Introduction
Ethical codes play an important role in systematizing general principles meaning they do not simply aim at prescribing the desired action. This implies moral principles serve four major functions, one of them being fulfilling the interests of individuals in any profession by recognizing a field as a legitimate one while at the same time promoting social objective, which ends up establishing trust (Hinman, 2013).
Canadian professional coaches association code of ethics aspires to set standards for all practitioners by ensuring clients receive the best services that realize their interests. The codes guarantee professional autonomy seeking to control the behavior of individuals in terms of admission to the practice and instituting disciplinary measures. Through the codes, the welfare of students is looked into since they proscribe and stipulate actions as far as privacy, informed consent, management of conflicts, and charges are concerned. This article seeks to establish the strengths and weaknesses of the NCCP code of ethics. The paper goes a notch higher to identify the ethical issues, themes, and concepts as discussed throughout the course.
Strengths and Weaknesses of NCCP
A coach socializes an athlete into a particular movement scheme and the process is undertaken through issuance of instructions whereby good sportspersons are used as role models to be imitated. The coach is therefore charged with the responsibility of understanding what really constitutes norms and values. In an attempt to search for talent and develop it, the coach is expected to interpret the body of the athlete, which is important than quantifying the physical test. One of the strengths of the NCCP is its ability to bring happiness to the clients and reduce the chances of evil doings meaning pleasure is given an intrinsic value.
The codes ensure that no athlete is taken through inhuman conditions that would result in injuries since it might impede the chances of success. Without the codes, athletes would be taken through unfair processes with claims that they are being trained to compete in the global arena. In several cases, coaches have been accused of mistreating their clients or taking revenge in case they clash with the athletes, but the codes exist to eliminate issues related to unprofessionalism.
Unfortunately, the codes of ethics under the NCCP only focus on achieving happiness as far as professional training is concerned, but they do not consider other things that bring happiness, such as provision of love and human freedom for the athletes (Bentham, 2009). In many cases, athletes are instructed to follow the rules strictly without giving them some freedom to think about the best courses of action. In fact, no single sentence in the set of laws is dedicated to describe an issue do with human life meaning athletes survive at the mercy of the coaches since they are not consulted on what they have to do, but instead instructions are simply dictated to them.
Additionally, the codes under the NCCP seek to guarantee fair play implying the aspirations of each child in sport have to be met. Even though coaches are concerned with training individuals to win their games, they always consider the aspect of skill development and enjoyment as already noticed. Therefore, fair play rules exist to ensure suffering is reduced and no person is harmed. Based on this, the codes of ethics are designed in a manner suggesting that harming people is intrinsically wrong. Therefore, the only justifiable course of action in coaching is the one that leads to the most happiness and least harm.
The codes encourage coaches to go an extra mile of reproducing more than the existing normative schemes. In fact, coaching is more than helping athletes master the art since it also teaches members to respect professional ideals and understand the history of the sport. Through the codes, members are trained to be independent, as well as self-sufficient, which encourages inventiveness and continuous pursuit of development. In this regard, coaches are likely to be perceptive of situational aspects and irregularity (Shogan, 1999). Usually, the aim of any coach in sport is to ensure athletes abide by the established norms and values, but the codes under NCCP exist to enhance performance by exploring all available options. Since the codes of ethics allow innovation, chances are high that changes in the way things are done could be instituted, which is one of the features of success.
A close analysis of the ethical codes suggest they are mechanistic in nature in the sense that they reduce ethics to simple mathematics, which ends up losing out on what is really sensible in life. Since they aim at achieving the greatest good, it means they believe in the principle of the ends justifying the means, which is inaccurate in the sense that everything people do should be viewed as a means, but not the ends.
While trying to help athletes develop their potentials, the codes urge coaches to employ a cautious approach when it comes to matters related to religion meaning secularism is appreciated (Oliphant, 2007). If people were forced to believe in one God, conflicts would be inevitable and the professional body would not be serving the interests of the majority. Giving learners an opportunity to choose what is desired in life as far as religious issues and cultural beliefs are concerned strengthens their performance.
Additionally, this plays a role in instituting a culture of self-discipline since people are requested to weigh up their behavior and establish the effects of their actions on their professional performance. The drafters of the codes underscore the fact that the best way of catering for the interests of each person in a profession is to balance differing interests. In fact, individuals are always in a position to measure the negative and positive consequences of their actions, which gives them an independent and objective way of making decisions on what is right.
However, the codes are subject to scrutiny as far as norms and values are concerned since they focus so much on success, which leads to ethical problems. It is noted that competitive sports, particularly at elite levels, is always a borderline activity since some participants are urged to employ extreme performance-enhancing techniques and strategies, which is detrimental to their own health, as well as the wellbeing of others. The codes do not consider social and cultural insights yet research shows that socio-cultural aspects help coaches in dealing with the emerging challenges. Such an approach has a role to play when issuing instructions to learners since it helps in the understanding of human intentions and actions.
Ethical Issues, Themes, and Concepts
A study of the NCCP code of ethics presents several ethical issues, themes, and concepts. The issue of respect is of concern to many stakeholders, as it is not established to what extent an athlete should obey the rules or follow the instructions as the coach gives out. Coaches are urged to respect the views, beliefs, norms, and cultural principles of participants, but this would only happen with an assumption that each individual has a certain value system that calls for respect. While a coach is required to treat participants equally irrespective of gender, race, origin, and sexual orientation, the reality is that some groups are vulnerable and they need protection meaning they will have to be given specialized care when giving them instructions.
For instance, those with diverse sexuality other than heterosexuality have always suffered from prejudice and discrimination and it would be impossible to train them together with their antagonists since conflicts will emerge and managing them might take time. Again, some members of society hold positions of influence and they would not be comfortable mingling with the perceived low class individuals since they fear for their safety. In this regard, it is upon the coach to establish ways through which fairness would be guaranteed while at the same time taking into account the interests of each client (Mill, 2011). When undertaking training, coaches have to be sensitive to matters related to gender, sexual orientation, religion, socio-economic status, and the marital status.
Integrity is an additional concept that entails several themes, such as honesty, sincerity, honor, self-awareness, and extended responsibility. In this case, an individual is expected to be reflective when engaging in relationships with others. Therefore, a coach is requested to be considerate of his or her client’s wishes and aspirations. Honesty means exploring mutual expectations with athletes and other stakeholder in an open way whereby considerations are given based on age, professional experience, and the cultural beliefs (Rawls, 2005). In fact, a coach is urged to measure the words used since some might be misinterpreted leading to conflicts. Members must meet all qualifications before being recruited as coaches. Sincerity entails honoring all the deals and promises, irrespective of whether they are written or spoken.
On the other hand, both an athlete and the coach are expected to master the rules of the sport, as well as the standards governing the profession. The coach is advised not to take advantage of his or her position to gain politically, socially, or economically since this would be considered unethical.
References
Bentham, J. (2009). An Introduction to the Principles of Morals and Legislation. London: Dover Publications. Web.
Hinman, L. (2013). Ethics: a pluralistic approach to moral theory (5th ed). New York: Thomson Wadsworth. Web.
Mill, J.S. (2011). A System of Logic, Ratiocinative and Inductive. New York: Forgotten Books. Web.
Oliphant, J. (2007). OCR Religious Ethics for AS and A2. London: Routledge. Web.
Rawls, J. (2005). A Theory of Justice. Harvard: Harvard University Press. Web.
Shogan, D. (1999). The making of high-performance athletes: discipline, diversity, and ethics. Toronto: University of Toronto Press. Web.