ethical implications

Question 1

Ethical guidelines

Answer 1

• ‘rules’ that psychologists should follow in order to make their investigations as ethical as possible
• created by the BPS in their Code of Conduct and Ethical Guidelines
• to protect the rights of research participants involved in research whilst they are doing the research

Question 2

Ethical issues

Answer 2

• when these guidelines are broken
• They are problems that cause investigations to be unethical

Question 3

Informed consent

Answer 3

• Participants in studies should know the basics of what they are getting into before doing it
• They are made aware of the aims of the research, the procedures, their rights, and what the data will be used for before making an informed judgement as to whether to take part or not

Question 4

deception

Answer 4

• Deliberately misleading or withholding information from participants at any stage of the investigation
• Participants who have not received adequate information when they agreed to take part cannot be said to have given informed consent

Question 5

Protection of participants

Answer 5

• Participants should not be placed at any more risk than they would in their daily lives, and should be protected from physical and psychological harm, including being embarrassed, being placed under stress or pressure
• Participants are reminded of the fact that they have the right to withdraw from the investigation at any point

Question 6

confidentiality

Answer 6

If privacy is invaded then confidentiality should be protected, which refers to our right to have any personal data protected

Question 7

privacy

Answer 7

Participants have the right to control information about themselves

Question 8

ethical implications

Answer 8

• consequences of any research (studies and/or theory) on the rights of people:
• effects on individual participants beyond what happens to them in the study- extends to how they are impacted by the disseminated research
• how the findings are communicated to the public i.e. represented in the media
• how the findings are used e.g. influencing public policy - some research used to inform government policy
• effect on perception of particular (minority) groups in society

Question 9

Social sensitivity

Answer 9

• Sieber and Stanley define socially sensitive research as ‘studies in which there are potential consequences or implications, either directly for the participants in the research or for the class of individuals represented by the research’

Question 10

reflexivity

Answer 10

• plays part in researchers having awareness of potential ethical issues and implications of their research
• Researchers acknowledge their own biases before embarking on the research
• embrace bias as a crucial part of the research process and may include reflection on how their preconceptions influence their interpretation of events

Question 11

how do researchers overcome some ethical issues

Answer 11

• ensuring you have someone in the research team that represents the culture/background of the people you intend to study is also a useful practical way of mitigating some ethical issues

Question 12

what do researchers need to consider before choosing to embark on research

Answer 12

• ethical implications (impacts/consequences) of research on the rights of participants and people that are represented by the research being completed therefore need to be considered carefully, before psychologists embark on socially sensitive research
• reflexivity

Question 13

examples of socially sensitive psychology

Answer 13

• caregiver infant interactions research
• bowlby’s monotropic theory
• role of the father research
• cross-cultural studies of attachment
• loftus (memory)
• milgram
• schizophrenia and psychopathology
• aggression- MAOA gene

Question 14

how are caregiver infant interactions socially sensitive?

Answer 14

• Suggests children may be disadvantaged by particular child-rearing practices
• e.g. mothers who return to work shortly after a child is born restrict the opportunities for achieving interactional synchrony, which has been found to be important in developing caregiver-infant attachment
• direct implications for mothers as could create guilt in those who need to return to work soon after the birth of their child
• On the positive side the research can be used in the real world to help parents who are struggling to bond with their children, by ‘teaching’ positive attachment behaviours

Question 15

how is cross-cultural studies of attachment socially sensitive?

Answer 15

• Imposed etic may occur – researchers from one culture going in and assessing attachment styles in another culture may bias the findings
• may make assumptions according to their own culture e.g. ‘secure’ attachment in UK/US according to Ainsworth’s Strange Situation reflects ideal wellbeing for children, but in Germany children are often classified as insecure-avoidant, which carries negative connotations, despite German culture simply emphasising promoting independence in children
• but highlighting differences in attachment type may be of benefit cross-culturally
• Such research usefully highlights universality in human behaviour
• The Strange Situation has found that some features of human attachment e.g. interactional synchrony, are universal
• full understanding of human behaviour requires study of both universals and variation among individuals and groups

Question 16

how is bowlby’s monotropic theory socially sensitive?

Answer 16

• principle of monotropy can be seen to suggest that women should stay at home in order for their children to develop monotropic attachments (and all of the more positive life outcomes that are associated with secure attachments)
• However the research highlights that this should be a primary attachment figure, but not necessarily the mother
• however, engaging in plenty of positive attachment behaviours has been shown by other research to lead to multiple attachments which are secure and thus of benefit to the infant

Question 17

how is the role of the father research socially sensitive?

Answer 17

• claim that children without fathers are no different from those with fathers suggests that the father’s role is secondary
• suggests that fathers dont play significant role in their children’s lives
• distress for fathers and may lead to reduced rights for fathers in legal proceedings and wider society
• However other research highlights importance of fathers for infants e.g. Grossman’s findings about the quality of father-infant play being associated with the quality of adolescent attachments

Question 18

how is Milgram socially sensitive?

Answer 18

• perhaps has led to people being less inclined to take responsibility for their own actions and instead, blaming those in authority who are responsible for them
• e.g. teachers receiving blame when results of their students are poor, even if they haven’t worked hard
• however, people wouldnt have recognised how mindlessly obedient people can be
• led to society having a different view about why genocide occurs as it not necessarily down to acts carried out by evil people but rather those who are just following orders

Question 19

how is Loftus socially sensitive?

Answer 19

• Less trust in eyewitnesses who give evidence has been a consequence
• Could lead to guilty offenders not being found guilty
• However, more people would otherwise be wrongly convicted due to mistaken eyewitness testimony
• research would have encouraged police forces to use other more reliable means of evidence such as DNA testing.

Question 20

how is schizophrenia and psychopathology socially sensitive?

Answer 20

• Studies on mental illness have consequences for the people experiencing said illnesses
• Findings suggest people never fully recover from schizophrenia e.g. can lead to worsening or maintenance of symptoms
• great care must be taken when disseminating such findings
• on a more positive note, findings on the efficacy of treatments for mental illness can be used to inform the NHS and lead to better patient wellbeing

Question 21

how is aggression- MAOA gene socially sensitive?

Answer 21

• Implications for public policy, political wranglings and the dissemination of this research by the media are significant for this example
• This finding could be used in an inflammatory manner by any of the above for political or financial gain
• however, Identification of a gene/collection of genes by psychology research has implications for people who find out they have this gene(s)
• Would they benefit from identifying it and engaging in anger management therapies to try to avoid its expression?

Question 22

evaluation points

Answer 22

• supports from unrepresented groups and EWT
• undermining from subjective reviews
• supporting from responsibility
• undermining from ‘feeble minded’

Question 23

supporting socially sensitive research being undertaken from unrepresented groups and EWT

Answer 23

• it often involves studies of underrepresented groups
• may promote a greater sensitivity and understanding of their issues
• helps reduce prejudice and encourage acceptance
• Additionally, socially sensitive research has benefitted society, e.g. research into the unreliability of eyewitness testimony has reduced the risk of miscarriages of justice within the legal system
• suggests that socially sensitive research (research with significant ethical implications) may play a valuable role in society

Question 24

supports socially sensitive research being undertaken from responsibility

Answer 24

• might be tempting to think that the solution is to try to avoid socially sensitive research e.g. attachment, avoid research on race, homosexuality, gender, addiction etc. because findings may have negative consequences for the participants, section of society they represent or for the whole of society
• However not a responsible approach to science
• By avoiding controversial topics, simply because they are controversial, is also an avoidance of responsibility
• Therefore, psychologists as social scientists have a duty/responsibility to conduct socially sensitive research (research with significant ethical implications).

Question 25

undermining socially sensitive research being undertaken from feeble minded

Answer 25

- In USA in the 1920-30s, large number of US states enacted legislation that led to the compulsory sterilisation of many citizens on the grounds that they were ‘feeble-minded’ and a drain on society - included people deemed to be of low intelligence, drug or alcohol addicts and the mentally ill - the rationale, supported by many sections of the scientific and psychological community at the time, was that such people were ‘unfit’ to breed - The fact that socially sensitive research (research with significant ethical implications) has been used to validate discriminatory practices in the past is as an argument against its widespread adoption - e.g. cognitive approach intelligence testing

Question 26

undermining socially sensitive research being undertaken from subjective reviews

Answer 26

- Research that carries potential ethical implications, or is socially sensitive, may be subject to scrutiny by an ethical committee - Its their job to weigh potential costs and benefits of the research - However some social consequences of research involving vulnerable groups may be difficult to anticipate - e.g. how the findings may be misinterpreted or applied in ways that perpetuate prejudice and discrimination of certain groups that were not originally intended (e.g. IQ tests that were used to stereotype black people as less intelligent) - as such, assessments of the ‘worth’ of socially sensitive research (research with significant ethical implications) are invariably subjective - real impact of the research can only ever be known once is has been made public - By then its too late to safeguard against the negative impacts of completing socially sensitive research (research with significant ethical implications), suggesting it therefore should not be completed in the first place