Ethics

Question 1

What are ethical issues?

Answer 1

When a conflict exists between the rights and dignity of the participants but the aims of the research so researchers must follow the BPS code of conduct

Question 2

What is informed consent?

Answer 2

Participants should be made aware of the aims, procedure and their rights to withdraw before they agree to take part

Question 3

What is deception?

Answer 3

Participants should not be deliberately mislead. Only some is acceptable but participants must be fully debriefed at the end

Question 4

What is protection from harm?

Answer 4

Participants should not be exposed to any more risk that they would be in everyday life and if harm is caused, participants should be offered counselling as part of the debrief

Question 5

What is confidentiality?

Answer 5

Partcipants anonymity and privacy must be respected and names shouldn’t be recorded

Question 6

When were ethical guidelines published in the UK?

Answer 6

1974

Question 7

What is the mnemonic for remembering the ethical guidelines?

Answer 7

DRIPP - Deception, Right to withdraw, Informed consent, Protection from harm and Privacy

Question 8

What are analysis for ethics?

Answer 8

Research must be approved by ethics committee before it’s funded, cost/benefit analysis and committee would consider whether they are alternative (more ethical) ways of gaining the knowledge

Question 9

What is cost/benefit analysis?

Answer 9

Cost to participants/ reputation of psychology versus benefited from knowledge gained

Question 10

What are the 3 alternative types of consent?

Answer 10

Presumptive, prior general and retrospective

Question 11

What is presumptive consent?

Answer 11

Rather than getting consent from the participants themselves, a similar group of people are asked if the study is acceptable and if this group agrees, the consent of the original participants is ‘presumed’

Question 12

What is prior general consent?

Answer 12

Participants give their permission to take part in a number of different studies - including one that will involve deception so by consenting, participants consent to be deceived

Question 13

What is retrospective consent?

Answer 13

Participants are asked for their consent (during debriefing) having already taken part in the study when they may not have been aware of their participation or they have been subject to deception

Question 14

When is informed consent not necessary?

Answer 14

If the observation is in a public place where people expect to be observed