Issues and debates: ethical issues (social)

Question 1

INTRO

Ethical issues

Answer 1

Researchers need to consider the potential physical or psychological risks to participants and are responsible for ensuring that the level of risk is minimised and that participants are fully aware of any risk before they agree to participate. Adhering to the BPS code of conduct (Respect, Competence, Responsibility and Integrity).

Question 2

A01 - are there any thical issues in social psych

Answer 2

Research which involves looking at social interactions between people must balance the need to study undesirable behaviours such as obedience or prejudice, with the risk of deception to the participant and risk of causing psychological harm.

Respect:
- informed consent: telling participamts the aims of the experiment about prejudice, tell P aims of investigating prejudice
- right to withdraw: allowing P to withdraw from experiment at any moment, without explanation or consequences

Responsibility:
- protected from psychological harm
- debrief

Question 3

A03 for P1, are ethical issues

Answer 3

• Milgram: did decieve the participans as he had told them that the experiment was a memory, learning and punishment test, however that was not the true aims of the experiment
• However, after the experiment Milgram gave a debrief of the true aims of the experiment. He also presented the learner to the participants to prevent any psychological harm as they would know they haven’t actually harmed another person

Question 4

A03 for P2, aren’t ethical issues

Answer 4

• Burger: gave very detailed debrief at the end of his experiment which revealed to the participants the true aims of the experiment. But also to prevent psychological harm he offered support to the P whenever they needed it