ethical issues

• the british psychological society (BPS) states there are six main guidelines for ethical research that psychologists should follow in order for their study to be ethical
• there are 6 guidelines psychologists should follow in order for their research to be deemed as ethical by the BPS

  • consent
  • deception
  • debriefing
  • withdrawal from investigation
  • anonymity and confidentiality
  • protection from harm
• consent is where participants should be fully informed on what they study is about and what they will be required to do - if participant is under 16 then informed consent should be obtained from parents or carers.
• informed consent to every study makes it ethical
• deception is where participants should not be lied to or deceived in any way during an experiment - if it is unavoidable the benefits of the research should be weighed against potential negative consequences of the deception
• debriefing - at the end of any study participants should be debriefed - they should be given the opportunity to ask questions and receive any aftercare. they should also be given further relevant information about purpose of the study
• withdrawal from investigation - participants are not required to stay and complete the study - if at any point they change their minds they are allowed to withdraw and they may request that their data is not used - participants should be informed of their right to withdraw from research
• anonymity and confidentiality - participants details and data should always be kept confidential unless in extenuating circumstances where maintaining confidentiality may cause harm to either participant or someone else
• protection from harm - research should cause no harm to participants - if this is unavoidable the benefits of research should be considered against potential harm - if experiment proceeds then steps should be taken to safeguard the participants (during defrief opportunity for counselling may be provided)
• types of consent researchers have devised in order for participants to not know they are being studied

  • presumptive consent
  • prior general consent
  • retrospective consent
• presumptive consent is where similar group of people are asked if the study is acceptable and if they agree then consent of original participants is 'presumed'
• prior general consent is where participants give their permission to take part in a number of different studies including one that will involve deception - by consenting the participants are effectively consenting to be deceived
• retrospective consent is where participants are asked for their consent (during debreifing) having already taken part in the study