Ethics Flashcards
(16 cards)
What is an ethical issue
-Deception
-Right to withdraw
-Informed consent
-Protection from harm
-Privacy and confidentiality
-Debrief
Deception
-Purposely keeping information about the investigation from the participants or misleading them
Right to withdraw
-Making sure that the participants are aware that they can withdraw from the experiment at any stage if the wish to do (whether its before during or after)
Informed consent
-Making participants aware of the investigation that they are going to be involved in and ensuring that they want to be apart of it
Protection from harm
-Putting measures in place to ensure participants are not harmed physically or psychologically during the investigation (participants must leave in the sam state that thy entered)
Privacy and confidentiality
-Protecting any personal information about the participants that they do not wish to share with anyone else and respecting their privacy
Debrief
-A structured discussion held after a study, especially when deception was used. Its purpose is to inform participants about the true nature of the research, clear up any misunderstandings, and address any potential psychological harm. It is an essential ethical practice in human research.
What is the BPS
(Code of authentics-A quasi legal document produced by the British psychology society )
Instructs psychologists in the UK what behaviour is and isn’t acceptable when dealing with participants. Built around 4 key principles: respect, competence, responsibility, integrity
How to deal with the ethical issue of deception
-Participants should be given a debrief at the end of the study where they are advised of: the true aims of the study, details that were not given during the study e.g existence of other groups or conditions, what their data will be used for and their right to withhold data
How to deal with the ethical issue of informed consent
-Sign consent form, where appropriate seek parental consent (if under 16).
-Alternative forms of consent are: Presumptive, prior general and retrospective
What is presumptive consent
When researchers ask a similar group of people if they would agree to take part in a study. If they say yes, it is assumed the actual participants would also consent.
What is prior general consent
When participants agree in advance to take part in a range of studies, including those that may involve deception, without knowing the exact details of each one.
What is retrospective consent
When participants are asked for their consent after taking part in a study, often used when deception was involved and informed consent wasn’t given beforehand.
How to deal with the issue of protection from harm
-Should be given the right to withdraw at each stage of the research process
-Should be reassured that their behaviour was typical/ normal during the debriefing
-Researcher should provide counselling if participants have been e.g distressed
How to dea with the issue of privacy and confidentiality
-If personal details are held these must be protected (a legal requirement). Usually no personal details are recorded
-Researchers refer to participants using numbers, initials or false names
-Participants personal data cannot be shared with other researchers
Ethical issues (definition)
- conflict between the rights of the participants and the goals of the research to produce valid data
