ethical guidelines

Question 1

what are practices that raise ethical issues

Answer 1

getting informed consent
deceiving participants
putting participants at elevated risk of harm
obtaining confidential information
invading a participants privacy

Question 2

what is informed consent

Answer 2

participants must be told about anything that might effect their willingness to participate

can be withdrawn at any time including during and after study

no children under 16

Question 3

what is deception

Answer 3

should be avoided if at all possible especially where it would raise other issues

only permissible where research is very important and no alternative method is available

Question 4

what is risk of harm

Answer 4

risk should be no more than participants everyday life

physical and psychological harm such as stress of damage to self image

participants should leave the study unchanged from how they entered it

debriefing at the end

Question 5

what is confidentiality

Answer 5

all data should be confidential and all participants should be anonymous and unidentifiable unless prior consent is given

can be problematic in case studies

procedures should routinely anonymise participants example by using numbers instead of names

Question 6

what is privacy

Answer 6

participants right to privacy must be respected especially since invasions of privacy may affect well being and raise confidentiality issues

participants may be unwilling to answer some questions

observe only public behaviour in pubic places

Question 7

what is briefing

Answer 7

before the study researcher must obtain consent and ensure participants understand tasks

explain the nature of the study and invite participation

intrust participant what is expected of them and what will happen

confirm that they fully consent

explain that they can withdraw at any time for any reason

Question 8

what is debriefing

Answer 8

after the study researcher should ensure that participants are returned to their initial state and informed about the research they have participated in

ensure no harm has occurred

obtain feedback about the study

widen public understanding of psychology

explain the aims and nature of the study

explain any deceptions used