Exploration of Ethical Construing in Clinical Psychology Doctoral Students: An Adaptation of Repertory Grid Technique

Abstract

A repertory grid method for the investigation of construing of ethical issues is presented. The elements in the grid are ethical dilemmas, and the use of dilemmas from different ethical domains (e.g., personal and professional) can allow investigation of the characteristics of ethical subsystems, as in a previous study of 39 clinical psychology doctoral students recruited from 17 training programs in the UK. In the present paper, a system is developed for categorizing the content of ethical constructs elicited in the previous study. Evidence is provided of the reliability of this system and that third-year students used more constructs concerned with reflexivity and emotional awareness, and fewer concerning the subject of dilemmas, than did first-year students. The implications of these findings, and previous findings with structural grid measures, for clinical psychology training are considered, and it is contended that the Ethical Dilemmas Repertory Grid may be a valuable instrument not only in further research on ethical construing but also in facilitating reflexivity and consideration of others’ constructions in training modules concerning ethical issues.