ETHICS

Question 1

informed consent

Answer 1

before conducting the research, participants should be made aware of aims, consequences etc of taking part in the research. the informed consent can be taken from parents in case they are unable to give the informed consent themselves example in case of chindrens or mentally unstable people.

Question 2

right to withdraw

Answer 2

participants should be told that they can withdraw at any time without any adverse consequences. withdrawing also involves withdrawing of data collected from them.

Question 3

confidentiality

Answer 3

particpants personal information should be kept securely by the researcher. when publishing the research any information that could reveal the personal identity of the participants should be kept confidential.

Question 4

debriefing

Answer 4

after the research, the researcher should conduct a debriefing where any information with held is given to participants such as the existence of other groups etc. the researcher should also look for any psychological harm and provide assistance.

Question 5

dealing with ethical issues ( informed consent)

Answer 5

if we reveal the true aim of the study to the participants when gaining informed consent, it could lead to demand characteristics where participants act in a way they think will support the researchers theory which then reduces internal validity of the experiment. however we can deal with informed consent in alternative ways.

Question 6

alternative ways for informed consent

Answer 6

1. prior general consent - participant agreeing to a long list of potential features not knowing which aspect is covered by the research.
2. retro active consent - informed consent is taken after the experiment and if the participants dont agree, the data collected is destroyed.
3. pre sumptive consent - a similar sample group is asked if they would take part in the experiment and if they agree, experiment is carried out, assuming that the participants will also agree.

Question 7

dealing with deception

Answer 7

if a research design causes deception or harm to the participants, a cost benefit analysis can be conducted by the researcher ( comparing potential harm caused to the participants to the potential benefits to the society from the research) .

Question 8

cost benefit analysis

Answer 8

cost benefit analysis is usually conducted by an ethics committe ( agroup of experts in the decision making process)
- however the true value of the study to the society is not known for many years, so its harder to accurately conduct a cost benefit analysis.