ethical implications of research

Question 1

socially sensitive research

Answer 1

Socially-sensitive research - Any research that might have direct social consequences for the participants in the research or the group that they represent. Sieber and Stanley defined ‘socially sensitive’ research as “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”.
The major BPS ethical guidelines are respect, competence, responsibility and integrity.
The potential ethical issues which arise as a result of breaching these guidelines include: privacy, confidentiality, valid methodology, deception, informed consent, equitable treatment, scientific freedom, ownership of data, values and the risk/benefit ratio.

Question 2

examples of socially sensitive research

Answer 2

1. Bowlby’s monotropic attachment theory = Bowlby was an advisor to the World Health
   Organisation in the 1950s, following his theory that the critical period for attachment formation with the primary caregiver was the first 2 years of life, and maternal deprivation during this time could have severe emotional and intellectual consequences for the child i.e. affectionless psychopathy/criminality and mental retardation.
   Therefore, this led to Britain being one of the only countries in the EU not offering free childcare for children under the age of 5.
2. Burt’s research into intelligence = Burt (1955) fraudulently published research
   demonstrating that the heritability coefficient for intelligence was 0.77, and so played a significant part in the development of the 11+ examinations. Despite his work being proven as false and fraudulent, the 11+ exams still exist to this day, as well as the idea that children can be organised according to their ‘natural intelligence’ from an early age.
3. The consequences of socially sensitive research are: Uses/public policy (e.g. Burt’s influence on the 11+ exams), the validity of research (e.g. Burt’s work being proven as false) and the implications of the research (on the way in which individuals or groups of people view themselves and the way in which they’re viewed by society).

Question 3

strength-Important that researchers do not stay away from socially sensitive research

Answer 3

This is important because such research may have major positive impacts, such as challenging stereotypes or ‘scientific justifications’ for discrimination. For example, Scarr argues that only by studying these areas will the general public and scientific community develop a greater understanding for these underrepresented groups.

Question 4

strength-social control

Answer 4

Socially sensitive research has historically been used as ‘scientific
justification’ for discriminatory practices. For example, during the 1920s and 1930s, some states in the USA issues voluntary sterilization programmes for citizens who were deemed as ‘unfit to breed’. These included the mentally ill, the disabled and drug addicts. This was based upon William Shockley’s Voluntary Sterilisation Bonus Plan, which encouraged low-IQ individuals to undergo sterilization. Such a programme was based upon his fraudulent and incorrect research where “preliminary research suggested that an increase of 1% in Caucasian ancestry raises Negro IQ an average of one point for low IQ populations, with diminishing returns approaching 100 IQ”. Therefore, socially sensitive research can be and has been used for malicious and unjust ends.

Question 5

Limitation-Research could be potentially misused so psychologists should take responsibility for the
presentation of findings

Answer 5

For example, Packard proposed the idea of ‘subliminal messaging’, where he found that when pictures of Coca Cola and popcorn were projected onto cinema screens for split seconds, so that audience members could not see it, their sales increased significantly. However, it was discovered that Packard had completely made up his results! Although the implications in this case were not serious, such an example shows the power of socially sensitive research and how it can be misused.

Question 6

strength-Cost-benefit analysis

Answer 6

When deciding whether certain research projects should be
allowed to continue, ethics committees undergo a cost-benefit analysis, where the benefit of the research (such as contribution to the existing field of knowledge) is compared to the costs of breaching ethical guidelines. However, some ethical implications of socially sensitive research may be particularly difficult to predict, such as the impact of such research on legislation and the way in which certain groups of people are perceived by the public.