Prioritizing loyalty to clients may sometimes detract from actions that benefit them. Which conflict is described?

• A. Beneficence vs Fidelity
• B. Beneficence vs Autonomy
• C. Fidelity vs Veracity
• D. Justice vs Autonomy

Answer: (A)

A tension between fidelity and beneficence. Fidelity involves loyalty to the client, maintaining trust, and honoring commitments (including confidentiality), while beneficence is the obligation to act in the client’s best interests and promote welfare. When a counselor gives priority to loyalty to the client, they may refrain from actions that would actually benefit the client, such as recommending a more effective treatment, seeking additional support, or taking steps to prevent harm, because those actions could be seen as breaking trust or overstepping loyalty. This scenario highlights how fidelity can limit beneficence when the protective, welfare-promoting actions seem to conflict with staying loyal to the client. The other pairs involve different tensions (for example, autonomy concerns about self-determination, or veracity about truth-telling) and don’t align as directly with the idea of loyalty limiting beneficial actions.