What are ethics?
- A branch of philosophy that deals with the principles of
behaviour expected by a group or profession - Guiding principles promoting fairness and expectations,
which help us to decide what is good or evil. - Standards which govern the life of a person.
- Ethics are generally uniform.
Three basic principles of ethics of research?
- the principles of respect of persons,
- beneficence and
- justice.
What are morals?
Morals
* Morals include the social, cultural and religious beliefs or
values of an individual or group which tells us what is
right or wrong.
* They are the rules and standards made by the society or
culture which is to be followed by us while deciding what
is right.
* Can differ from culture to culture.
Who makes the ethical guidelines in Australia?
Australian Psychological Society (APS)
APS code of ethics
A. Respect for the rights and dignity
of people and peoples
B. Propriety
C. Integrity
Examples of higher risk research harms
- Physical harms: including injury, illness, pain
- Psychological harms: including feelings of worthlessness,
distress, guilt, anger, or fear related, for example, to disclosure of
sensitive or embarrassing information - Devaluation of personal worth: including being humiliated,
manipulated or in other ways treated disrespectfully or unjustly - Social harms: including damage to social networks or
relationships with others
Ethic application pathways at UQ?
Low or negligible risk (LNR)
Higher risk
Discomfort v Harm v Inconvenience
APS Code:
“Less serious than harm is discomfort, which can involve body
and/or mind. Discomforts include, for example, minor side-effects
of medication, the discomforts related to measuring blood pressure,
and anxiety induced by an interview.”
“Where a person’s reactions exceed discomfort and become
distress, they should be viewed as harms.”
“Less serious again is inconvenience. Examples of inconvenience
may include filling in a form, participating in a street survey, or
giving up time to participate in research.”
Informed consent
- Voluntary choice
- Based on sufficient information
- Adequate understanding of both the
proposed research and implications of
participation in it - Written, verbal or other means
- Consent and Assent (continuous and ongoing
agreement) and withdrawal
“When obtaining informed consent…psychologists inform participants about:
- The purpose of the research, expected duration, and procedures;
- Their right to decline to participate and to withdraw from the research once participation has
begun; - The foreseeable consequences of declining or withdrawing;
- Reasonably foreseeable factors that may be expected to influence their willingness to
participate such as potential risks, discomfort, or adverse effects; - Any prospective research benefits;
- Limits of confidentiality;
- Incentives for participation;
- Whom to contact for questions……”
Limited disclosure
‘Limited disclosure’ to participants of the
aims and/or methods of research may
sometimes be justifiable. This is because
in some human research (for example, in
the study of behaviour), the aims of the
research cannot be achieved if those
aims and/or the research method are
fully disclosed to participants.
If your experiment provokes significant levels of emotional arousal…
It is on the researcher to ensure that no psychological vulnerable person participates
Can you cause severe distress?
No
If you need to be deceptive…
The participants cannot suffer distress
When should you make people aware of the nature and purpose of the study?
At the earliest appropriate stage
Managing deception
- Ethics guidelines permit use of deception in exceptional circumstances, justified in cost-benefit (utilitarian) terms, and with appropriate debriefing.
- using deceptive techniques are justified by the study’s significant value (e.g. knowledge); and
- effective nondeceptive alternatives procedures are not feasible
Managing Deception cont.
- There is no likely reason to assume that participants would not have consented if they would have known before the start of the study what the study involved
- Does not increase the risk of harms
- Participants will be debriefed
- Participants retain the right to discontinue at any time
- Debriefing must fully inform participants and ask for their permission to retain data
How does humans beings being creatures of habit effect our decision making?
We can continue to make choices we have done so in the past, even though the situation may have changed.
Three General Principles of Ethics
General Principle A: Respect for the rights and dignity of people and
peoples
General Principle B: Propriety
General Principle C: Integrity
