Just How Ethical are You?
Ethics sits at the heart of coaching practice. However, our research suggests that many coaches struggle to know what to do, particularly if they are required to breach the confidentiality of a coaching relationship.
In a survey of 3,000 European coaches, we asked coaches about their ethical practice. This research revealed that 72 percent of coaches say they share a copy of their ethical code with all their clients. Most do so at the start of the coaching relationship, and around one-fourth provide a copy as part of their written agreement. However, fewer coaches said they explain to clients what they can do if they are unhappy about the coaches’ behavior. Further, the items included in the client–coach contract may not be as helpful as we might hope.
In a second part of the research, we explored practice. Given that we are not always honest about our own actual practices, we invited coaches to comment on the practices of a fictitious coach and judge what should happen to this “colleague” in five different scenarios:
- Entering a sexual relationship with a client
- Entering a sexual relationship with an ex-client where coaching ended more than a year ago
- Failing to report ”low-level” drug use by a client
- Failing to report a client who has stolen sensitive information from their employer
- Paying a fee to secure a coaching contract
In the case of a sexual relationship with a former client, 65 percent of respondents said that no action should be taken. When considering such with a current client, 36 percent said the individual should be permanently removed from the register and 25 percent said they should be removed for a year.
The third scenario involved ”low-level” drug use by a client. In a number of European countries, the personal use of cannabis is legal, and in many others, it would be considered to be of low priority by the police. However, social attitudes on this vary, with many considering drug use to be ”unethical.” Forty-four percent of respondents said that no action should be taken if the coach failed to report drug use, while 30 percent said the coach should be removed from their professional register for failing to disclose such activities.
The final two scenarios involved serious bribery and theft. In most European countries, these practices are likely to result in a prison sentence for the individual, and the risk of imprisonment for any individual who “fails to disclose” such activity. Yet only 12 percent and nine percent of respondents, respectively, said these acts would be matters they would consider reporting to the police. Thirty-eight percent said they would expect no action to be taken against a coach who failed to disclose the theft of commercially sensitive information, such as a patent or proprietary information.
Coaches need to recognize that they not only hold a duty to their individual client, but that they owe a duty under their ethical code and the law to, on occasion, disclose serious criminality. Coaches are not priests, who act as the confidant for their clients. Instead coaches need to recognize—and contract for—situations when there is a risk of harm to the client, a risk of harm to others, or serious illegal activity.
Five Practical Tips
- When you contract, always provide a copy of your code of ethics and how clients can file a complaint against you
- Understand the ICF Code of Ethics – Complete the ICF online module on ethics
- In addition to stating that coaching is confidential, your coaching contract should also include specific stipulations when that confidentiality may be broken, such as in cases of risk of harm to the client, risk of harm to others, or illegal activities in the country where the client lives or works. If such is not stipulated in the contract, it could be a ruled as a breach of confidentiality, and subsequently, the ICF Code of Ethics
- Have a supervisor or a peer—a sounding board—help you think through ethical dilemmas
- If you do feel the need to break client confidentiality, give the client the opportunity to disclose their actions first (unless the law requires you to tell the authorities first, such as in terrorism and child abuse, to prevent the perpetrators covering up their actions). Again, ensure these scenarios are stated in your coaching contract to protect yourself from breach of confidentiality
Jonathan Passmore, ACC, and Hazel Brown
Jonathan Passmore, ACC, is a psychologist, coach and director of the Henley Centre for Coaching, University of Reading, United Kingdom. Hazel Brown is a coach and head of the Department of Sport, Exercise and Health at the University of Winchester, United Kingdom.
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