Paper 3 - Issues And Debates - Ethical Implications Flashcards
How did Sieber and Stanley define socially sensitive research?
Studies in which there is are potential consequences or implications either directly for the participants or for the class of individuals represented by the research
What are the 4 main groups outlined in 1988 that can be effected by socially sensitive research?
1) Members of the social groups being studied such as racial or ethnic group
2) friends are relatives of those taking parts in studies as they may become famous
3) the research team - some researchers may be intimidated by other researchers
4) more prestigious institutions can get away with more
What are the implications from socially sensitive research?
We should consider the wider effects of research
We shouldn’t give credit to biased research
How is socially sensitivity used in public policy?
When publishing the researcher needs to consider the research and what purpose it could be used for and how it could be used for political ends to shape public policy
What do you need to keep in mind (which. Is often overlooked) when looking at the validity of the research?
Who paid for the research to be done
What are the evaluations of socially sensitive research: framing the Qs
Work on socially sensitive research has highlighted how the wording of questions being investigated can effect the results
Sieber and Stanley (1988) warn that how research questions are phrased and investigated may influence the ways findings are interpreted
This suggests researchers can misrepresent minority groups
For example, research into ‘alternative relationships’ has been guilty of a heterosexual bias in that homosexual relationships have been judged against heterosexual norms
What is reflexivity?
When you acknowledge own biases in research
What are the general evaluations of socially sensitive research: General
Sieber and Stanley provide mechanisms to protect the individuals but nothing is said about how the research could effect other groups in society this suggests that socially sensitive research may play a valuable role in society
Scarr (1988) argues that studies of under-represented groups and issues may promote greater understanding to help reduce prejudice and encourage acceptance
Socially sensitive research can benefit society as a whole – for example, research into unreliability of EWT has reduced the risk of miscarriages of justice within the legal system
This suggests that social sensitive research may play a valuable role in society
Explain the negative evaluations of socially sensitive research: social control
Socially sensitive research has been used to keep discriminatory practices in society
Between 1907 - 1963, 64,000 people were forcibly sterilised under eugenics legislation in the US because of socially sensitive research
2000 involuntary sterilisations were also performed on poor black women without their knowledge (1972) - some people justified this because of research that argued that black people had lower IQ scores that white people
Explain the negative evaluation of ethical implications: prediction of costs and benefits
Although potential research is scrutinised by an ethics committee, some of the consequences of research involving vulnerable groups might be difficult to anticipate
Assessments of the ‘worth’ of such research are typically subjective and the real impact of the research can only ever be known once it has been made public
May be particularly difficult to manage once the research is ‘out there’
Explain the Difference between ethical issues and ethical implications?
Psychological research (once published may have an impact on the people who are in the study (if people can find out who they are for example)
The ethical implications of psychological research is concerned with the way research impacts on the research findings on the wider society
Explain the negative evaluation of Ethical Implications: Who Gains?
• 1950’s- subliminal messages (Packard, 1957)
• A study claimed that sales of Coca-Cola and popcorn increased significantly when images of them were flashes up on cinema screens, too quickly for audiences to be aware of them.
However, this was fabricated as he was working with Coca cola company
