One of the general principles of the Ethics code of psychology is called the principle of integrity. The main idea consists in following: psychologists who work within all aspects of this scientific study strive for honest, trustful and obvious activities. Within the framework of such functioning psychologists do not commit cheating, stealing, deception or deliberate distortion. Their behavior should base on keeping their promises and striving for proper and wise decisions. In reality, there are situations where deception can be used in order to achieve success and minimize harm, but psychologists have to take into account all related considerations. They should understand the necessity for using such a serious technique, realize all reasons foresee possible outcomes for people. Here, it would be necessary to mention one of the standards called "Avoiding Harm"(3.04, APA Ethics Code, 2010). It is principally connected with taking right and safe steps during working process because one of the main principles of psychologists not to harm their clients, patients, experiment or research participants, students and other people who are involved in their activities.
This paper is also focused on application of mentioned principles and standards in the issue concerning children who deal with gangs and gang violence. Those who work with kids involved in gangs have investigated a lot about the reasons why individuals get involved and how to prevent it. There was an opinion that some people consider that their gang membership was a transitional stage before adulthood and did not lead to serious consequences. But there is no need to argue that gangs are associated with violence, criminal and even imprisonment, obviously, their activities result in severe outcomes for them and other people involved. Child's attitude and engagement in gang violence can be caused, prevented or influenced by numerous factors including parent intervention, school, peers or community. Thus, it is possible to conclude that psychological intervention can play a great role in such a challenging task to prevent joining to gangs or assist in further desistance.
As for the use of mentioned ethics principles, they remain determinative at all stages of dealing with gang membership, whether it concerns discovering causes, explaining possible effects, influence on future life, intercommunication between a psychologist and his patients/clients etc.
Reference List
Ethical Principles of Psychologists and Code of Conduct. (2010). American Psychological Association. Retrieved from http://www.apa.org/ethics/code/principles.pdf
