Ethical guidelines

• Ethics are a standard code of conduct of right and wrong
• British Psychological Society BPS governs psychological experiments in UK
• What is an ethical commitee

  • Protect participants rights
  • Approve of research
  • Is a mixture of professional and normal people
  • Ensure standards of conduct
• Ethical guidelines

  • Valid consent
  • Psychological harm
  • Deception
  • Right to withdraw
  • Confidentiality
  • Privacy
• Valid consent

  • Informed consent: participants consent and all information is known
  • Prior: consent given without knowing aim
  • Presumptive: Individuals similar give consent on their behalf
• Deception

  • Information is withheld and being misled
  • Should be avoided and is unacceptable if it leads to disconfort anger or participant objection

  Sometimes unavoidable so must:

  Make sure ALT procedures are bot available

  Debrief after
• Psychological harm

  • Risks should be no greater than exposed to in normal life and should leave in same mental state
• Confidentiality

  • Answers treated with confidence and responses be anonymous
  • Participants unidentifable from study
• Withdrawal

  • Right to withdraw at any time even if being paid, should be made clear they can leave
• how to deal with Working with animals

  • Provide evidence ALT procedures have been considered
  • Obtain a license
  • Inflict the least harm
  • Study short as possible
  • Consent from owner