Adult Social Care Glossary, v 0.6

Working definitions of principles and standards (or rules) (adapted from Banks, S (2021) Ethics and Values in Social Work, 5th Edition. London: Red Globe Press, BASW Practical Social Work Series)

Principles are essential norms in a system of thought or belief, which form the basis of reasoning in that system.

In codes of ethics principles are often divided into two kinds:

Ethical principles – general statements of ethical principles underpinning the work, relating to attitudes, rights and duties about human welfare, for example: ‘upholding and promoting human dignity and well-being.’

Principles of professional practice – general statements about how to achieve what is intended for the good of the service user, for example: ‘collaboration with colleagues’.

Principles have a much broader scope than rules (or ‘standards’), tending to apply to all people in all circumstances (although in the case of social work, principles often refer to ‘all people using services’). So, for example, ‘social workers should respect people’s self-determination’ is an ethical principle; whereas ‘social workers should respect the rights of people using services to consult their files’ might be regarded as an ethical standard or rule. Standards can also be divided into two kinds, although often they are not clearly distinguished in codes of ethics:

Ethical standards or rules – some general ‘do’s and don’ts’, sometimes framed as ‘standards’ for example: ‘do not permit knowledge to be used for discriminatory policies’; ‘protect all confidential information’.

Professional practice standards – very specific guidance relating to professional practice, for example: ‘declare a bequest in a client’s will’; ‘advertising should not claim superiority’.