ethical issues

• deception 


  when information is deliberately withheld from participants or they are knowingly mislead, it prevents participants from giving fully informed consent which means that they might be taking part in research that goes against their beliefs

  at the end of the study participants should be fully debriefed about the true aims of the study and should be given the right to withdraw the publication of their results
• right to withdraw 


  participants should be able to remove themselves or their data from the study, this includes after the research has concluded in which the researcher must destroy any data that has been collected

  participants who are not given the right to withdraw may feel unnecessary stress and are therefore not protected from harm
• informed consent

  when someone consents to participate in research, their consent must be fully informed meaning they know the aims of the research which should be clear before they participate, they could be taking part in something that goes against their wishes
• privacy

  is the right of individuals to decide how information about them will be communicated to others, as this could be an invasion of privacy as they may feel embarrassed or ashamed later on, so they should be given the right to withdraw at any stage and if they wish their identity should be confidential
• confidentiality 


  where a participants personal information is protected by law under the Data Protection Act both during and after the experiment, a persons details or data may be used by other patients against the participants wishes, they can provide a fake name, number or initials to protect their identity and assure anonymity
• protection from harm 


  psychologists have the responsibility to protect their participants from physical or psychological harm, including stress, the risk of harm must be no greater than which they are exposed to in everyday life

  participants should leave in the same state the entered the experiment as if they are harmed could have long term effects, participants should have the right to withdraw and be debriefed