Ethical Dilemmas in Human Rights Field Education: A Case Study on Macro Practice in a Reproductive-Rights Policy Setting

Abstract

In the article that follows, the two authors, a professor/field supervisor and a social work student intern in a conservative western state in the USA, discuss a values-based ethical dilemma in field-based social work education. While having to choose between particular values or perspectives in social work practice is relatively common—perhaps even part of the unique expertise we bring as social workers—the dilemmas faced by social work students in their field placements present particular challenges for the students, their field supervisors, and their instructors. The authors present a case study regarding birth control legislation that highlights those challenges—where an ideal solution for helping a particular population must be weighed with a marginally better but incomplete solution. Ultimately, this case and the authors’ reflection on it suggest the need for ethical training articulated by Gray and Gibbons (2007) that recognizes the limitations of ethical frameworks and the “Kantian and utilitarian ethics that [have] been taken to extremes” and dogmatized in some corners of the social work field (p. 234). Instead, the authors argue in favor of a broader, more flexible ethical training that includes virtue ethics and a focus on human rights. Further, case studies in courses need to include policy practice dilemmas, as these often challenge the dogmatic ethical frameworks that are often ill equipped to inform effective decision making under stressful circumstances.