April 2026
Judgment and Professionalism
Question:
We are often reminded that competence refers to “the combined knowledge, skills, attitudes and judgment required to provide professional services”. While the specialized knowledge and skills are things I work on via continuing professional development activities, I’m interested in learning more about judgment and how that plays a role in my continuing competence. Are there things I should be thinking about or doing that will help to ensure I use good judgment when I make professional decisions?
Answer:
According to Collinslanguage.com, “judgment” refers to the ability to make sensible decisions about what to do. In a professional capacity, the public needs to be able to trust that SLPs and audiologists can make sound, reasonable and ethical decisions, or judgments, in a range of circumstances and under various kinds of pressure.
As depicted in the diagram below, one’s skills, knowledge and behaviour all intersect to impact one’s professionalism. Inherent in professionalism is the obligation to serve others morally, ethically, and competently (Caldicott, 2019); a key component of which involves sound judgment.
Many factors impact our judgment, and these typically fall into three broad categories: personal, organizational, and systemic.
From a personal perspective, examples that may contribute to poor judgment include the following:
- Health conditions
- Fatigue
- Personal stressors, such as divorce or caregiving responsibilities
- Financial insecurity
- Fear of failure
- Perceived responsibility for others, including misconstrued expectations
- Ego and denial (e.g., perceived invincibility, denial of problem)
- Difficulty coping (reduced capacity or capability)
In order to reduce risk, it’s important to maintain an awareness of potential factors that may impact one’s judgment and to proactively address those by focusing on protective factors such as:
- Self-awareness
- Emotional regulation
- Resilient mindset
- Healthy lifestyle (e.g., good nutrition, sleep and exercise)
- Building strong connections with colleagues and friends
- Seeking professional help when needed
In addition to personal factors, organizational culture and systemic challenges will also factor into judgement and decision-making. For example, organizational culture that rewards results at the expense of professional responsibility, lack of discussion regarding accountability or ethics, and insufficient mentoring or orientation may negatively impact one’s decision making. Likewise, systemic challenges such as the lack of professionals to fill vacancies and an overburdened health or education system can also impact judgment and decision-making, ultimately resulting in unprofessional conduct.
A key component of ACSLPA’s Continuing Competence Program is the identification of risks to one’s practice coupled with a review of possible ways to mitigate those risks. Sometimes the risks may be knowledge or experience based, whereas other times they may include some of the personal risk factors outlined above. And while systemic or organizational risk factors may be beyond an individual’s control to eliminate completely, it may still be possible to put individual strategies in place to mitigate those risks. Self-awareness and taking the necessary steps to mitigate risk factors can go a long way towards supporting and maintaining one’s competence and professionalism.
References:
Bird, Alison, Yetnikoff, Zimra, and Durcan, Rebecca (2025, October). Frequent flyers, bad seeds and irredeemables: What can regulators do about bad judgment? Presented at the Canadian Network of Agencies for Regulation (CNAR), Calgary, AB.
Caldicott, Catherine V. (2019). A framework for remediating professional ethical lapses. Journal of Nursing Regulation 10(2), 11-20.
Harvey, W.S., Arora, N., Currie, G., & Spyridonidis, D. (2024). Why individuals commit professional misconduct and what leaders can do to prevent it. California Management Review 67(3), 144-163. doi: 10.1177/00081256241305815
Maciura, Julie. (2025). Why individuals commit professional misconduct. Steinecke Maciura Leblanc (SML) Grey Areas Newsletter, No. 306, 1-3.
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If there is a conflict or discrepancy with the information or advice set out on this webpage and the information contained in a more official ACSLPA document, then the information contained in the more official ACSLPA document applies and not the information or advice set out here. For the purposes of this disclaimer, ACSLPA’s more official documents include the governing legislation (including the Health Professions Act and the Speech-Language Pathologist and Audiologist Profession Regulation) as well as ACSLPA’s Bylaws, policies, Standards of Practice, Code of Ethics, manuals and/or any other official document approved by Council, a statutory committee or a college official. Persons interacting with ACSLPA are responsible for reviewing and familiarizing themselves with the relevant information contained in ACSLPA’s official documents.