1 
CPSY 
276: 
PROFESSIONAL 
ORIENTATION, 
ETHICS 
AND 
LAW 
IN 
COUNSELING 
WINTER 
QUARTER 
2013 
SANTA 
CLARA 
UNIVERSITY 
Donald 
D. 
St. 
Louis, 
D.Min., 
MFT 
Office 
Hours: 
Tuesdays, 
1:00 
– 
4:00 
PM 
For 
appointments, 
please 
email: 
dstlouis@scu.edu 
Classes 
will 
meet 
in 
Loyola 
137: 
Wednesdays, 
5:30 
– 
8:30 
PM 
COURSE 
DESCRIPTION: 
This 
course 
will 
study 
psychotherapy 
licensing 
laws 
and 
process, 
as 
well 
as 
regulatory 
laws 
delineating 
the 
profession’s 
scope 
of 
practice. 
We 
will 
also 
explore 
collaboration 
strategies 
and 
advocacy 
processes 
which 
address 
institutional 
and 
social 
barriers 
that 
impede 
access, 
equity, 
and 
success 
for 
clients. 
Behaving 
ethically 
and 
growing 
toward 
ethical 
excellence 
are 
complex 
processes. 
Students 
will 
be 
introduced 
to 
an 
ethical 
acculturation 
model 
in 
developing 
their 
own 
professional 
and 
ethical 
identity, 
and 
will 
apply 
this 
model 
to 
key 
areas 
of 
clinical 
practice 
which 
present 
ethical 
dilemmas. 
Prerequisites: 
CPSY 
200, 
CPSY 
218, 
CPSY 
275 
[This 
course 
completes 
the 
instructional 
requirements 
for 
Licensed 
Professional 
Clinical 
Counselors, 
as 
specified 
in 
the 
California 
Business 
and 
Professions 
Code, 
Chapter 
16, 
Sections 
4999.32 
and 
4999.33.] 

2 
REQUIRED 
TEXTS: 
Anderson, 
Sharon 
M. 
and 
Handelsman, 
Mitchell 
M. 
Ethics 
for 
Psychotherapists 
and 
Counselors: 
A 
Proactive 
Approach. 
Wiley-­-Blackwell, 
2010. 
Reader: 
Articles, 
including 
the 
AMHCA 
Code 
of 
Ethics 
and 
selected 
sections 
of 
California 
state 
law, 
are 
posted 
on 
Camino. 
Other 
Recommended 
Bibliography: 
Behnke, 
Stephen 
H., 
Preis, 
James 
J., 
and 
Bates, 
R. 
Todd. 
The 
Essentials 
of 
California 
Mental 
Health 
Law: 
A 
Straightforward 
Guide 
for 
Clinicians 
of 
all 
Disciplines. 
W. 
W. 
Norton, 
1998. 
Pope, 
Keneth 
S. 
and 
Vasquez, 
Melba, 
J. 
T. 
Ethics 
in 
Psychotherapy 
and 
Counseling: 
A 
Practical 
Guide. 
John 
Wiley 
and 
Sons, 
2011 
Tjeltveit, 
Alan 
C. 
Ethics 
and 
Values 
in 
Psychotherapy. 
Routledge, 
1999. 
Wicks, 
Robert 
J. 
The 
Inner 
Life 
of 
the 
Counselor. 
John 
Wiley 
and 
Sons, 
2012. 
METHODOLOGY 
AND 
REQUIREMENTS 
1. Class 
attendance 
and 
active 
participation. 
Each 
class 
session 
will 
combine 
lecture 
and 
student 
activity 
(discussion, 
group 
work, 
presentations, 
etc.) 
Because 
there 
are 
only 
five 
class 
sessions, 
and 
because 
of 
the 
highly 
interactive 
nature 
of 
our 
meetings, 
consistent 
attendance 
and 
active 
participation 
is 
expected. 
2. A 
personal 
journal 
which 
will 
include 
written 
“Journal 
Entry” 
and 
“Food 
for 
Thought” 
assignments 
in 
Anderson 
and 
Handelsman. 
(Specific 
items 
are 
listed 
below.) 
3. A 
group 
project: 
This 
consists 
of 
a 
20 
minute 
class 
presentation 
on 
a 
topic 
chosen 
by 
students 
in 
collaboration 
with 
the 
professor. 
You 
will 
also 
be 
asked 
to 
submit 
a 
4-­-6 
page 
paper 
on 
your 
topic, 
and 
prepare 
a 
1-­-2 
page 
handout 
for 
all 
class 
members, 
to 
be 
distributed 
at 
the 
time 
of 
your 
class 
presentation. 

3 
GRADING: 
Class 
Participation: 
40% 
Journal: 
30% 
Paper/Project: 
30% 
SCHEDULE 
OF 
CLASSES 
DATE 
TOPIC 
READING 
ASSIGNMENT 
01/09/13 
Class 
#1: 
Introduction 
to 
Course 
CA 
State 
Law 
& 
Mental 
Health 
Professionals 
An 
Acculturation 
Model 
of 
Ethical 
Practice 
01/16/13 
Class 
#2: 
A&H: 
1-­-44 
AMHCA 
Code 
of 
Ethics 
Knowing 
Yourself: 
Personal 
Resources 
and 
Ethics 
Privilege 
and 
Social 
Responsibility 
01/23/13 
Class 
#3: 
Regulatory 
Statutes 
Re: 
Scope 
of 
Practice 
A&H: 
45-­-93 
Developing 
an 
Ethical 
Identity 

4 
01/30/13 
Class 
#4: 
Licensing 
Laws 
A&H: 
950169 
Ethical 
Practice 
in 
California 
Presentations 
02/06/13 
Class 
#5: 
Toward 
Ethical 
Excellence 
A&H: 
171-­-225 
Presentations 
Papers/Projects 
Due 
ASSIGNED 
JOURNAL 
ENTRIES: 
JE 
= 
Journal 
Entry 
FFT 
= 
Food 
for 
Thought 
For 
Class 
#2: 
pp. 
12-­-13: 
FFT: 
What 
Would 
You 
Do? 
pp. 
22-­-23: 
JE: 
Motivations 
pp. 
32-­-33: 
JE: 
Ethics 
Autobiography, 
Part 
I 
For 
Class 
#3: 
p. 
61: 
JE: 
Acculturation 
Strategies 
pp. 
79-­-80 
JE: 
My 
Current 
Location 
on 
the 
Road 
to 
Multicultural 
Competence 
pp. 
89-­-90: 
JE: 
Ethics 
Autobiography, 
Part 
II 

5 
For 
Class 
#4: 
pp. 
100-­-101: 
JE: 
When 
Does 
a 
Boundary 
Crossing 
Become 
a 
Boundary 
Violation? 
pp. 
137-­-138: 
JE: 
Once 
More 
into 
the 
Breach 
p. 
193: 
JE: 
Endings 
DEPARTMENTAL 
POLICY 
STATEMENTS 
APA 
GUIDELINES 
ON 
STUDENT 
SELF-­-DISCLOSURE 
The 
professional 
training 
philosophy 
of 
the 
Counseling 
Psychology 
Department 
is 
predicated 
on 
the 
notion 
that 
an 
effective 
counselor 
must 
be 
a 
whole 
person. 
Indeed, 
in 
the 
practice 
of 
counseling, 
it 
is 
the 
person 
of 
the 
counselor 
that 
is 
a 
major 
component 
of 
healing. 
As 
a 
counselor-­-in-­-training, 
then, 
self-­-reflection 
is 
a 
necessary 
and 
required 
part 
of 
the 
training 
that 
helps 
one 
better 
understand 
and 
empathize 
with 
his/her 
future 
clients’ 
experience. 
Such 
reflection 
is 
a 
significant 
component 
of 
one’s 
personal 
and 
professional 
development 
as 
an 
effective 
and 
sensitive 
instrument 
of 
change. 
Thus, 
it 
is 
customary 
that 
in 
the 
CPSY 
Masters 
Program’s 
classes 
at 
SCU, 
students 
are 
regularly 
assigned 
work 
that 
involves 
self-­-disclosure 
and 
personal 
study 
of 
the 
content 
of 
the 
self-­-disclosure. 
Students 
are 
expected 
to 
reflect 
on 
their 
past 
and 
present 
personal 
experience 
in 
courses 
and 
program 
related 
activities, 
in 
oral 
and/or 
in 
written 
examinations. 
We 
respect 
students’ 
rights 
to 
confidentiality, 
and 
do 
not 
require 
that 
any 
particular 
or 
specific 
information 
be 
disclosed. 
Moreover, 
we 
do 
not 
evaluate 
students’ 
progress 
in 
the 
program 
based 
on 
the 
disclosure 
of 
any 
specific 
information 
(except 
as 
mandated 
by 
ethical 
codes 
or 
law). 

6 
It 
is 
our 
experience 
that 
this 
philosophy 
and 
related 
formats 
in 
our 
classes 
provide 
a 
rich 
and 
superlative 
educational 
experience, 
involving 
more 
aspects 
of 
student 
experience 
than 
do 
standard 
lectures 
or 
written 
material 
which 
does 
not 
include 
the 
person 
of 
the 
therapist 
in 
training. 
DISABILITY 
ACCOMMODATION 
POLICY 
To 
request 
academic 
accommodations 
for 
a 
disability, 
students 
must 
contact 
Disability 
Resources 
located 
in 
The 
Drahmann 
Center 
in 
Benson, 
Room 
214, 
(408) 
554-­-441; 
TTY 
(408) 
554-­-5445. 
Students 
must 
provide 
documentation 
of 
a 
disability 
to 
Disability 
Resources 
prior 
to 
receiving 
accommodations. 
COUNSELING 
PSYCHOLOGY 
DEPARTMENT 
Grading 
Guidelines 
• It 
is 
customary 
in 
graduate 
programs 
that 
final 
course 
grades 
of 
B, 
B+, 
A-­- 
and 
A 
are 
acceptable 
for 
graduate 
study. 
Grades 
of 
B-­- 
and 
below 
indicate 
that 
a 
student 
has 
done 
inferior 
work 
at 
a 
sub-­-graduate 
school 
level. 
A 
student 
with 
an 
average 
of 
lower 
than 
3.0 
is 
on 
probation 
and 
if 
that 
GPA 
is 
maintained, 
is 
disqualified. 
• The 
grading 
policy 
in 
CPSY 
is 
that 
students 
earn 
As 
through 
consistent 
and 
high 
quality 
work. 
We 
do 
not 
have 
a 
system 
where 
everyone 
begins 
with 
an 
A 
and 
then 
loses 
points 
to 
lower 
grades. 
• In 
a 
normal 
class, 
the 
range 
of 
final 
course 
grades 
is 
from 
B 
to 
A, 
with 
a 
mean 
in 
the 
A-­-/B+ 
range. 
The 
range 
may 
be 
a 
bit 
wider 
on 
individual 
papers, 
exams 
or 
projects 
that 
make 
up 
the 
final 
grade. 
• Professors 
may 
give 
grades 
of 
C 
for 
inferior 
work. 
A 
grade 
of 
C 
in 
any 
class, 
except 
CPSY 
200 
or 
CPSY 
227, 
must 
be 
balanced 
by 
higher 
grades 
to 
yield 
a 
3.0 
or 
better 
GPA. 
Grades 
of 
D 
or 
F, 
or 
a 
B-­- 
or 
below 
in 
CPSY 
200 
or 
227, 
automatically 
disqualify 
a 
student 
from 
continuing 
in 
the 
program. 

7 
• In 
some 
specialty 
and 
advanced 
classes, 
there 
are 
a 
greater 
percentage 
of 
A 
grades. 
Grades 
of 
Incomplete 
are 
to 
be 
given 
for 
extraordinary 
circumstances. 
Incompletes 
must 
be 
made 
up 
within 
four 
weeks 
of 
the 
succeeding 
term 
(except 
Summer) 
or 
they 
revert 
automatically 
to 
a 
grade 
of 
F, 
and 
the 
student 
is 
disqualified 
The 
four 
week 
period 
must 
allow 
sufficient 
time 
for 
the 
Professor 
to 
grade 
and 
record 
the 
submitted 
work. 
Extensions 
to 
an 
Incomplete 
are 
rare, 
must 
be 
in 
writing 
and 
contracted 
with 
the 
Professor. 
ATTENDANCE 
POLICY 
It 
is 
expected 
that 
students 
attend 
all 
classes 
in 
a 
given 
quarter. 
Should 
circumstances 
arise 
such 
that 
a 
student 
will 
need 
to 
miss 
a 
class 
due 
to 
illness 
or 
emergency, 
the 
student 
should 
discuss 
this 
with 
the 
instructor. 
Missing 
two 
classes 
will 
adversely 
affect 
your 
grade. 
Under 
no 
circumstances 
will 
a 
student 
be 
allowed 
to 
miss 
three 
classes 
and 
to 
receive 
credit 
for 
that 
class. 
The 
course 
will 
have 
to 
be 
taken 
again. 
All 
students 
are 
expected 
to 
attend 
the 
first 
class. 
Missing 
the 
first 
class, 
for 
whatever 
reason, 
will 
result 
in 
being 
dropped 
from 
the 
course. 
CLASSROOM 
PROTOCOL 
FOR 
CELL 
PHONES 
PAGERS, 
TEXT 
MESSAGING, 
INTERNET 
BROWSING: 
Please 
be 
sure 
to 
TURN 
OFF 
cell 
phones, 
pagers, 
notepads, 
etc. 
when 
you 
are 
in 
class. 
It 
is 
definitely 
not 
appropriate 
to 
text 
message, 
tweet, 
internet 
browse 
or 
to 
engage 
in 
any 
other 
form 
of 
non-­-class 
related 
cyber 
interactions 
during 
class. 
Students 
engaging 
in 
these 
practices 
will 
be 
identified 
as 
not 
ready 
to 
pursue 
serious 
graduate 
study. 
Most 
faculty 
who 
notice 
anyone 
engaging 
in 
any 
messaging, 
emailing 
or 
e-­-commerce 
during 
class 
will 
simply 
lower 
the 
student’s 
grade. 
BTW-­-­-­It 
is 
obvious 
from 
the 
front 
of 
the 
room!