Chapter 4
Outline
● Why do we need to care about ethics?
● How do we ensure our studies are ethical?
○ Informed Consent
○ Freedom to Withdraw
○ Protection from Harm
○ Debriefing
○ Confidentiality
● Frau: Fudging, forging, & plagiarism
Why do we need to care about ethics? → researchers are responsible for the well-being of
human participants, ethical considerations ensure that studies do not cause unnecessary harm
● Psychology is Interested in Humans
○ And with that comes serious ethical considerations → we are responsible for
their well-being
○ As researchers, we are responsible for the well-being of individuals who consent
to participate in our studies
○ We must be aware of possible risks and these risks must be communicated
● Humans and Experiments
○ This is especially important in experimentation
○ As we know, experiments explore the accuracy of causal claims researchers make
○ If we are making causal regarding some highly sensitive areas of an individual’s
psychology, we must take great care
● Example: Depression
○ Velten (1968) devised a way to create a temporary sense of temporary, mild
depression in participants
■ Read a series of sixty self-referent statements
■ “Today is neither better nor worse than any other day.”
■ Get progressively more negative as statements were read
○ After this procedure, participants tend to perform worse on various tasks
○ This is a procedure that could be done in an experimental setting
■ IV: Depression vs. No Depression
■ DV: Performance on a task
○ This work is important
■ Depression is incredibly common
■ Important to know the effects it can have
○ It also comes with large amounts of risk
, ■ Individuals may be experiencing depression when coming into the study,
study could heighten those feelings
■ Without proper care post-experiment, students may experience longer
bouts of depression than previously thought → this procedure creates a
mild and temporary degree of depression within the participants of the
study (you may to need to check up on them)
● So…
○ Psychologists must take great care to mitigate risks with any experimental
procedure → you need to really think about it because you are attempting to
cause a change in the participants’ behavior with our research
How do we ensure our studies are ethical?
● Informed Consent → participants must be fully aware of the study’s nature, including
potential risks
○ Participants are given complete information about what they will be asked to do
during the research experience
○ By providing the participants this information, the participants are said to be
“informed” about what they are consenting to
○ Importantly…
■ These documents provide participants information about the associated
risks of the study
■ These documents reiterate the participant’s right to withdraw from the
study at any point (including before participation begins) → this includes
the participant can withdraw from the study even the before the study
has begun (“you are welcome to stop whenever”)
● Freedom to Withdraw → participants can leave the study at any time without
consequences → they can withdraw even before the study has begun
○ Participants have the complete freedom to either decline participation in the study
when they learn about it or stop the study at any point during the study period
● Protection from Harm and Debriefing → researchers must minimize risks and
provide participants with support if needed (protection from harm)
○ Regardless of the risks associated with the study, participants should have a way
to contact researchers → your experiment might include the most mundane
thing that may not cause a risk for the study, but participants are complex and
something can trigger the participant
■ Your experiment may include the most simple, non-risky manipulation
Outline
● Why do we need to care about ethics?
● How do we ensure our studies are ethical?
○ Informed Consent
○ Freedom to Withdraw
○ Protection from Harm
○ Debriefing
○ Confidentiality
● Frau: Fudging, forging, & plagiarism
Why do we need to care about ethics? → researchers are responsible for the well-being of
human participants, ethical considerations ensure that studies do not cause unnecessary harm
● Psychology is Interested in Humans
○ And with that comes serious ethical considerations → we are responsible for
their well-being
○ As researchers, we are responsible for the well-being of individuals who consent
to participate in our studies
○ We must be aware of possible risks and these risks must be communicated
● Humans and Experiments
○ This is especially important in experimentation
○ As we know, experiments explore the accuracy of causal claims researchers make
○ If we are making causal regarding some highly sensitive areas of an individual’s
psychology, we must take great care
● Example: Depression
○ Velten (1968) devised a way to create a temporary sense of temporary, mild
depression in participants
■ Read a series of sixty self-referent statements
■ “Today is neither better nor worse than any other day.”
■ Get progressively more negative as statements were read
○ After this procedure, participants tend to perform worse on various tasks
○ This is a procedure that could be done in an experimental setting
■ IV: Depression vs. No Depression
■ DV: Performance on a task
○ This work is important
■ Depression is incredibly common
■ Important to know the effects it can have
○ It also comes with large amounts of risk
, ■ Individuals may be experiencing depression when coming into the study,
study could heighten those feelings
■ Without proper care post-experiment, students may experience longer
bouts of depression than previously thought → this procedure creates a
mild and temporary degree of depression within the participants of the
study (you may to need to check up on them)
● So…
○ Psychologists must take great care to mitigate risks with any experimental
procedure → you need to really think about it because you are attempting to
cause a change in the participants’ behavior with our research
How do we ensure our studies are ethical?
● Informed Consent → participants must be fully aware of the study’s nature, including
potential risks
○ Participants are given complete information about what they will be asked to do
during the research experience
○ By providing the participants this information, the participants are said to be
“informed” about what they are consenting to
○ Importantly…
■ These documents provide participants information about the associated
risks of the study
■ These documents reiterate the participant’s right to withdraw from the
study at any point (including before participation begins) → this includes
the participant can withdraw from the study even the before the study
has begun (“you are welcome to stop whenever”)
● Freedom to Withdraw → participants can leave the study at any time without
consequences → they can withdraw even before the study has begun
○ Participants have the complete freedom to either decline participation in the study
when they learn about it or stop the study at any point during the study period
● Protection from Harm and Debriefing → researchers must minimize risks and
provide participants with support if needed (protection from harm)
○ Regardless of the risks associated with the study, participants should have a way
to contact researchers → your experiment might include the most mundane
thing that may not cause a risk for the study, but participants are complex and
something can trigger the participant
■ Your experiment may include the most simple, non-risky manipulation
