7. socially sensitive research Flashcards
define ETHICAL IMPLICATIONS:
the way that research impacts on those who take part and also in the way the findings are communicated to the public and how the findings are used
define SOCIAL SENSITIVITY:
studies in which there are potential consequences or implications, either directly for the participants in the research or for the class of individuals represented by the research.
Ethical implications concern the consequences that psychological research may have. Arguably this applies to all research, but some areas have grater social sensitivity than others.
· For example,
research on long term memory on a student population is unlikely to have consequences for the individual participants, or for the broader social group the participants may represent (or not, they might be drawn in from many social groups). There are unlikely to be consequences for social policy.
· In contrast, a study on depression may have consequences in terms of individual participants, the wider social group they represent and for social policy - an individual may reveal
personal information that is later accessed by a prospective employer, or the findings of the study may suggest people with depression never fully recover and are a risk as an employee. In terms of social policy, the findings of a study of depression could inform preferred treatment options recommended by the NHS.
IMPLICATIONS FOR THE RESEARCH PROCESS
All stages of planning and conducting studies are important when thinking of social sensitivity as well as in handling the findings.
· RESEARCH QUESTION:
description and evidence
Stanley warns that the way in which research questions are phased and investigated may influence the way in which findings are interpreted.
e.g. Coyle notes how research into relationships has been guilty of a form of heterosexual bias within which homosexual relationships were compared and judged against heterosexual norms.
· DEALING WITH PARTICIPANTS:
description and evidence
issues such as informed consent, confidentiality and psychological harm may be especially important in socially sensitive research.
e.g. in a study of domestic abuse participants may worry an ex-partner will find out about the study and it is likely to be extremely stressful for participants to describe their experiences. Such participants may provide informed consent at the start of the study but not fully understand the effect of the research.
THE WAY FINDINGS ARE USED:
description and evidence
researchers should consider how research findings may be used in advance. It may impact on what data they actually collect - this is especially important because findings from research may be seen as giving scientific credence to existing prejudices, such as studies examining the ethnic basis of intelligence. Sensitive information is exactly what media tend to be interested in and will publicise.
E.g. Owen’s research on people in a minimally conscious state received enormous media attention at the time as it appeared he had made contact with patients who were thought to be unreachable.
AO3: strength of socially sensitive research
REAL WORLD APPLICATION.
Certain groups (e.g. policymakers) rely on research related to socially sensitive issues.
The government looks to research when developing important social policies, for example decisions related to childcare, education, mental health provision, crime and so on. It is preferable to base such policies on scientific research rather than politically motivated views. For this reason, there are independent groups such as the ONS who describes themselves as being responsible for collecting, analysing, and disseminating objective statistics about the UK. Such data is used in psychological research.
This means that psychologists have an important role to play in providing high quality research on socially sensitive topics.
AO3: strength of socially sensitive research
BENEFITS FOR GROUPS - homosexuality
Socially sensitive research can have benefits for the group who have been studied.
One example of this is homosexuality - in 1952 the DSM-1 listed this as a sociopathic personality disorder but finally removed it in 1973. This chance has been credited to the Kinsey report which was based on anonymous interviews with over 5000 men about their sexual behaviour. The report concluded that homosexuality is a typical expression of human sexual behaviour. The report also included data on interviews with 6000 women and caused outrage at the time because these were the topics no one discussed.
This illustrates the importance of researchers tackling topics that are sensitive.
AO3: limitation of socially sensitive research
POOR RESEARCH DESIGN - Burt
Poor research design might lead to erroneous findings which once in the public arena, continue to have an impact.
This was the case in Burt’s research that was influential in establishing the 11+ exams because, even after Burt’s data showing intelligence was heritable and could be detected by age 11 was revealed to be fake, the 11+ continued to be used and it is still used as a selection tool in parts of the UK today. Similarly, access to many independent schools is based on a child’s performance in an entrance exam taken at age 11 and is likely to be based on the same reasoning - that genetic potential has revealed itself by this age.
Therefore, any research on socially sensitive topics needs to be planned with the greatest care to ensure the findings are valid because of the enduring effects on particular groups of people.
