CODE OF ETHICS OF THE ASSOCIATION OF GREEK PSYCHOLOGISTS
The purpose of this code of conduct is to maintain the prestige of the profession of psychologist in Greece and to contribute to the realization of their mission.
The code is addressed to psychologists whether they engage in clinical practice (work) or conduct research or teach or write texts of psychological content.
For Greece, the drafting of a code and the faithful observance of the basic principles of professional conduct that it outlines, is required for an additional reason: the lack of professional tradition due to the youth of the profession.
I - General obligations
1. The primary obligation of the psychologist is to preserve the prestige of her profession that is achieved:
With respect for humans and their rights, objectivity, dignity, conscientiousness, a high sense of responsibility and behavior that inspires confidence and generally keeping her work at a high level.
2. In particular, the psychologist ensures that her actions, energies and behavior in general do not diminish her profession in public opinion and in particular do not contradict the "public feeling" of the place where she practices it.
3. The psychologist takes care to maintain a high level of work and to protect her science and its methods from any damage to public opinion. In particular, she takes care to ensure appropriate terms and conditions for the conduct of her work.
4. The psychologist, when practicing the profession, relies on methods and techniques that have been awarded (certified) as instruments of scientific psychological examination, has in mind her limits and takes care to verify her findings.
5. When there are no guarantees for the observance of a term or terms of paragraphs 1, 2 or 3, the psychologist refrains from offering her services.
6. The membership of the Association of Greek Psychologists is not used for purposes that are in conflict with its statute.
II - Relationship to colleagues
1. It goes without saying that the presentation of qualifications, as well as the possible indication of the qualifications and the specialization of the psychologist in signs, plaques, visitation documents and other forms, must correspond completely to reality.
2. The disclosure of the professional status of the psychologist must be done in a manner commensurate with the level of the profession and the role of the psychologist in society.
3. When the psychologist offers her help in exchange for remuneration, her remuneration should not be lower than the limits set for the profession.
4. Adverse crises for colleagues in public, even without mentioning names, erode the profession in the common conscience and are detrimental to all its representatives.
5. When a client seeks the services of a psychologist, while already accepting the services of another relevant scientist, the psychologist carefully examines the situation and the reasons that led the client to seek additional help and comes to an agreement with the original scientist in order to avoid confusion or conflict with the client or colleague. It is also recommended that the psychologist who is hired for a position or who undertakes the teaching of courses, inform her predecessor, if any.
6. Those who have contributed to a work that is announced, or to the formulation of a test, are mentioned by name depending on their contribution, either as authors or in the preface or in a footnote.
The psychologist also does not appropriate the work of another scientist. When she records other colleagues' material in her work, she keeps the data of the scientist who prepared the work or the test.
III - Relationship to representatives of other professions
1. The psychologist does not enter the works and the jurisdiction of related professions by exceeding the exercise of her own profession. In particular, she must not undertake to diagnose or prescribe treatment or to offer service or advice for problems or symptoms that are outside the recognized limits of the psychological act.
2. When a representative of another specialty refers a person to a psychologist, in case there is a need for the psychologist to send that person to another colleague, psychologist or psychiatrist, the psychologist must first consult with the person who originally referred the case.
3. Information about the client that is communicated to the psychologist by a colleague or other specialist scientist, is disclosed only after the consent of the person who provided it.
IV - Relation to the services where she works
1. The psychologist during the exercise of the professional act, in clinical, educational, or industrial psychology, within educational, social or economic institutiond, maintains professional confidentiality not only for the persons she examines, but also for matters concerning these institutions.
2. The psychologist who undertakes work in an institution, informs her employer from the very beginning about the restrictions and obligations that her ethics outline.
3. In the event that an institution assigns a psychologist to conduct a research or study, it is recommended to determine in advance, by special written agreement, the time limits from the submission of the work to its publication by the institution, the ownership of the raw psychological material and the other terms of cooperation.
V - Relationship to customers or experimental subjects
1. The psychologist has a primary obligation to her client to maintain complete confidentiality of what is contained in her knowledge of the client's private life and actions, even if she has not been informed by the client themselves. The same obligation applies to research subjects, whose anonymity must be guaranteed, unless otherwise agreed.
2. The psychologist is not allowed to use for selfish purposes information that she happened to extract from her client.
3. It is recommended that the psychologist does not record, film or photograph (other than to record social behavior) without the knowledge of her client or the subjects of the research.
4. The psychologist does not voluntarily offer her services to prospective clients or motivates anyone to undergo a psychological examination by her, even without payment.
5. The psychologist should not offer psychological services to people in hisherfamily environment or to people who are close friends with her.
6. Resolution of the obligation to maintain professional confidentiality is allowed in exceptional cases where the psychologist has formed the opinion that the life (safety) of her client or the life and physical integrity of third parties is endangered. In this case, the announcement is made only to competent persons or bodies (relatives, guardian, justice, etc).
7. The psychologist is not allowed to present herself as a defense witness or accuser of her client.
8. The psychologist does not discuss cases of her clients in extra-professional or unrelated professions settings. If during her teaching or in her writings she wants to use case material, she takes care to ensure their complete anonymity.
9. The psychologist ensures the safety of the material she owns and concerns her clients, including data that she keeps on a computer. When she cannot have complete control over the information contained in her files, she distinguishes between the information she enters or she encodes the information.
10. During research, the psychologist informs the examinees about the aspects of the research that may have influenced their willingness to participate in it and gives explanations on issues raised by the participants. In the case of children or persons who are unable to give their consent, the consent of their legal representative must be sought.
The researcher recognizes the right of research participants to withdraw from the research at any time.
11. The psychologist, during the research, tries to avoid the use of excessive understanding, emotion or suffering of the examinees, physical or mental, especially when it comes to minors. She also carefully examines the possibility of long-term side effects on research subjects, and has the responsibility to identify and remove them, possibly modifying the experimental design as much as possible. Similar care should be taken for animal testing as part of the relevant experiments.
12. The psychologist avoids repeating psychological tests that have already been done by a colleague on the same person, before a reasonable period of time has elapsed.
VI - Care for the psychological material
1. It is not allowed to distribute tests in any way among non-specialists, including their circulation, reprint or description in popular periodicals, publications or broadcasts, as well as their use for purposes other than psychological assessment as it wears them out and makes them useless as psychometric instruments for the exercise of the profession. If the psychologist becomes aware of a relevant event, she must inform the Association without delay.
2. When using psychological tests, the psychologist respects her client's right to have an explanation of the nature and purpose of these tests. The explanations must be in a language without technical terms, which the examinee can understand without misinterpreting. If prior knowledge of what the test measures (e.g. personality) invalidates this instrument, the psychologist can provide explanations after the test has been administered. If the client's situation is special (e.g. child), then explanations are given to the representative.
3. The administration, evaluation and interpretation of psychological tests by services or institutions that use computers for them is considered a professional activity and is governed by the relevant principles, which the head of the institutions and related associates must apply.
4. The collection of material with group administration of tests, is done either by the researcher herslef or by other persons, but with a corresponding special training and with the personal supervision and responsibility of the researcher.
5. The psychologist reduces the reliability of the results of her research, if at the same time she does not present accurate and complete data on the methods, the sample, the material and the general conditions of the research.
6. In case the psychologist will need to give a written opinion, she must state in it the recipient and the purpose for which it is given.
7. Psychological opinions or reports are issued by the psychologist only for professional use and not for private use and are addressed only to competent persons or services.
8. The written or oral announcement of a client's IQ is not allowed to parents, patients, institutions or services, when they do not maintain psychological services. Only the category to which the client belongs (e.g. average, high, etc.) is announced. It is generally avoided to announce any details that may lead to misinterpretations.
VII - Compliance with provisions
Adherence to the provisions hereof is an obligation for the members of the Association. The control of the code is the work of the Board of Directors of the Association.
