Ethical implications

Question 1

Define ethical implications

Answer 1

the impact in which psychological research could have on the rights of individuals

Question 2

Define socially sensitive research

Answer 2

potential social consequences for the participants or the group of people represented by the research

Question 3

Sieber and Stanley 1988 - name concerns whilst conducting socially sensitive research (QUIT)

Answer 3

(Q)uestion-asking certain research questions could be damaging to certain groups e.g. racial groups because it appears to add scientific credibility to prejudice.
(U)ses-findings could be used for other purposes e.g. government usage for political ends (Burts 1955 11+ examinations using twin studies for natural intelligence despite most data being made up)
(I)nstitutional context-research funded by private institutions may be misused or misunderstood.
(T)reatment of participants-aswell as confidentiality/anonymity e.g. if they commit a crime and confess should confidentiality be maintained?

Question 4

Con of ethical implications:issues of discrimination

Answer 4

Yerkes IQ test

Question 5

Con of ethical implications:unpredictable consequences

Answer 5

research is subject to scrutiny by an ethical committee but social consequences of vulnerable groups difficult to anticipate so impact only known once published where it can be too late even if with best intentions

Question 6

Pro of ethical implications:reducing prejudice?

Answer 6

Sandra Scarr 1988 argued research on underrepresented groups/sensitive topics can be used to reduce prejudice+benefit society.Stephen Gould 1996 identified influence of scientific racism on own research on race and intelligence suggesting attempted link of race and IQ is biological determinism used to justify social inequality and oppression

Question 7

Pro of ethical implications:Real world applications

Answer 7

Government looks to research when developing vital social policies on child care,mental health,education etc. as it’s better to base it on this rather than politically-motivated views. Group called ONS is responsible for collecting and analysing objective statistics on the UK’s economy,society and population used in psychological research highlighting importance of psychologists providing high quality research on socially sensitive topics.