Ethics in psychology

Question 1

The most recent code of ethics identifies four key principles.

Answer 1

Respect
Competence
Responsibility
Integrity

Question 2

The 6 ethical issues

Answer 2

Right to withdraw
Informed consent 
Privacy
Deception
Protection from harm
Confidentiality

Question 3

What is an ethical issue?

Answer 3

Conflict between the researchers aims and the participants rights.

Question 4

What is informed consent?

Answer 4

Prospective participants know what they are getting into before they get into it. This involves making them aware of the aims, procedure, their rights and what their data will be used for.

Question 5

What is the right to withdraw?

Answer 5

This is the part of their rights and it involves the participant being able to leave at any point during the investigation if they wish to and the right for their data to be deleted.

Question 6

What is deception?

Answer 6

Deliberately misleading or withholding information from participants at any stage of the investigation. If participants have not been given adequate information when they agreed to take part, they cannot be said to have informed consent. However, it can be justified if it does not cause the participant undue distress.

Question 7

What is protection from harm?

Answer 7

Participants should not be put at any more risk than they would in their daily lives during the experiment. They should be protected from physical and psychological harm.

Question 8

What is privacy?

Answer 8

Participants have the right to control information about themselves and they won’t be asked more than they are willing to share.

Question 9

What is confidentiality?

Answer 9

This refers to our right, established in law under the Data Protection Act, to have any personal data protected.

Question 10

Dealing with ethical issues: consent

Answer 10

Participants should be issued with a consent letter detailing all the relevant information that might affect their decision to participate.
This should then be signed (over 16).
If they are under 16, a parental signature is required.

Question 11

What is presumptive consent?

Answer 11

A similar group of people are asked if the study is acceptable. If it is agreed then the consent of the participant is ‘presumed’.

Question 12

What is a limitation of presumptive consent?

Answer 12

People’s opinions are different.

Question 13

What is prior general consent?

Answer 13

Participants give permission to take part in a number of studies, including one involving deception, then they are consenting to being deceived.

Question 14

What is a limitation of prior general consent?

Answer 14

Participants may be put off with the lots of experiments list.

Question 15

What is retrospective consent?

Answer 15

They are asked to consent after they have already taken part.

Question 16

What is a limitation of retrospective consent?

Answer 16

The participant may not have wanted to be in the experiment in the first place.

Question 17

Dealing with ethical issues: protection from harm and deception

Answer 17

Participants should be offered a full debrief.
Participants must be told what their data will be used for and be given the right to withdraw (especially in retrospective consent)
Participants may require counselling in extreme cases, which the researcher should provide.

Question 18

Dealing with ethical issues: confidentiality

Answer 18

If personal details about the participants are collected, these must be protected.
It is usually easier for the researcher to record no personal details and maintain anonymity (using numbers or initials instead of names when recording data).
It is standard practice that participants are reminded in the consent form and in the debriefing that their data will be protected/kept anonymous throughout the process.

Question 19

What should go in a consent form?

Answer 19

Procedure: what are you asking them to do?
Right to withdraw at any point and withdraw data afterwards.
How long it will take (roughly).
General aims of researcher.
What data will be used for (in some cases).
Tell them their data will be protected.
Data will be anonymous.
Space for signature, printed name and date.
I have read and understood the above and I agree to take part.
I have had the opportunity to ask any questions.

Question 20

What should go in a debrief?

Answer 20

Remind them of the right to withdraw.
Contact information (email).
Any questions afterwards?
Thank you for taking part.
Remind them their data is anonymous and confidential.
The true, detailed aims of the research.
Existence of any other experimental groups.
Don’t include any results because you don’t have any results or conclusions.