Issues - Ethical implications of psych research

• Define 'social sensitivity'

  Social sensitive research to when psychological research has negative social consquences for the participants or the wider population represented in the research.
• Ways of reducing social sensitivity - damage, funding

  Carefully consider the research question to ensure it is not damaging to members of a particular group in society. Be mindful about who is funding the research as the organization funding it may be using it to fuel their own agenda e.g. drug companies may fund research investigating the effectiveness of their drugs so they can publish research to increase their profits.
• Ways of reducing social sensitivity - sensitivity brief, debrief, confidentiality

  Sensitively brief and debrief individuals involved in the research so they are aware of the potential implications and how to deal with these.Maintain participants’ confidentiality so that the general public does not discriminate against them. Ensure the research findings are clearly stated in the report to prevent others/the media misinterpreting/twisting them to fuel their own agenda against groups in socie
• ethical imp. discuss 1.

  Ethical imp. of studies+theory refer to the imp. that psych research can have on participants and the wider population that the research applies to. This is a possibility in psych. research because researchers have little say in terms of how their findings may later be used to affect particular groups in society.e.g. psych research can result in the participants involved being perceived negatively in society.seen in Milgram’s research whereby society has judged the highly obedient participants- willing to ‘risk another person’s life’ by giving them ‘electric shocks’.
• Ethical impli. - outline 2. - labelled and discriminated

  psychological research can lead to groups within society being labelled and discriminated against. This can be seen in Lombroso’s theory whereby people with dark skin and curly hair were said to be genetic throwbacks that are more likely to commit crime. This in turn led people of African descent to be labelled as unavoidably criminal and wrongfully targeted in criminal investigations.
• ethical impli. outline - changes in law

  psych. research can lead to changes in laws that negatively affects groups in society. Bowlby’s maternal deprivation theory highlighted the importance of a mother being present. This led to the UK government not offering free childcare places to children under 5 which has negatively affected many low-income families who need mothers working to bring money into the home. Socially sensitive research therefore refers to when research has negative social consequences for the participants or the wider population represented in the research.
• strength of highlighting ethical implications in psychological research is that it has led to positive applications.

  Bowlby’s focus on the mother’s role in child development was socially sensitive, as it pressured women to stay at home. Raising this issue led to research on fathers, showing their crucial role in play and reducing negative behaviors. This led to practical benefits like increased paternity leave, easing pressure on mothers and promoting shared parenting, highlighting the importance of addressing social sensitivity in research.
• limitation of investigations into the ethical implications of psychological research is that little progress has been made towards reducing it.

  This is because despite ethical guidelines being established to protect participants during the research, no official guidelines have been established to reduce issues of social sensitivity in wider society. This is a limitation because it still leaves many groups in society vulnerable to negative implications. Therefore highlights the ongoing issue of social sensitivity in Psychology.
• A strength of investigating the ethical implications of psychological research is that it has led to informal guidance on reducing socially sensitive research.

  Researchers are encouraged to carefully consider their questions, funding sources, participant briefing, confidentiality, and clear presentation of findings to prevent misinterpretation. These recommendations have helped minimize social sensitivity issues, emphasizing the importance of addressing them in Psychology.
• A limitation of research into social sensitivity is that some guidance on reducing it has been criticized.

  For example, restricting research questions may lead to only studying unimportant issues, potentially limiting psychological progress. Some argue that avoiding controversial topics hinders understanding human behavior. This suggests a cost-benefit approach should be taken, weighing the benefits of research against social sensitivity concerns. This highlights the ongoing issue of social sensitivity in psych.