An A‐B‐C‐D‐E Worksheet for Promoting Beneficence When Considering Ethical Issues

Abstract

An A-B-C-D-Eworksheet hasbeen prepared to promote beneficence when considering ethical issues. The components of the worksheet arederived from ethical principles and ethical decision-making models. The worksheet makes abstract concepts of decision-making models concrete and practical. In addition, it provides a shorthand for remembering key elements necessary to good ethical decision making. It is systematic and useful and can aid students of ethics and mental health professionals to think more critically aboutethical dilemmas.

Ethical Decision‐Making Models: A Review of the Literature

“…Do ethical decision-making models really work? Dinger, in a study presented at the 1997 American Counseling Association World Conference, compared the A-B-C-D-E worksheet of Sileo and Kopala (1993) to the Ethical Justification model of Kitchener (1984) and found that "only the Ethical Justification model equipped participants with the requisite skills to tease out the ethical issues embedded in different counseling scenarios. Participants trained in the placebo condition performed as well as the participants in the Worksheet condition."…”

“…Hinkeldey and Spokane concluded that "consistent with Janis and Mann's theory, results showed C o t t o n e a n d C l a u s that decision making was affected negatively by pressure but that participants relied little on legal guidelines in making responses to ethical conflict dilemmas" (p. 240). Dinger (1997) presented dissertation findings on a study that compared the Ethical Justification model of Kitchener (1984) to the A-B-C-D-E worksheet model of Sileo and Kopala (1993) and concluded that the Kitchener model better served participants in identifying the ethical issues presented in different scenarios. (The Dinger work is discussed in more detail at the conclusion of this article.…”

“…The Canadian Psy-chological Association code of ethics incorporates the steps presented in his model, which are listed in Table 1. Sileo and Kopala (1993) developed a worksheet to simplify the counselor's consideration of ethical issues. With a primary goal of promoting beneficence, their "A-B-C-D-E" method is simple and easy to remember: assessment (A), benefit (B), consequences and consultation (C), duty (D), and education (E).…”

Emphasis on ethical awareness: why ethics? why now

“…Their pro posal for handling dilemmas is encompassed in their "A-B-C-D-E Worksheet," which serves as a reminder of the key elements involved in ethical decision mak ing: assessment, benefit, conse quences and consultation, duty, and education [10]. They believe that ethical codes may be used as guidelines for behavior but realize that codes can be ambiguous or contradicto ry and, therefore, do not provide answers to dilemmas.…”

Authenticity in Ethical Decision Making: Reflections for Professional Counselors

“…In addition to the codes, ethical principles such as nonmaleficence, beneficence, autonomy, fidelity, and justice are often a point of reflection when clinicians are trying to reason through a clinical dilemma (Beauchamp & Childress, ; Kitchener, ; Urofsky, Engles, & Engebretson, ). Pragmatism and experience likewise have inspired counselors to generate decision‐making models that can be applied to ethical issues (e.g., Corey, Corey, & Callanan, ; M. Hill, Glaser, & Harden, ; Rest, ; Sileo & Kopala, ; Steinman, Richardson, & McEnroe, ; Tarvydas, ; Tymchuk, ; Welfel, ). Decision‐making models provide clinicians with steps for reflection and suggestions for consultative actions before they settle on a decision about an ethical dilemma.…”