Social Sensitivity

what is social sensitive research?

any research that has direct social consequences for the participants involved or the group of people they represent

what are the implications of the bell curve by herrnstein and murray?

discrimination, generalization, decreased funding for education

what are the implications randy and nancy thornhill’s evolutionary psychology of rape?

could lead to justification for rape, legalization of rape

what are the implications of research?

the effects or consequences of the research

what are the ethical issues in psychological research?

deception

informed consent

protection from harm

confidentiality

the right to withdraw

what is the ethics committee?

they have to approve what research can be funded and carried out

they carry out a cost-benefit analysis on the research proposal - to ensure that the benefits outweigh any damage or harm the research is likely to do

examples of soocially sensitive research

milgram

zimbardo

bowlby

why was milgram’s study unethical?

he didn’t get informed consent from the participants

his research caused psychological/physical harm

participants were deceived

disencouraged participants from withdrawing

what are the implications of milgram’s study?

in the right circumstances anyone will obey someone in an authority position even if they are asking to do awful things

led to guidelines being created

without milgram’s research our understanding of obedience would be far poorer

we cannot claim some races are more cruel than others, majority behave in immoral ways depending on the circumstance

many new psychologists attracted to psychology because of such early research

why was zimbardo’s research unethical?

lacked informed consent

psychological/physical harm

what were the benefits of zimbardo’s research?

allowed us to understand how when people are given a position of authority, they will abuse it - this can lead to training prison guards/people in authority to prevent abuse of power

what are the implications of bowlby’s research?

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his research suggests children form one special attachment bond, usually with their mother, which must take place within a critical period. 

bowlby also suggested that this attachment bond affects their future relationships through an internal working model.

contribute to the development of childcare practices

however, suggests that mothers should stay home with their children and not go back to work

what are the four aspects in the scientific research process that raise ethical implications in socially sensitive research(sieber+stanley 1988)?

1. the research question
2. research conduct and ethics/methodology
3. the institutional context
4. interpretation and application of findings

1. the research question

the researcher must consider their question carefully

the questions could be damaging to particular groups - question should be worded better and what we expect to find

2. research conduct and ethics/confidentiality

the researcher needs to consider the treatment of participants and their right to confidentiality and anonymity

unless someone is at risk of harm

3. the institutional context

research always has to be funded

vested interest - (personal interest for profit or gain) if research is funded by a political body/body with business aims, this can bias the research process

eg drug companies

4. interpretation and application of findings

research findings can be used in ways other than those intended(socially sensitive research)

eg IQ testing used to identify who could and couldn’t immigrate into the US

research into behavioural economics and ‘nudge’ theory used to manipulate behaviour in good(eg reduce crime) and bad(eg get people to shop more) ways

evaluation: wider impact of socially sensitive research

increased potential for a more indirect impact on the people surrounding the participant i.e family, group they’re representing

eg research into addicts can have an impact on addicts within a group within society

therefore it is necessary to think about the likely impact of the research on the larger group of which the participant is a member.

evaluation: inadequacy of current ethical guidelines

evaluation: may disadvantage marginalised groups

evaluation: should sially sensitive research be avoided?

evaluation: engaging with the public/ policymakers