ethics Flashcards
what is research
exploring a theme to gather information
what is an experiment
testing for a hypothesis
what do practising psychologists need to follow
the ethical guidelines - they are expected to design and conduct research that follows these guidelines
who comes up with the ethical guidelines
the British Psychological Society or the American Psychological Association
what are ethical guidelines
not rules or laws but a set of professional advice that requires psychologists to exercise professional judgement in complex research situations.
what would mistreatment of ethical guidelines result in
being expelled as a member of the BPS
what do scientists agree is “good research”
its ethical in nature and guided by basic respect for human dignity and safety
why do modern researchers have to follow extensive strict guidelines
to make sure research is ethically sound
what is “informed consent”
participants must be informed of what they agreeing to. before the research, participants should be made aware of the aims and consequences of taking part in the research (risk of harm, potential benefits). they must all sign an informed consent form
what is an informed consent form
a written description of what to expect, the risks and the implications of taking part
what does an informed consent form let participants know
- lets them know involvement is voluntary and can be discontinued without penalty at any time.
- it guarantees any data collected in experiment will remain completely confidential
who is unable to give consent
children, mentally incapable individuals
who can give consent if the participant is unable to give informed consent
a parent or guardian
when would it be ethically acceptable to study participants without consent
it the task is something they would do in their normal everyday life
what is deception
involves purposely misleading participants to maintain the integrity of the experiment
even though the form should be as honest as possible, when is deception necessary
to avoid demand characteristics.
what are demand characteristics
cues that may indicates the aims of the study to the participant so they act in a certain way in order to meet what they believe is expected of the researcher
when is deception necessary
- to prevent participants knowledge of the exact research question from affecting the results.
- it should not be to the point where it is harmful
what should happen if deception is used
if involved, participants must receive full debriefing upon the conclusion of the experiment
what is “right to withdraw”
participants (as part of giving informed consent) should be told they can withdraw at any stage with no adverse consequences (e.g. not being paid for their time). they can withdraw at any time
what must be done if a participants decides to withdraw
their personal data collected from such as interview recordings must be destroyed
what is “protection from harm”
researcher needs to consider the study from the perspective of the participant and consider any risk to the participants psychological wellbeing, physical health, personal values and dignity. the researchers are responsible for the participant
how should studies be designed in order to not risk the participants physical and psychological health
any harmful risks should not be beyond anything they experience in everyday life
researchers ask permission to run a study by proposing to an organisations ethics board
what is “confidentiality”
participants personal data should be kept securely by the researcher and not shared. when the research is publised it should not include the identity of participants or information that could reveal the identity of participants
when may it be acceptable to reveal the identity of participants
if the participant or others are in danger
how must the participants information be handled
carefully
results should be kept securely and publication must preserve anonymity
what is “debriefing”
after the data collection is completed, the researcher should offer a debriefing, this would reveal any information withheld such as the existence of other groups.
what does the researcher check for after the experiment
for any psychological or physical harm and offer assistance
what can revealing the true aims of the study when asking for informed consent lead to
demand characteristics, people altering their behaviour to match what they think the researcher wants to find and this reduces the internal validity of the research.
how can the researcher avoid demand characteristics
by using an alternative to informed consent
what are the three alternatives to informed consent
prior general consent, retroactive consent, presumptive consent
what is prior general consent
participants agree to a long list of potential features of a research study not knowing which aspects will be part of the study they are in
what is retroactive consent
the researchers asks for consent after the participant has taken part in the study, if they do not agree to take part their data is destroyed
what is presumptive consent
the researcher asks a group similar to the sample if they would agree to take part in the research, if the group agrees the researcher assumes the participants would also agree
what can the researcher do if the research design requires deception or risks harm to the participant
they can perform a cost benefit analysis
what is cost benefit analysis
assessing the potential harm to participants and comparing this to the potential benefits of the research to society
who dont the researchers make the final decision on whether research should be carried out
they are likely to be biased and in favour of conducting the research
who make the decision of whether research should be carried out
an ethics committee who are a group of experts that will use a cost benefits analysis in their decision making process
why can it be difficult to accurately conduct a cost benefit analysis
often the true value of a study to society isnt known for many years after a study has been published
what must be done if deception has to be used
to reveal the use of it in the debriefing
what occurs in debriefing
- fully explain the aim
- checkk and ensure no harm was caused, if it was caused offer assistance such as access to counselling
- remind them they can withdraw data and ensure confidentiality of findings.
what do researchers also conduct research on
animals particularly rodents
how should animals in research be treated
ensure humane and ethical treatment and minisimes any pain and distress
what is the “code of ethics”
participants are treated with respect and not with harm
the British Psychological Society ethical guidelines states that “investigators have primary responsibility to protect participants from physical and metnal harm during the investigation”
no investigation is risk free. the risk should be…
…no greater than risks participants are exposed to in their normal everyday life
who governs ethical guidlines and ensure researchers make moral judgements in the UK
the British Psychological Society
what does research in universities have to do to gain approval for research
they have to gain approval from ethical committees before they commence to protect participants and researchers
name two studies that were deemed as unethical and explain why
milgram (1963) and zimbardo (1971)
they took place before modern ethical guidelines
what else should researchers consider
whether the “end justifies the means”
what do some ethical guidlines stifle
scientific progress
if there is a conflict of interest between scientific progress and protection of participants which is more important
participants rights come first
what could still happen even if ethical guidlelines are stringently followed
there is still a possibility for reseearch to be unethical as it could be socially sensitive
what is meant by socially sensitive research
potential social consequences for participants or groups of people represented by research
