoid providing consulting services beyond your professional knowledge, and do not force the counselee to accept the counselor values.

9. The consultant should provide specific methods, techniques or strategies for solving the problem according to the actual ability and existing resources of the party or the entrusting agency, so as to solve the problem and meet the needs of the party or the agency.

10. When providing counseling services, psychology professionals should avoid intervening in disputes of power or interests within the parties or the entrusting agency.

11. The consulting relationship is a professional relationship. All information obtained in the consulting relationship is confidential and should be properly kept and strictly prohibited from being leaked. When it is necessary to provide relevant personnel for reference, the consent of the parties or the entrusting agency shall be obtained first. If it is necessary to use consulting and related confidential information for the purpose of professional education, training and research, the consent of the person concerned or the entrusting institution must be obtained first, and the real name of the person concerned or the entrusting institution shall not be disclosed. Those who use the information shall also be responsible for confidentiality. .

 

9. Implementation of the Code of Ethics

1. The Taiwan Psychological Society shall establish an "ethics committee" to be responsible for promoting and supervising the implementation of this code of ethics.

2. Each group of the Taiwan Psychological Society or related academic fields may, according to their actual needs, formulate detailed rules for the implementation of professional groups on the basis of this Code of Ethics.

3. Domestic psychology teaching and research institutions should establish their own "ethics committees" to promote ethics education, review research order, and handle related incidents.

4. If a member of the Association violates this Code of Ethics, the Ethics Committee shall, depending on the seriousness of the circumstances, give a warning, correction, or expulsion from membership; if a non-member of the Association violates this Code of Ethics, the Ethics Committee of the Association shall It is advisable for the committee to come forward and publicly condemn.

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