ethical implications Flashcards
what are ethical implications?
the impacts that psychological research has on the rights of other people in a wider context, not just the ppt’s
what are ethical issues?
a result of the conflict between the desire for valid results and preserving the rights and dignity of those involved
what is socially sensitive research?
studies where there are potential implications, either directly for the ppt, or for individuals represented by the research
how are ethical issues dealt with?
through BPS guidelines
what are the 4 major BPS ethical guidelines that researchers should aim to show in their research?
- responsibility
- respect
- integrity
- competence
who was social sensitivity found by?
sieber and stanley
what are the 4 aspects, raised by sieber and stanley, that raise ethical issues in research?
- the research question
- methodology used
- institutional context
- interpretation and application of findings
how can the research question raise ethical issues?
the researcher must consider the research question carefully as some questions may be damaging to members of a particular group
- e.g. ‘are there racial differences in IQ?’
how can the methodology used raise ethical issues?
the researcher needs to consider the treatment of the ppt’s and their rights to confidentiality and anonymity
- e.g. if a ppt admitted to committing a crime, should the researcher maintain confidentiality?
how can the institutional context raise ethical issues?
the researcher should be mindful of how data is going to be used and who is funding the research
- how do they intend to use the findings?
how does interpretation and application of findings raise ethical issues?
the researcher needs to consider how their findings might be interpreted and applied in the real world
what are the implications of socially sensitive research?
- wider effect should be considered as some studies give scientific credibility to discrimination/prejudice
- research can be used for wrong purposes e.g. political or shape public policy
how is milgram’s research into obedience socially sensitive?
research question
- ‘are germans different?’
- intends that germans ARE different due to research about it
- might be harmful to germans
electric shocks
- ppt’s deceived about electric shocks being fake
- psychological harm
- ethics of electrocuting
how is bowlby’s maternal deprivation research socially sensitive?
- it states the mother is crucial to the child’s development, which could be used to discriminate against mothers in the workforce
- self-fulfilling prophecy
- it could be used to enforce political change i.e. changes in child care laws
how is burt’s research into intelligence socially sensitive?
- fraudulently published research showing that the heritability coefficient for intelligence is 0.77, suggesting a strong genetic base
- this played a significant role in the development of the 11+ exams, despite the research being false and fraudulent
give 3 evaluation points for ethical implications of research
- cost-benefit analysis
- important that researchers don’t stay away from socially sensitive research
- can lead to discrimination
evaluation: cost-benefit analysis
ID: a strength of ethical implications in psychological research is that cost-benefit analysis is used
Q: researchers are supposed to conduct a cost-benefit analysis when it comes to their research and only proceed if the benefits outweigh the harm caused.
EV: for example the benefit
of the research (such as contribution to the existing field of knowledge) is compared to the costs of breaching ethical guidelines.
ELAB: however, some ethical implications of socially sensitive research may be particularly difficult to predict, such as the impact of such
research on legislation and how certain groups of people are perceived by the public.
evaluation: important that researchers don’t stay away from socially sensitive research
ID: it is important that researchers don’t stay away from socially sensitive research
Q: this is important because such research may have major positive impacts, such as challenging
stereotypes or ‘scientific justifications’ for discrimination
EV: for example, scarr argues
that only studying these areas will help the general public and scientific community develop a greater understanding of these underrepresented groups.
AN: this suggests that socially sensitive research may play a valuable role in society as socially sensitive research has been used by the government and other institutions to shape policy
evaluation: can lead to discrimination
ID: a weakness of ethical implications in psychological research is that they can lead to discrimination
Q: some socially sensitive studies have actually been conducted in ways which are far from ethical and have in turn led to the perpetuation of bias and discrimination
EV: for example, burt invented fraudulent data that led to the implementation of the 11+ examinations in the UK, the results of which segregated children according to their IQ
AN: this is a weakness as socially sensitive research can lead to the justification of unjust political change, despite its fraudulence
