The psychologist’s work is rather complicated because it is connected to exploring human nature. With people revealing their secrets and sharing problems, it is easy for a specialist to be carried away with emotions and become too subjective. Therefore, it is essential for psychologists to understand the ethical principles of their occupation and activate critical thinking. This helps them make the right decisions and come to logical conclusions.
The time spent at Ashford University was a precious lesson on using a personal academic voice and interpreting information to acknowledge certain criteria. It was interesting to discover the major elements of critical thinking, such as clarity, accuracy, precision, relevance, depth, breadth, logic, and fairness (Harper et al., 2020). Learning how to use rational, unbiased analysis and these intellectual standards helped develop self-directed thinking and writing.
The studies of plagiarism and ethical considerations were useful for improving professional writing. It was encouraging to learn that psychologists “are committed to increasing scientific and professional knowledge of behavior and people’s understanding of themselves and others” (American Psychological Association, 2017, para. 2). Indeed, the work in this field should be well-grounded and aimed at improving people’s welfare. As a result of studying the offered materials, my personal academic voice has become more accurate and competent.
Certainly, to be more concise and comprehensible, professional writing should be carefully proofread and flawless in terms of grammar, style, and punctuation. Among the most efficient software allowing writers to achieve this goal is Grammarly. This website is an irreplaceable assistant for eliminating wordiness and errors that are invisible to the writer. It improves such criteria as engagement and delivery, which is important for the reader.
Giving enough credits to outside authors is a significant part of writing, consistent with the concept of critical thinking. For having a complete understanding, it is necessary to gather additional information and explore other points of view (Agoos). While citing other authors, it was helpful to use the Ashford Writing Center as a reference. It is a source of the most credible information, which allows saving time.
Combining personal ideas with external evidence guarantees the most compelling and balanced writing. Personal experience and thoughts may become fresh, helpful evidence that will shed light on the problem. Nevertheless, critical writing includes “the evaluation and analysis of evidence from several sources representing different points of view” (Harper et al., 2020). Thus, using other opinions is also valuable, especially when they are not paraphrased but repeated word for word, to transmit the author’s ideas more precisely. In this case, giving references to the sources of information is essential to respect other authors’ work and avoid plagiarism.
Undoubtedly, giving psychological advice is difficult, especially without a profound understanding of the problem. Psychologists should realize that they are responsible for people who trust them. According to American Psychological Association, psychologists “strive to help the public in developing informed judgments and choices concerning human behavior” (2017, para. 2) Therefore, it is prohibited to give falsified information that can negatively impact people’s lives. Psychologists must know how to apply scientific and professional knowledge in every case.
Due to the reflection resource readings, a great amount of knowledge of principles and ethical considerations was gained. Ethics Code provides young specialists with regulations and standards guiding their work in the right direction, for instance, respecting and protecting civil and human rights (American Psychological Association, 2017, para. 2). Psychological knowledge is quite universal, which is why the techniques such as asking the right questions can be applied not only at work but also in relationships with friends and family and even for self-improvement (Harper et al., 2020). Therefore, these findings can be helpful for interacting with others in the future.
There exist various nuances psychologists have to consider while deliberating their decision on what to recommend to a person. Ethics Code proposed by American Psychological Association may serve as a guideline, explaining to specialists the complexity of their job and reminding the basic principles of human rights. Moreover, psychologists should rely on critical thinking because it allows them to be more objective and choose the most efficient strategies.
References
Agoos, S. (n.d.). 5 tips to improve your critical thinking. [Video]. TED. Web.
American Psychological Association. (2017). Ethical principles of psychologists and code of conduct. Web.
Harper, Y., Rosser-Majors, M., Anderson, S. L., Brewer, S., Kirwan, J., Lozano, Y. M., & Vincent, P. (2020). Psychology applied: Diverse domains, ample opportunity. Web.