Is criminal research ethical or practical

Question 1

Biological research - Practical issues

Answer 1

1) Only a handful of men will have the XYY chromosome, which is said to be linked to criminality. This lowers the validity of such studies as samples are small
2) Chromosome abnormalities are difficult to detect as there are very few obvious characteristic of a peson having it. This makes gathering participants difficult

Question 2

Name one practical issue on biological research

Answer 2

1) Small sample of XYY

2) Difficult to detect XYY

Question 3

Biological research - Ethical issues

Answer 3

1) Not ethical to state that having a specific chromosome abnormality caused criminality if the link cannot be said 100 per cent true. Telling a person with chromosome abnormality that they are likely to become a criminal could be self-fulfilling prophecy

Question 4

Social research - Practical issues

Answer 4

• Research often involved questioning criminals and their families about past events that might have lead them to turn to crime.
• However, memory may not be reliable after years and given answers may not give an accurate account of what happened
• Asking criminals themselves may be unreliable as they may try to blame aspects of their upbringing as a reason for crime rather than their true incentive

Question 5

Social research - Ethical issues

Answer 5

• Investigating the self-fulfilling prophecy as an explanation for criminality may create or reinforce existing expectations and therefore encourage criminal behavior

Question 6

Practical issues in gathering info from convicted offenders

Answer 6

May use research as a way of gaining early release by telling psychologist that they feel guilty about their crimes. This may lead to results that reflect dishonesty rather than truth

Question 7

Ethical issues in gathering info from convicted offenders

Answer 7

• Criminals may feels guilty about their crimes and feel uncomfortable talking about them
• Criminals used in psychological research should not be treated any differently from non-criminal participants just because they are criminals
• Like all participants, criminals should be given the right to withdraw, give consent, privacy respected and debfiefed. No human should be put in danger or feel distressed