Competence-based assessment and training for ethical situations in practice: a pilot study

ABSTRACTIn this pilot study, deliberate practice and competence-based assessment were incorporated into a first-year graduate course on professional issues and ethics. Students responded to challenging simulations of basic ethical situations in therapy before and after the course. Aspects of deliberate practice were incorporated into the course. Student self-report ratings and independent performance ratings blind to timing found improvements in students’ ability to manage basic ethical situations in practice. Pilot evidence suggests competence-based assessment and training have potential use for training students preparing to engage in their first therapy practicum experiences. Additional controlled studies are needed to examine the benefits of competence-based assessment and training.KEYWORDS: Competence-based trainingethicsfacilitative interpersonal skillsdeliberate practice AcknowledgmentsThe authors thank Dr. Joseph Olsen for his helpful statistical consultation on this article.Disclosure statementNo potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).Data availability statementCorrespondence and requests for data sharing should be addressed to Ben Ogles, 268 TLRB, Comprehensive Clinic, Department of Psychology, Brigham Young University, Provo, UT 84,602. Email: ben_ogles@byu.edu Phone: (801) 422–8193Additional informationFundingPartial funding for this project was provided by the Sorensen Center for Moral and Ethical Leadership at Brigham Young University.