Moral Development, HIV/AIDS Knowledge, and Attitude toward HIV/AIDS among Counseling Students in the United States
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Moral Development, HIV/AIDS Knowledge, and Attitude toward HIV/AIDS among Counseling Students in the United States J. Richelle Joe 1
& Victoria A. Foster
2
Published online: 15 June 2017 # Springer Science+Business Media New York 2017
Abstract People living with HIV/AIDS will likely require services from mental health professionals to address the complex psychosocial effects of the illness. In the United States, counseling students are not likely to be well prepared to serve clients affected by HIV/AIDS, and little is known about their HIV-related knowledge and attitudes. The present study assessed the moral development, HIV/AIDS knowledge, and attitudes toward HIV/AIDS among a national sample of counseling students in the United States. Results indicated that students held biases toward people living with HIV/AIDS and that their attitudes toward HIV/ AIDS were inversely related to their level of moral development. Keywords HIV/Aids . Moral development . Counselor education . United States
Introduction One of the core values held by professional counselors is Bhonoring diversity and embracing a multicultural approach in support of the worth, dignity, potential, and uniqueness of people within their social and cultural contexts^ (American Counseling Association 2014, p. 3). Reflective of this value, professional counselors strive to avoid doing harm to clients by remaining self-aware of their cultural identities and privileges, and refraining from imposing their worldviews on their clients (Ratts et al. 2016). However, in direct contradiction to the ethical expectations of the profession, lawmakers in multiple states within the United States (US), most notably Tennessee, have recently proposed or passed legislation that permits
* J. Richelle Joe [email protected]
1
Department of Child, Family, and Community Sciences, College of Education and Human Performance, University of Central Florida, PO Box 161250, Orlando, FL 32816-1250, USA
2
Department of School Psychology and Counselor Education, The College of William & Mary, Williamsburg, VA, USA
296
Int J Adv Counselling (2017) 39:295–310
professional counselors to behave in an unethical manner in their practice by citing sincerely held beliefs as reasons for refusing services to clients (Meyers 2016). The danger of such laws rests in the leeway given to counselors to make a professional decision based on their personal beliefs; beliefs that are inherently biased and shaped by personal experiences. Of particular concern is how these laws will affect clients who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender (LGBT), as well as other client groups who experience marginalization and have difficulty accessing mental health services (Meyers 2016). Among such clients are people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA) who often experience the harmful effects of personal biases and social stigma in their daily lives (Herek 2002). For the approximately 1.2 million individuals currently living with HIV/AIDS in the United States (Centers for Disease Control and Preventi
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