Social Development and Adolescence: How Ethics Impacts Intervention

Social Development and Adolescence: How Ethics Impacts Intervention

There are a variety of social issues that adolescents deal with during this stage of their lives. As a human service professional working with adolescents and families, you will build relationships that make a lasting impact on both the client and you. Understanding how the environment is impacting the client and their family helps build the trust required to better understand what interventions and resources may be available to empower the client and their family. In the human services field, you will be interacting with individuals with various needs within many systems, especially when working with children, teens, and families. Due to the diversity among individuals, it is important for you to become familiar with the ethical standards set forth for human service professionals.

The following assignment will require you to find and discuss the importance of the ethical standards as developed by the National Organization for Human Services (NOHS). A code of ethics is “an explicit statement of the values, principles, and rules of a profession, regulating the conduct of its members” (Barker, 2003, p. 78). Understanding how to navigate ethical concerns and how you may resolve them using ethical standards is critical to successful and ethical client outcomes and ensuring both the human service professional and the client are protected from potential conflicts.

Reference

Barker, R. L. (2003). The social work dictionary (5th ed.). NASW Press.

Assignment Directions

For this assignment, you will be reading a case scenario in your text and responding to questions. These will be related to the impact of the environment on behavior and choices, the impact of the client-human service professional relationship, and how identifying potential ethical issues and the National Organization for Human Services (NOHS) Ethical Standards can help guide you in working with clients.

Begin by reading the case study “Applying the Framework: A Depressed Adolescent” in Chapter 7 of your text (pages 344–345) about Susie. Then, go to the NOHS website and review the Ethical Standards for Human Service Professionals.

Use the Unit 6 Assignment Template to reflect on the situations Susie finds herself in, her environment, and the possible ethical considerations in the case that the human service professional may need to consider as part of an ethical approach to working with the client and her family. Review “Exhibit 7.18: Developmental assets for youth” (found on page 333 in your text) as a useful reference for completing this assignment.

Please address all of the following:

Discuss at least three ways that Susie’s environment has influenced her behavior and decision-making in her adolescence. Be sure to include a citation from the textbook related to the case study.

Considering the case study details and the NOHS Ethical Standards, identify one ethical concern you would need to consider when working with Susie and/or her family and discuss how you would apply it within the client and human service relationship. Make sure to include the specific NOHS Ethical Standard (taken directly from the NOHS site) in your response. Be sure to include proper citation for your selected standard.

List the name and contact information for one human service agency a human service professional could refer Susie to for support for her current issues. Identify a specific service and/or intervention that this agency could provide to assist Susie and explain why it would be helpful to the client.

Discuss how knowledge of ethical standards and available resources can strengthen the relationship between the human service professional and Susie and help her achieve positive outcomes.