The American Counselors Association (ACA) Code of Ethics

If you are in a Masters of Arts for Clinical Counseling Program it is likely that you will encounter the ACA Code of Ethics, first, fast, and fully.

While most codes are referenced back to for specific applications and situations, a read of the entire code is inevitable once in a while. To spice it up, I used my Speechify® account to have Snoop Dog® read the code to me (our website is not sponsored by the following brands or people). Snoop's voice actually emphasized things in ways that made more sense and kept me interested, section by section. Highly recommend.

The ACA Code of Ethics came into play for a class discussion prompt that asked:

Comment on one ethical code from the ACA webpage.

• Why do you think this code, statute, rule, or policy exists?

• What are the risks of not following this mandate?

• Is the mandate consistent with or does it conflict with a biblical worldview? (Use specific scripture to support your position.)

ACA

"The use of client, student, or supervisee information for the purposes of case examples in a lecture or classroom setting is permissible only when (a) the client, student, or supervisee has reviewed the material and agreed to its presentation or (b) the information has been sufficiently modified to obscure identity" ​(American Counseling Association, 2014, F.7.f).

This caught my attention because I have seen the benefit of case studies in education. However, I have also experienced the sting of my story being told without any care or concern for me by someone who should have discharged their duties as a servant leader very differently. That is a form of hate, an absence of love or regard.

Why it exists: To both support the tool of example in learning contexts, and also to uphold confidentiality and the right to privacy. 

Risks: Telling a story that is not yours to tell is a breach of personal integrity, a breach of confidentiality, loss of trust, and could lead to serious licensure and legal ramifications. It is a poor witness to the honor Jesus bestowed on people who were culturally not considered worth thought, much less honor.

Biblical Worldview: "The integrity of the upright guides them, but the unfaithful are destroyed by their duplicity" (NIV Bible, 2011, Proverbs 11:3). At the heart of ethics is a quest for integrity and a type of upright humanity that was lost in the fall of mankind. It seems to me that counselors have chosen a path much bigger than the counseling room and individual clients. We are questing for the restoration of rightness in the world, one person, one ethic at a time. 

In the arduous, somewhat tedious work of reading and aligning with ethical standards, there is honor in the striving. The work to bring about a rightness in humanity in our spheres of influence honors and glorifies God by imaging him like this:

"He who was seated on the throne said, “I am making everything new!” Then he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true” (NIV Bible, 2011, Revelation 21:5).

Sure, the ACA Code of Ethics is not a page turner. But seeking counseling is often intimidating because you don't know what to expect, and every counselor is different. For most licensed counselors, the ACA Code of Ethics is a mainstay because it is built into the educational standards for counseling schools that are accredited by CACREP. This means that people seeking counseling can reference the code and have some ethical baseline to which professional counselors are held. The code can be a starting place to demystify the world of clinical counseling.

ACA Code of Ethics

Resources

American Counseling Association. (2014). ACA code of ethics. Retrieved March 12, 2025, from https://www.counseling.org/docs/default-source/default-document-library/ethics/2014-aca-code-of-ethics.pdf

NIV Bible. (2011). Zondervan.