Question

Which model of ethical decision making does the bureaucracy follow and why?

Answer 1

Ethical decision making:

1. Identify the Problem.
Gather as much information as you can that will illuminate the situation. In doing
so, it is important to be as specific and objective as possible. Writing ideas on
paper may help you gain clarity. Outline the facts, separating out innuendos,
assumptions, hypotheses, or suspicions. There are several questions you can ask
yourself: Is it an ethical, legal, professional, or clinical problem? Is it a
combination of more than one of these? If a legal question exists, seek legal
advice.
Other questions that it may be useful to ask yourself are: Is the issue related to me
and what I am or am not doing? Is it related to a client and/or the client's
significant others and what they are or are not doing? Is it related to the institution
or agency and their policies and procedures? If the problem can be resolved by
implementing a policy of an institution or agency, you can look to the agency's
guidelines. It is good to remember that dilemmas you face are often complex, so a useful guideline is to examine the problem from several perspectives and avoid
searching for a simplistic solution.
2. Apply the ACA Code of Ethics.
After you have clarified the problem, refer to the Code of Ethics (ACA, 2005) to
see if the issue is addressed there. If there is an applicable standard or several
standards and they are specific and clear, following the course of action indicated
should lead to a resolution of the problem. To be able to apply the ethical
standards, it is essential that you have read them carefully and that you understand
their implications.
If the problem is more complex and a resolution does not seem apparent, then you
probably have a true ethical dilemma and need to proceed with further steps in the
ethical decision making process.
3. Determine the nature and dimensions of the dilemma.
There are several avenues to follow in order to ensure that you have examined the
problem in all its various dimensions.
o Consider the moral principles of autonomy, nonmaleficence, beneficence,
justice, and fidelity. Decide which principles apply to the specific
situation, and determine which principle takes priority for you in this case.
In theory, each principle is of equal value, which means that it is your
challenge to determine the priorities when two or more of them are in
conflict.
o Review the relevant professional literature to ensure that you are using the
most current professional thinking in reaching a decision.
o Consult with experienced professional colleagues and/or supervisors. As
they review with you the information you have gathered, they may see
other issues that are relevant or provide a perspective you have not
considered. They may also be able to identify aspects of the dilemma that
you are not viewing objectively.
o Consult your state or national professional associations to see if they can
provide help with the dilemma.
4. Generate potential courses of action.
Brainstorm as many possible courses of action as possible. Be creative and
consider all options. If possible, enlist the assistance of at least one colleague to
help you generate options.
5. Consider the potential consequences of all options and determine a course of
action.
Considering the information you have gathered and the priorities you have set,
evaluate each option and assess the potential consequences for all the parties
involved. Ponder the implications of each course of action for the client, for
others who will be effected, and for yourself as a counselor. Eliminate the options
that clearly do not give the desired results or cause even more problematic
consequences.

6Evaluate the selected course of action. Review the selected course of action to see if it presents any new ethical considerations. Stadler (1986) suggests applying three simple tests to the selected course of action to ensure that it is appropriate. In applying the test of justice, assess your own sense of fairness by determining whether you would treat others the same in this situation. For the test of publicity, ask yourself whether you would want your behavior reported in the press. The test of universality asks you to assess whether you could recommend the same course of action to another counselor in the same situation. If the course of action you have selected seems to present new ethical issues, then you'll need to go back to the beginning and reevaluate each step of the process. Perhaps you have chosen the wrong option or you might have identified the problem incorrectly. If you can answer in the affirmative to each of the questions suggested by Stadler (thus passing the tests of justice, publicity, and universality) and you are satisfied that you have selected an appropriate course of action, then you are ready to move on to implementation.

7. Implement the course of action. Taking the appropriate action in an ethical dilemma is often difficult. The final step involves strengthening your ego to allow you to carry out your plan. After implementing your course of action, it is good practice to follow up on the situation to assess whether your actions had the anticipated effect and consequences.

The Ethical Decision Making Model at a Glance

1. Identify the problem.
2. Apply the ACA Code of Ethics.
3. Determine the nature and dimensions of the dilemma.
4. Generate potential courses of action.
5. Consider the potential consequences of all options, choose a course of action.
6. Evaluate the selected course of action.
7. Implement the course of action.

Types of Bureaucracies:
Many researchers in sociology and management showed that the malpractices of the concept of bureaucracy
has led to the consolidation of the idea that bureaucracy was unsuccessful and restricted the work of organizations. This study confirms that the main reason for the consolidation of the bureaucracy concept is due to the improper implementation of bureaucracy in the reality of business life and the lack of precise understanding of the subjective meaning to the concept of implementation and the improper selection to bureaucratic structures. The senior managers of the Society should aware the importance of bureaucratic concept and practicing bureaucracy in the right way, as well as what suits their work and serve the
administrative decision-making process and thus achieve the objectives of the organization.
According to the above, the study identify two basic types of bureaucracy, as shown below:
A- Subjective Bureaucracy:
Standardization is the basis which every bureaucratic structures build on, and the subjective bureaucracy consist of standard routine and operational tasks and procedures characterized by high formal rules and centralization of order, and the decisions are taken through a series of commands inside the organization.
The core strength of subjective bureaucracy comes from its ability to accomplish standard tasks efficiently as well as reducing duplication of tasks and produce effective performance that obtain psychological satisfaction among employees. The main weaknesses of subjective bureaucracy is the extreme specialization of tasks and jobs that may create many types of conflicts and divisions between the employees, and the main reason for that could be the strict rules of subjective bureaucracy in general, as well as the weaknesses sometimes due to
breaking the rules by the employees.
According to that subjective bureaucracy is suitable for big organizations that work in simple environment and stable society without crises, and it is also suitable for organizations that are capable to be measured.

B- Professional Bureaucracy:
This system appeared in recent decades that allowing organizations to recruit qualified, highly professional, experienced employees to work in operational centers and production organizations and institutions as well as service organizations. This form of bureaucracy, which combines standardization and decentralization at the
same time to achieve the goals of the organization to a larger extent comparing to subjective bureaucracy , this means that professional bureaucracy is not centralized, and its constant work leads to predictable behavior and results according to the goals of the organization.The strength of professional bureaucracy comes from its ability to perform specialized tasks at high efficiency and achieve the goals of the organization with a high degree of perfection. Professional bureaucracy is similar to subjective bureaucracy in terms of efficiency, and from this point of view, the study highlighted the need to apply professional bureaucracy in Society in order to achieve high commitment for obtaining the goals of the organization as well as provide more space for workers to use their expertise when needed from senior management in the Society which reduces the absolute control and doing the tasks through a long series of orders, however doing this will affect the performance of employees and makes them slow and ineffective because they are they have the experience and qualifications, therefore restricting their ability will produce job dissatisfaction.
4- The Negative Impact of Bureaucracy on Strategic Decision-Making Process in ICS:
The structural bureaucracy could lead to a lack of encouraging to innovation and develop.

SUMMARY:

Bureaucracy represents the top of authority pyramid in the Society and forms one of the
administrative systems in the organization that creates an atmosphere of order and commitment inside the organization and provides confidence and trust within the organization. Bureaucracy at the same time leads to recession in the work and mistrust between employees and managers. Bureaucracy in the Society has two contrast faces, but in most of case it represents an imminent need in the work of the organization. The study has found that there is a need to implement the principles of bureaucracy more effectively and not subjectively, especially with regard to strategic decision-making and thus will lead to achieve balanced performance and efficiency in all its branches around the world.
The study showed that there are negative points in the decision-making process made by the
Society, and one of these points associated with the low rate of women involvement and responsibility in the decision-making process. There is also rejection by the senior managers to new ideas because of existence of some subjective bureaucracy and less practicing to professional bureaucracy. According to that the study emphasized on the need to adopt professional bureaucratic approach and abandon bureaucratic subjectivity because of many of the defects when using the last one that may lead to inefficient performance and lack of selfdevelopment. The study confirmed that combining the standardization and decentralization at the same time will achieve the goals of the organization to a large extent; in other words adopting decentralized and constant approach in management will produce predicted results matching with the goals of the organization.