Ethical Implications of Psychological Research Flashcards
what is socially sensitive research
Sieber and Stanley (1998) used the term socially sensitive to describe research
where the topic area and/or group being studied can have implications for
society or certain groups within society. Potentially, this research could lead to
change in, or justification for, the way in which these groups are treated or
perceived.
Sieber and Stanley (1998) argue that scientists have a responsibility for the
way in which their research will be used in the future.
Siber and Stanley (1998) identified four aspects in the scientific research
process that raise ethical implications in socially sensitive research.
what were the four aspects in scientific research process that raise ethical implications in socially sensitive research
The Research Question: The researcher must consider their research
question carefully. Asking questions such as ‘are their racial differences
in intelligence’ or ‘is intelligence inherited’ may be damaging to members
of a particular group.
- The Methodology Used: The researcher needs to consider the
treatment of the participant’s and their right to confidentiality and
anonymity. For example, if someone admits to having committed a crime,
or having unprotected sex even though they are HIV positive, should the
researcher maintain their confidentiality? - The Institutional Context: The researcher should be mindful of how the
data is going to be used and consider who is funding the research. If the
research is being funded by a private institution or organisation, why are
they funding the research and how do they intend to use the findings? - Interpretation and Application of Findings: Finally, the researcher
needs to consider how their findings might be interpreted and applied to
the real-world. Could their results be used to inform government policy?
strengths of socially sensitive research
Psychologists should conduct socially sensitive research because many groups
in society have suffered the consequences of being excluded from research, or being misrepresented when they have been included. Our understanding of human behaviour has been lessened by misinterpretations and failure to represent certain groups within research (e.g. people with disabilities, the elderly, women, minority groups etc.). This has ethical implications because these people miss out on the benefits of psychological research.
+ Psychologists deal with ethical issues in socially sensitive research by
developing ethical guidelines. However, ethical guidelines protect the immediate
needs of participants but do not deal with all of the possible ways in which
research may inflict harm on a group of people or section of society. For
example, ethical guidelines do not ask psychologists to consider how their
research may be used by others (as recommended by Sieber and Stanley, 1998).
+ In order to reduce the likelihood that data is mishandled Psychologists should
be energetic in taking responsibility for what happens to their findings. They
should be aware that the results of their research may lead to abuse or
discrimination.
+ It has been suggested that socially sensitive research should be avoided all
together to prevent the potential negative consequences for certain groups of people. However, this would probably leave Psychologists with only unimportant issues to examine. Siber and Stanley’s view is that avoiding controversial topics
is also avoiding responsibility. Therefore Psychologists have a duty to conduct
research.
weakness of socially sensitive research
There are always some social consequences from psychological research, but
with socially sensitive research there is always the increased potential for a
more indirect impact on the group that the participant represents (e.g. addicts,
women, the elderly etc.). It is not sufficient to simply safeguard the interests
of individual participants.
