Ethical implications and Social sensitivity

• What are ethical implications?

  The effects that a piece of research could have beyond the study itself

  About consequences
• What is socially sensitive research (SSR)?

  Socially sensitive research has ethical implications, and could produce risks for people other than those taking part

  E.g. it could harm the participants' social group or society as a whole
• What makes research socially sensitive?

  • Negative consequences - results could be used to justify prejudice and discrimination against different social groups and individuals
  • Politics - Findings could be wrongly used in the influence and creation of new social policies
  • Lack of validity - results could be invalid and falsely represent a social group
• How can research be made less socially sensitive?

  • Researches could submit research proposals to ethics committees who can make recommendations to reduce social sensitivity
  • Researches should take care when formulating their aims and framing their questions as to not misrepresent certain groups
  • Researches need to be alert at the possibility of misuse of findings and take steps to present findings in a neutral way
  • Researches should take steps to avoid prejudicial and biased sensational media presentation of findings
• How did Burt’s research on IQ have negative consequences?

  • Research established the 11+ in schools, believed intelligence to be genetic but later found his research was made up and he invented two research assistants.
  • The 11+ was still used for many years afterwards, impacting lives
• Evaluation point 1:

  • Benefits of SSR
  • Benefitted society for example research into unreliability of eye witness testimony has reduced the risk of false sentencing within the legal system. Suggests it may play a valuable role
• Evaluation point 2:

  • Drawback of SSR
  • Bowlby’s study on maternal deprivation had influenced government policy and created prejudice surrounding working mothers even though later research found the role of the father
• Evaluation point 3:

  • Limitation of SSR
  • May be used for social control, using research to justify eugenics and compulsory sterilisation