Play the Expert

Prior to beginning work on this discussion, please read the following required articles:

• “Relations Between Inductive Reasoning and Deductive Reasoning”
• “The Effect of the Environment (Real and Virtual) and The Personality on the Speed of Decision Making”
• “Decision-Making Theories and Models: A Discussion of Rational and Psychological Decision-Making Theories and Models: The Search for a Cultural-Ethical Decision-Making Model”
• “Seven Basic Steps to Solving Ethical Dilemmas in Special Education: A Decision-Making Framework”
• “Looking for a Psychology for the Inner Rational Agent”

Play the expert in the following scenario and apply ethical principles and professional standards of decision-making to your rationale and actions:

• You are a counseling psychologist in a state prison. You have been counseling a new inmate, and he confided in you that one of the other inmates has indicated he is considering suicide. He does not divulge the name of the other inmate and refuses to talk any further about the issue. Consider the following steps in your decision-making process:
  • Define the problem.
  • Explore the alternatives.
  • Consider the consequences.
  • Identify ethical considerations.
  • Determine how you would reduce bias in your decision-making process.
  • Explain your decision.

Using appropriate citations and references, explain how the empirical research and theoretical models presented in the assigned articles suggest the importance of applying decision-making strategies in one’s own practice. Support your argument with empirical research.