8.2.1 use of animals Flashcards
what is the legislation for research using animals?
Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986
what are the key requirements in the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986?
- Researchers need a licence from the Home Office
- The premises the research takes place in and all individuals involved must be licensed for animal research and animal care
- Lab animals must be sourced from suppliers who comply with Home Office standards and who will provide ‘high quality animals’.
- The 3R’s: Replacement: where possible animals should be replaced with suitable alternatives (technology), if this isn’t possible the number of animals used should be Reduced to a minimum. Finally methods used in breeding, accommodation and care must be Refined to reduce any possible pain, suffering, distress or lasting harm to the animals.
what guidelines were created based on the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act 1986?
The British Psychological Society (BPS) has published guidelines Guidelines for Psychologists working with Animals (2012) based on the 1986 Act
what are the guidelines
- Legal Requirements
- Replacement
- Choice of Species
- Reduction
- Animal Care
- Disposal
- Procedures - caging, deprivation, pain
what are features of animal experiments
- Strong controls such as environment, care, type of animal and state of animal (such as hunger and thirst etc.)
- Manipulation of one feature, which is the IV
- Measurement of change in another variable, which is the DV, as a result of manipulation of the IV
- Cause-and-effect conclusions are able to be drawn
- Scientific procedures are often used, requiring scientific equipment (electrodes implanted into specific areas of the brain - Septal, Medial lemniscus)
what are practical issues?
The design (how it is set up) and implementation (how it is carried out) of research is what a researcher must think about to run a credible and acceptable study, which has few criticisms or lack of acceptance of the findings.
what are the practical issues and strengths in animal research?
ISSUES -
BPS (ethics) + Act must be followed
Brains and genetic structures not the same - affects generalisability
May not control all extraneous variables - could affect int val and rel
STRENGTHS -
Some have similar brain structure, so there is a benefit to measuring beh in thse animals as they relate to human beh to an extent
Stronger controls over env than for humans
Use relevant AO1 of Olds Milner, Siegel & ethical guidelines to supp AO3
what are the practical strengths of using animals?
+SUPPORTING AO1
Some animals, such as rats and mice, have similar brain structure to humans, so there is a benefit to measuring addiction in these animals as they relate to human behaviour, to an extent. In Olds & Milner’s research, 15 male hooded rats were electrically stimulated in different areas such as the septal area, the mammillothalamic tract and the cingulate cortex.
Animals are relatively small and easy to handle, which means some procedures are more feasible than with humans.
In Siegel’s study, the rats were placed in different rooms depending on the condition that they were set which is a lot easier to conduct on rats than humans, they were also given a high dosage of heroin which has a risk of death or extreme harm.
There can be stronger control over the environment than for humans. In Olds and Milner’s research, the animals were observed in a Skinner box with a lever which allows for high controls as it isolates the rats from the external environment, reducing extraneous variables. This is good as it means the results and cause-and-effect conclusions are more likely to be internally valid and reliable.
what are the practical weaknesses of using animals?
The brains of animals and genetic structures are not exactly the same as those of humans, so generalising results may not be accurate. The prefrontal cortex and septal area is related to addiction and may develop differently in other animals compared to humans.
The Animal scientific procedures act (1989) and the BPS animal research guidelines must be followed which can be considered to be a practical issue for researchers. The cost of buying lab animals from a Home Office approved supplier can be considerable, the cost of feeding them and keeping their housing at the right temperature is also high.
Researchers may not be able to control all extraneous variables which could affect the internal validity and reliability of the results. In Siegel’s research the genetics of the rats were not controlled for. Genes may have affected whether the rats built up tolerance and coped with the dose of heroin without the cues.
