Ethics - a Murky Subject Area

I'm spending some time delving into the subject of ethics this weekend. It's something that interests me, and it is also a subject that can consume my waking (and sleeping) hours as well. I'm doing this for a couple of reasons - one, so I can write about it, and two, so I can teach it to others. The problem with ethics is that once you start thinking about it, you can slide down a slippery slope full of arguments, opinions, and hurt feelings.

Does anyone watch The Good Place? I love this show, though I am not watching the current season due to how I get my television programs. I am behind, so I will not know how everything ends until about a year after everyone else does. This show is not one that you can jump into at any time, so if you are not watching it now, start streaming it from the beginning so you know what is going on. This show has challenged some of my thinking about ethics and ethical behavior, let me tell you!

I enjoy a good ethical dilemma - not to be in the center of, mind you, but to unravel and try to think through to come to my conclusion. I feel that there may never be one correct answer to almost any ethical question, but this is an area of opinion based on facts and feelings. Thinking deeply about situations seems to stimulate me in ways that other things just do not.

The primary reason that I am turning my attention to this particular topic is that I want to include some ethical discussions in a continuing education course that I hope to be offering to music therapists shortly. If you don't know, one of the requirements that we have as music therapists is to attend a minimum of 3 hours of coursework centered around ethics every five year certification cycle. I want to talk to music therapy supervisors about some unique ethical considerations that we have - that of being gatekeepers for the profession through evaluating music therapy students. As such, there are specific things to think about, and I am working on my list of these things to include in the coursework.

As I have been developing my outline and dilemmas to include in my course, I have come across several discussions about ethics. I am also watching The Good Place to help me remember all sorts of philosophers to examine a bit more deeply as I move forward. I am a bit more comfortable talking about utilitarianism and consequentialism than I was a bit ago. There are many things to consider as we start to talk about ethics.

As a music therapist, I do not really subscribe to any of the specific ethical thoughts that are out there. I do not label myself as a particular type of ethical thinker - mainly because I do not know them all! I try my best to root decisions in my thoughts about right and wrong, in my beliefs about human beings and the rights and responsibilities of us all to others, and in my role as a privileged person in power in some of my relationships. There is much to acknowledge and to work through as you start a journey of ethical thinking. I know I will never be completely finished with this journey, and that simultaneously exhausts and excites me. I will eventually be reading this particular post and thinking how naive I was in writing it, but that is part of being an evolving human being, and I love that thought - constant change and growth as a result of that change.

It is time for me to read the AMTA Code of Ethics again. I try to do this on a pretty regular basis - my work with interns reminds me that I need to do this to keep myself aware of the expectations of my association. I will spend some time thinking about situations that have occurred to me in my music therapy life and putting them through the suggested framework for evaluation. I will re-read Cheryl Dileo's text about music therapy and ethical thinking. I will review the presentation I gave last year about ethics and crossing cultures to provide music therapy services.

Time to dive in.