From oaths to rulebooks: a critical examination of codes of ethics for the social professions

This paper explores the nature and function of codes of ethics for the social professions, comparing three different codes from South Africa, England and the USA to highlight differences in length, form, style and purpose. It then considers three sets of criticisms levelled at codes of ethics by philosophers: that the whole enterprise of developing codes confuses ethics with law-making; that the statements of ethical principles contained in codes are flawed; and that codes of ethics inhibit rather than promote ethical practice. In response to these criticisms, it is argued that all codes of ethics do not follow the same format or serve the same functions, therefore the criticisms may apply to some codes, but not codes of ethics per se. It is important not to take codes of ethics too literally. They are as much rhetorical, educational and regulatory devices as they are guides to practice for professionals facing ethical dilemmas.