I’m working on a psychology discussion question and need a sample draft to help me study.

Respond to at least two colleagues in at least one of the following ways:

• Provide an example of an individual who exhibited an ethical leadership characteristic your colleague has described.
• Provide an example of a leader who effectively faced one of the challenges to ethical leadership that your colleague has described.
• Be sure to use references when responding

DB 1—Lukisha

Post your definition of ethical leadership as it relates to the social work profession. Explain what it means to be an ethical leader and describe the challenges of being an ethical leader.

Leaders are expected to see possibilities and to discern and develop paths of action that otherwise might go unexplored(Stephenson,20110). According to Northouse(2013)In regard to leadership, ethics has to do with what leaders do and who leaders are. It is concerned with the nature of leaders’ behavior, and with their virtuousness. In any decision-making situation, ethical issues are either implicitly or explicitly involved. The choices leaders make and how they respond in a given circumstance are informed and directed by their ethics(p.424). According to the(NASW,2017), Social workers’ primary responsibility is to promote the well-being of clients. In general, clients’ interests are primary. However, social workers’ responsibility to the larger society or specific legal obligations may on limited occasions supersede the loyalty owed clients, and clients should be so advised. (Examples include when a social worker is required by law to report that a client has abused a child or has threatened to harm self or others.) For me, ethical leadership as it relates to the social work profession is making sure that I am doing all that I can do for my clients and staff within the guidelines and code of ethics. Working to provide the services and needs of my clients is always at the forefront.

An ethical leader is in every case reasonable and fair. They treat everyone with respect. They have no top picks and treat everybody the same. Under an ethics leader, no worker has any reason to fear one-sided treatment based on sexual orientation, identity, ethnicity, or some other factor. An ethical leader leads by example. As an ethical leader, I can not expect my staff or team to follow the rules and if I am taking shortcuts. An ethical leader wants everyone in the organization to look good and does good work. They do not just focus on themself but the team and organization as a whole. I am a firm believer that if the at a job or organization is effective then so will the team or staff.

References

National Association of Social Workers. (2017). Code of ethics of the National Association of Social Workers. Retrieved from https://www.socialworkers.org/About/Ethics/Code-of…

Northouse, P. G. (2013). Leadership: Theory and practice (6th ed.). Los Angeles: Sage Publications. Reprinted by permission of Sage Publications via the Copyright Clearance Center. Chapter 16, “Leadership Ethics” (pp. 423–449)

Stephenson, M. O., Jr. (2011). Considering the relationships among social conflict, social imaginaries, resilience, and community-based organization leadership. Ecology and Society, 16(1). Retrieved from http://www.ecologyandsociety.org/vol16/iss1/art34/

DB 2—Jacqui

Northouse states that “Ethical leadership is the influence of a moral person who moves others to do the right thing in the right way for the right reasons” (Northouse, 2021, p. 309). In my opinion, ethical leadership is about having a good influence and being a good influence on those they supervise to do good things. An ethical leader should encourage people to make the world a better, more fair, more humane place.

Ethical leaders should have the six factors that Northouse discusses in Chapter twelve. The character of the leader is an important part of ethical leadership. The leader must have a strong character. This means that they must have trustworthiness, respect, responsibility, fairness, caring, and citizenship. Also, the actions of the leader must be honorable and must accomplish goals morally and efficiently. An ethical leader must show respect, serve others, and show justice.

The goals of a leader are important when it comes to ethical leadership. It is how the leader uses their goals to influence others that speaks volumes about that leader. Honesty is another major factor that contributes to ethical leadership. People want to know that their leader is an honest one. Power is another important factor that plays a role in ethical leadership. This means that an ethical leader can use their power to influence or affect others. A leader has the ability to affect the beliefs, attitudes, and courses of action of others. Values is the last factor that an ethical leader should have. Values are ideas and beliefs that people find meaningful. Examples of values would be peace, justice, integrity, fairness, and community.

The world today is different than it was historically. In every work place there are individuals from all different cultures that are different from mine and yours. Different cultures have different rules of conduct, and because of this leadership behaviors that are ethical in one culture may not be ethical in another culture. Ethical leadership has many different dimensions and to be an ethical leader you need to pay attention to all of the qualities discussed above.

References

Northouse, P. G. (2021). Introduction to leadership: Concepts and practice(5th ed.). Washington, DC: Sage.