Issues & Debate P3 Flashcards
Ethical issues - guidelines & implications
- arise because of conflict between the need for valid research findings & preserving the rights of participants
- guidelines protect participants and guide researchers
Socially sensitive research
- must be aware of the consequences for the research ppt’s in or for the group being represented by the research
e. g. Research on Long-term memory in a student population is unlikely to have consequences for individuals
Implications for the research processes
consider during all stages of the research process:
- Research questions
- dealing with participants
- the way findings are used
Research questions -Ethical issues
Sieber & Stanley explained that the phrasing of RQ’s influences how the findings are interpreted
e.g. Kitzinger and Coyle 1955 note how research into relationships has been guilty of a form of ‘heterosexual Bias’ within which homosexual relationships were compared and judged against heterosexual norms.
Dealing with participants -ethical issues
there may be issues with informed consent, confidentiality & protection from psychological harm during socially sensitive research.
-e.g. in a study on domestic abuse participants may worry that an ex-partner will find out about the study and also it is extremely stressful for participants to describe their experiences.
The ways in which findings are used - ethical issues
It may impact on what data they actually collect. This is especially important because findings from research may be seen as giving scientific credence to existing prejudices, such as studies examining the ethnic basis of intelligence.
e.g. Adrian Owens research on people in a minimally conscious state received enormous media attention as it appeared he made contact with patients who were thought to be ‘unreachable’.
Strength of SSR - benefits for group studied
The dsm-1 listed homosexuality as a sociopathic personality disorder, it was removed in 1973 due to results of the Kinsey report 1948
Kinsey report explanation …
this illustrates the importance of the researchers tackling topics which are sensitive
Kinsey Report 1948
Anonymous interviews with over 5000 men about their sexual behaviour
-concluded that homosexuality is a normal variant of human sexual behaviour
Strength for E1&SSR; policymakers rely on SSR
Gov. needs research when developing social policy related to child care, education etc..
It’s better to base such policies on scientific research rather than politically motivated views
for ex. ONS is responsible for collecting, analysing & disseminating objective statistics about the UK’s economy, society & population
this means that psychologists also have an important role in providing high quality research on socially sensitive topics
Limit of ei and ssr: poor research design may have a long term impact
e.x. Burt’s 1955 research on IQ showed it is genetic, fixed and apparent by age 11.
This led to the 11+ exam which meant not all children had the same educational opportunities.
Research later shown to be based on invented evidence but the system didn’t change & continues in parts of the UK today e.g. Belfast
Therefore any SSR needs to be planned with the greatest care to ensure the findings are valid because of the enduring effects on particular groups of ppl
The idiographic-nomothetic debate
the debate over which approach is preferable for psychologists:
- Detailed study of individuals, idiographic
- Study of larger groups with the aim of discovering norms or universal ‘principles’
Idiographic concept
provides qualitative research as ppt’s are in small numbers through interviews, questionnaires etc..
research includes others
focus on understanding the individual
example of Idiographic in psych
Roger’s concept of counselling was based on work as a therapist.
Theory was based on role of unconditional positive regard & based on the in-depth of study of his clients
ex. Freud’s explanation of phobia was based on the detailed case study of Little Hans over many years
Nomothetic concept
general principles of behaviour are developed which are then applied e.g. Therapy
produces quantitative research as hypotheses are made, uses samples & gathers data analysed for statistical significance
examples of the nomothetic approach in psych
skinner studied animals to develop the general laws of learning
sperry’s split brain researched involved repeated testing and was the basis for understanding hemispheric lateralisation
objective vs subjective
nomothetic seeks standardised methods of assesing people, ensures true replication occurs across samples-> removes the contaminating influence of bias -> objective
idiographic is subjective, as it is ppl’s individual experience of their unique context that is important
strength of idiographic-nomothetic approach is they work together
the idiographic approach uses in-depth qualitative methods which complements the nomothetic approach -> provides detail
- Case studies such as HM may reveal insights about about normal functioning which contribute to our overall understanding
- This suggests that even though the focus is on fewer individuals the idiographic approach may help to form ‘scientific’ laws of behaviour
counterpoint for strength of I&N working together
Idiographic approach alone is restricted, there’s no baseline for comparison, aswell as being unscientific & subjective
This suggests that it is difficult yo build effective general theories of human behaviour in the complete absence of nomothetic research
s of I&N is they fit with the aims of science
Nomothetic research - seeks objectivity through standardisation, control & statistical testing
Idiographic - seeks objectivity through triangulation & reflexivity
This suggests that both approaches raise psychology’s status as a science.
limit for nomothetic approach is the individual experience is lost.
nomothetic approach focuses on general laws -> can ‘lose the whole person’ within psychology
E.g. knowing about a 1% lifetime risk of schizophrenia says little about having the disorder -> useful for therapeutic ideas.
this means the nomothetic approach may sometimes fail to relate to experience.
holism -reductionism debate
debate over which position is preferable for psychology
- Holism, study the whole person
- reductionism, study component parts
Holism
makes sense to study a whole system
-the whole is greater than the sums of its parts, gestalt psychology
focuses on experiences which can’t be reduced into biological units, qualitative methods.
Reductionism
breaking into parts
based on the scientific principle of parsimony - all phenomena should be explained using the simplest levels
Levels of explanation high-low,
OCD can be understood in multiple ways:
-Socio-cultural level: behaviour most ppl regard as odd e.g. repetitive handwashing
-psychological level: the individual’s experience of having obsessive thoughts
-physical level: the sequence of movements when washing hands
-environmental/behavioural: learning experiences
-physiological : abnormal functioning in frontal lobes
-neurochemical: underproduction of serotonin
Each level is more reductionist than the one before!
Biological reductionism
suggests all behaviour can be explained through neurochemical, psychological, evolutionary/ genetic influences.
e.g. drugs which increase serotonin are used to treat OCD, -> low levels of serotonin may be a cause of OCD.
Environmental reductionism
all behaviour is acquired through interactions with the environment, e.g. Behaviourist approach.
e.g. learning theory of attachment reduces the idea of love to a learned association between the mother and food resulting in pleasure
limit for holism, it may lack practical value
holism accounts of human behaviour become hard to use as they become more complex -> practical dilemma
if many different factors contribute to depression, then it becomes difficult to know which is most influential & which to prioritise for treatment.
-> this suggests that holistic account may lack practical value
strength of reductionism, it’s scientific status
in order to conduct well-controlled research, variables need to be operationalised - target behaviours are broken down into constituent parts
this makes it impossible to conduct experiements or observations in a way that is objective & reliable
This scientific approach gives psychology greater credibility.
counterpoint of s of reductionism
Reductionist explanations at the level of the gene do not include an analysis of the context in which behaviour occurs & therefore lack meaning.
This suggests that reductionist explanations can only ever form part of an explanation.
limit of reductionism, the need for higher level explanations
there are aspects of social behaviour that only emerge within a group context & can’t be understood in terms of the individual group members.
e.g. the standford study couldn’t be understood by observing the participants as individuals, the behaviour of the group was more important.
This shows that high level explanations provide a more valid account.
the nature-nurture debate
debate is over how much each influences characteristics
Nurture
behaviour is the product of environmental influences which are caused by interactions with our environment.
e.g. attachment can be explained as a result of o/c conditioning.
diff levels of environment:
-prenatal terms e.g. mother smoking
-post natal experiences e.g. social conditions child grow up in
