Instructions

Your final assignment for this course is to use everything you have learned from the course literature to write a paper on a topic that is of interest to you.

Select a topic, preferably from your practice, that has general social importance. Choose a topic that is not only of interest to you, but that reflects at least one of the topics presented in this course.

If you are uncertain, obtain prior approval of the topic from your instructor. To assist you below is a list of topics that would work for this paper:

· Immigration

· Poverty

· Child Welfare

· Domestic Violence

· Women’s Health Rights

· Religious Rights

· Discrimination

· Elder Abuse

· Research

Here are some suggested articles for your research:

· Gostin L.O., Vanchieri C, & Pope A. (2007). 

Ethical Considerations for Research Involving Prisoners.
Links to an external site.

 Institute of Medicine (US) Committee on Ethical Considerations for Revisions to DHHS Regulations for Protection of Prisoners Involved in Research.

· Gillespie, D.  (1995). 
Ethical issues in research
Links to an external site.
. 
Encyclopedia of Social Work (19th ed.), v.1. NASW Press. 884-892.

· Martin, J.I. (2000). 
Methodological and ethical issues in research on lesbians and gay men
Links to an external site.
. Social Work Research, 24 (1), 51-59.

· French, S. & Depoy, E. (2000). 
Multiculturalism and Disability: A critical perspective
Links to an external site.
. Disability & Society, 15(2), 207-218.

· Callahan, J. (1994). 
The ethics of assisted suicide
Links to an external site.
. 
Health & Social Work, 19(4), 237-244.

· Eisenberg, D.et al. (2005, April 4). 
Lessons of the Schiavo battle
Links to an external site.
. 
Time, 165(14), 22-30.

· Wesley, C. (1996). 
Social work and end-of-life decisions: Self-determination and the common good
Links to an external site.
. 
Health and Social Work, 21(2), 115-121.

· Faye, A, Antle, B. & Regehr, C. (2002). 
Social work with clients contemplating suicide: Complexity and ambiguity in the clinical, ethical, and legal considerations
Links to an external site.
. 
Clinical Social Work, 30(3), 265-280.

· Koenig, T. L., Rinfrette, E. S., & Lutz, W. A. (2006, September). 
Female caregivers’ reflections on ethical decision-making: The intersection of domestic violence and elder care. 
Clinical Social Work Journal, 34(3), 361-372.

Final Paper

1. Discuss the history or genesis of the social problem and why social work should be concerned about this issue, why it poses ethical dilemmas for social workers and the moral societal values underlying the topic –  from the perspectives of general society, the profession, religion, the agency, and your own personal values.

2. Present a case in which the social worker is in conflict with a family, agency, colleagues, group, or community over this ethical dilemma. Describe the specific conflict situation.

3. Present the ethical dilemma in one or two sentences.

4. Identify any value conflicts that may be present in the ethical dilemma.

5. Identify ethical principles and prima facie duties as they pertain to the ethical dilemma.

6. Utilizing either the Ethical Justification Model of Beauchamp & Childress or Mattison’s Model apply the model to your case. Begin with the background information.

7. Identify possible courses of action and the benefits/costs and possible outcomes of each.

8.  Make the decision/resolution and explain how you prioritized and why you arrived at that decision.

9.  Discuss how your personal values entered into the decision-making process.

Requirements:

· Submit your paper by the due date posted on this page.

· Cite at least 4-6 relevant sources from literature and peer reviewed articles on the topic and on the value and ethical considerations.

· All references must be in APA format.

· Your submission should be 10-12 pages, double-spaced, using 12-point font.