Analysis of Thomas Teo’s Theories

Analysis of Thomas Teos Theories First review The first article focuses on whether psychological codes of ethics are morally oblique, authored by Thomas Teo. The researcher hypothesizes that both American and Canadian moral code in their current form are not equipped to address challenges like epistemological violence. The second hypothesis is that the codes are not immune to ideological changes especially with regard to war on terror and lastly the researcher hypothesizes that the psychological codes are blind or inarticulate with regard to issues touching on financial conflicts of interest that are observed in recent versions of Diagnostics and statistical manuals. The researcher uses examples derived from academic papers and also psychological practices; the researcher hopes to uncover the discrepancies between the psychological codes that make them lack flexibility. The first issue tackled in the paper concerns epistemological violence in psychological practice; epistemological violence can be viewed from the c ontext of interpreting empirical information; psychological research provide both empirical information and theoretical interpretations made by the researcher. Most time the empirical data does not influence the theoretical interpretation made by the researcher and thus calls for the hermeneutic process. The term epistemological violence stems from interpretations made which are detrimental to a particular person or group; for instance, Black people are naturally violent and less law-abiding as compared to their white and Asian counterparts; these are interpretations based on speculative hermeneutics and they have the potential to bring more disruption than good to the society. Both Canadian and American psychology associations address this issue by stating that psychological research should provide insight that is beneficial to the society and not do harm; the Canadian code emphasizes that research should be knowledgeable and sensitive to the cultural differences. But the proponent s of scientific sexism and racism can argue that the harm to society is irrelevant with respect to the truth; others can argue that putting the harm clause in research psychology is tantamount to censorship and impede progress in psychological research. It is imperative that psychological society include statements in the code that emphasize the harm that emanate from research interpretations. Application of psychological knowledge in the fight against terror is the next issue of interest. Both Canadian and American psychology Associations have clear code that prohibit their members from participating in acts of torture of terrorism detainees. It is imperative to understand that psychology as a profession is open to political, social influences which have always propelled the development of the discipline. The ethical code 1.02 that underpins the relationship between ethics and law was changed; in 1992, the code stated that is a psychologist’s ethics conflicted with the law, he/she was to make his contention apparent and take steps to reconcile the contention in a sober manner. But as a consequence of the happenings the September 11 th , the code was modified to state that if a psychologist encountered a conflict between ethics and the law, he/she was to make his/her commitment to ethical code be known and take requisite steps to resolve the conflict. If the dilemma could not be reconciled, the psychologist would abide by the requirements of the law. It is thus apparent that political-economic influences led to the alteration of the ethical code, and both the American and Canadian psychological societies did not put requisite safeguards to prevent psychologists from engaging in torturous activities. It is necessary that when changes are made to the code, the highest standards of ethics are involved so as to prevent violation of human rights.