PSY1001: The Ethics of Psychology Experiments

Dr Ian Sneddon

This lecture will

Outline some broad ethical principles Give examples of ethical problems you may face when designing experiments Discuss the BPS Code of Conduct Examine some of the practicalities of designing ethical research and applying for ethical approval

Further Reading
See Queens Online. includes
BPS Code of Ethics and Conduct (2006) The Psychology of Big Brother The Guardian August 2005 Do The Ends Justify the Means? The Ethics of Deception in Social Science Research
(Extract from Research Ethics: Fifteen Cases and Commentaries, Volume 1, Brian Schrag Editor)

After attending the lecture and doing the reading you should be able to
Outline the principles of ethical research involving human participants Show evidence that you have thought about some of the ethical dilemmas described in the reading and formed considered opinions Demonstrate that you know how to obtain ethical approval for a research project at QUB.

Ethics
Ethics a system of principles governing morality and acceptable conduct Ethical review of research projects is necessary to protect
Your participants (from harm) You (from litigation)

Harm
Physical
Pain, discomfort, injury, death

Psychological
Anxiety Re-living unpleasant memories Embarrassment humiliation or even feeling stupid

Need for Risk Assessment

Assess the possible risks to participants AND to yourself

Ethical Code of Conduct

BPS Code of Ethics and Conduct (2006)
http://www.bps.org.uk/the-society/code-ofconduct/code-of-conduct_home.cfm
or follow links from School web-pages. School of Psychology Research Psychology Research Ethics British Psychological Society Code of Conduct

But also see other BPS publications Ethical Principles for conducting Research with Human Participants (1992) Guidelines for Minimum Standards of Ethical Approval in Psychological Research (2004)

Important Principles
Participation is voluntary
No coercion (negative consequences for not taking part or positive inducement to encourage participation)

Informed Consent
Participants should be told what the experiment is about before agreeing to take part Avoid deception if possible

Important Principles (contd.)

Freedom to withdraw their consent at any time
Participants should be able to walk away without explanation (even after agreeing to take part). This usually means destroying the data

Confidentiality of data
Participants need to be confident that details about them or their behaviour are confidential

Debriefing
Participants should be debriefed about the experiment and allowed to ask questions

Summary of Principles
Participation is voluntary Informed Consent required Freedom to withdraw Confidentiality of data Debriefing

Example 1

You design an experiment to test if men or women are more accurate at reading facial expressions of emotion Very unlikely that viewing the photographs is going to harm participants No need for deception No need for names (as long as they tick a male/female box)

This example typifies most psychology research

Example 2
Observing natural behaviour You observe (or film) behaviour without the knowledge of the participants What potential problems?
Voluntary? Informed Consent? Able to withdraw? People may object Not necessarily obvious people are unpredictable Public versus private

Debrief as soon as possible

Be sensitive to reaction

Example 3
Do extraverts give up more easily than introverts when given a hard puzzle? A full advance explanation of the purpose of the experiment would probably affect the results
You could probably describe it as a study of Personality and problem solving

How would YOU feel on debriefing? If the puzzle was made impossible to solve would that alter your views?

Example 4
You design an experiment to study the effect of gender on helping behaviour Your accomplice asks for assistance and you observe whether help is given by either men or women Potential problems? Many early social psychology experiments on conformity, obedience, bystander intervention etc. could be viewed as raising ethical issues

In all cases
Try to put yourself in the position of the most vulnerable participant
For instance, if you are studying attitudes to baldness you should be alert to the possibility that some people find this a touchy subject

Your debriefing should be sensitive to issues such as performance anxiety or other more general anxieties
People worry about all sorts of things

Power
Experimenters may be seen as powerful figures some people may feel they have to take part This may be particularly true with vulnerable groups like:
Children Psychiatric patients Prisoners even in some cases..Students

Psychology Students as Participants

Most Psychology Departments now require their students to take part in some experiments as part of their training Is this ethical? Now seen by many as an important aspect of training particularly to improve sensitivity to the issues discussed earlier It is important that there is a wide choice of possible experiments to choose from

Thinking about the ethics of YOUR research project.

Make sure you are familiar with the BPS Code of Conduct Dont view this as a nuisance to be overcome before starting your research The procedure is part of the process of getting your research design to be as good as it can be view it as an aid, particularly to getting the details right.

The Ethics Approval Procedure

Every experiment must receive formal written ethical approval before any data are gathered Final responsibility within the School for granting ethical approval lies with the Psychology Research Ethics Committee (which meets monthly) Most undergraduate projects do not raise ethical concerns and are dealt with using an accelerated process For undergraduates this usually involves completing a two page form with your supervisor
Gives enough information for two academic staff to judge whether the research is scientifically sound and ethically sound

The Ethics Approval Procedure (contd.)

If there are judged to be ethical issues raised by the proposed research, then you complete a longer form and follow a more extensive procedure before approval is granted Both the short and long forms can be downloaded from the School website.
Follow links from School web-pages. School of Psychology Research Psychology Research Ethics Download Psychology Research Ethics forms

Interacting with Participants

Participants give their time and energy It is vital that you make them aware how valued their participation is and that they feel their time and energy was well spent Dealing with participants in a warm, appreciative and consistent manner is an essential research skill no participants, no research!

Summary of Principles
Participation is voluntary Informed Consent required Freedom to withdraw Confidentiality of data Debriefing

Voluntary Participation
No coercion Take particular care with vulnerable groups
Children
Parental consent is mandatory but best practice should involve also asking for consent from the child (in an age- appropriate manner)

Elderly Prisoners etc.

Informed Consent
Make sure participants are aware of anything that might influence their willingness to take part for instance
What will they experience? How long will it take? Will they be asked to come back?

Best practice is to ask for consent some time before the experiment
(To ensure they are not pressured into taking part)

Informed Consent (contd.)

Agreement should be in writing Participants should receive a brief information sheet (Note that for many simple questionnaire studies most of this is unnecessary.) Participants should be told how the data will be reported Note the difference between passive and active consent (particularly for parents giving consent for their children).

Deception/ Incomplete Disclosure

Some Ethical Codes (e.g. BPS) make a distinction between incomplete disclosure and deliberate deception

Avoid deception if possible

But note that much psychological research would be impossible without some form of deception or incomplete disclosure

Deception/ Incomplete Disclosure

If you believe it is essential, you must demonstrate that there are no alternatives You should inform participants as soon as possible about the true nature of the study Be sensitive to their reaction when the deception is revealed (may involve pilot study)

Anonymity/Confidentiality
Participants should remain anonymous and any information about them remain confidential (unless otherwise agreed in advance)
So, consider whether you NEED participants names at all.

In rare cases where participants might be identifiable, they must be warned of this in advance of agreeing to take part

Research with animals

Most research in the School is observational
E.g. Reaction to visitors at the zoo

Some research might involve innocuous experimentation

E.g. Introduction of some enrichment for a zoo animal This research would need ethical approval within the School

Some students may be involved in conducting psychopharmacology research

This research is under Home Office Licence

Behaving Ethically
You have a responsibility to behave professionally and ethically to protect you and your participants, but also to protect the reputation of other psychology researchers.