Chapter 4: Research Ethics

define the importance of research ethics

Help scientists to define what is legitimate to do or not

True or false? Researchers use research ethics and these are applied to participants

false, Applies to both participants and experimenters

name the elements encompassed in research ethics

• Measurement techniques

• Participant selection

• Which research designs and strategies can be used with certain populations

• How data is analyzed

• How results are reported

Acting ethically requires that a researcher ______ against the value of ______.

• balance the value of advancing knowledge

• non-interference in the lives of others

briefly describe the historical roots of research ethics

• post-WW2

• creation of the Nuremburg code (1947) as a result of atrocious Nazi experiment (guideline for ethical experimentation)

describe the role of Josef Mengele in the creation of the Nuremburg code 

physician who conducted inhumane medical experiments on Auschwitz prisoners, often causing great harm or death 

define the 10 important guidelines outlined in the Nuremburg code 

1. Consent

2. Benefit of knowledge for society

3. Knowledge of anticipated results (animal studies)

4. No unnecessary physical/mental suffering

5. No risk of death 

6. Risk must be lower than importance of problem

7. Adequate facilities

8. Competence of researchers

9. Participants' withdrawal allowed 

10. Termination of study by researchers

identify and define the three core principles of the Belmont report, its date of creation and provenance

• US, 1979

• 1. respect of persons - consent needed, protect those which cannot

• 2. beneficence - no harm, minimize risk, maximize benefit

• 3. justice - fairness in selection procedures

identify and define the three core principles of the Tri-Council Agency code of Ethics, its date of creation and provenance

• Canada, 1970s

• 1. respect for persons - autonomy and inherent worth

• 2. concern for welfare - do minimal harm

• 3. justice - benefits and burdens of research must be balanced

define the principles of the Canadian Code of Ethics for Psychologists and its year of creation

• 2017

• respect for dignity of persons - do no harm, informed consent, protection of privacy, protection of vulnerable individuals

• responsible caring  - competence, max benefit, min harm

• integrity in relationships - accurate and honest, min deception, debrief 

• responsibility to society - contribute to discipline of psychology and to the good of society 

define the 3 principles of informed consent

1. Participants must be informed of what will be done to them & why (purpose of the study)

2. Participants must have complete understanding, further than informing

3. Participation must be voluntary and not coerced

in what situations is consent not required in research

in the case of observation of people in public spaces where there is no intervention, contact expectation of privacy, dissemination of research results does not allow identification of specific individuals

define deception in research

When participants are not given complete and accurate information

define the types of deception

1. passive - leave out information

2. active - alter information, use of confederates (fake participant)

in order to sue deception in an ethical manner for a study, researchers must ____

1. consider all alternatives

2. justify research to REB for approval

whilst some deception can be justified to the REB, _____ can never be concealed

information about physical pain or severe emotional distress

if deception is justified and used in research, there must be ______

an immediate debrief with a complete explanation

define and contrast confidentiality and anonymity

• confidentiality: Keeping all individual information obtained during a study in a private & secure location (unavailable to others)

• anonymity: Data is not associated with participant names or identifying information

what is an exception to the principle of confidentiality and anonymity

medical/neuroscience cases repeated across studies

in order to ensure confidentiality and/or anonymity, access to data must be limited to ____

the research team members listed on the ethics protocol 

briefly describe the historical roots of animal research ethics

• animal welfare act (1966, amended 2008) - general standards for animal care in research and exhibition

• Canadian council for animal care (1968) - standards for care, tx and use of animals in science in Canada, prevent harm to animals

True or false, most prestigious universities have an animal care committee

false, all Canadian universities doing animal research have one

define the 3 principles for reviewing animal research outlined in the Canadian council for animal care

1. replacement - replacing animals with alternatives such as AI

2. reduction - minimizing number of animals used

3. refinement - modifying procedures to minimize stress

at all universities and funding agencies, committees assess research and evaluate risks, what does this decision process look like 

assess benefits → assess risks → do benefits to population outweigh risks to participants →1. yes, conduct research→2. no, modify study protocol

name some ethics/integrity publication issues 

• mistake versus fraud

• data fabrication. falsification of findings

• plagiarism of sources

• ghost-writing, fake peer-reviewal

• safeguards 

define scientific misconduct

Violating basic and generally accepted standards of honest scientific research

give examples of scientific misconduct

Such as research fraud, plagiarism, or suppressed findings

what can authors do if research mistakes are made and caught post-publication

publish an “erratum” for errors that were inadvertently created

define research fraud

To invent, falsify or distort study data or to lie about how a study was conducted

what can be done if editors are made aware of research fraud post-publication

Editors can publish a “retraction” for important offenses (fraud, plagiarism, duplicate publication, etc)

define suppressed findings

studies try to conceal their findings

define plagiarism

Using another person’s words or ideas without giving them proper credit

name safeguards in research

Replication, peer review, & watchdogs

50% of retraction are due to _____ and 10% are due to _____

1. fabrication, falsification, plagiarism

2. forged authorship, fake peer-reviewal, failure to obtain ethics reviewal 

name and briefly explain some reasons by which unethical research happens 

1. publish or perish: Career building pressure, need to publish, gain prestige, attain tenure (permanent position), etc.

2. Must obtain significant findings to publish, lengthy process and costly to complete

3. need for success, admiration

According to the United Nations, information pollution affects _______

citizens’ capacity to make informed decisions

define and contrast disinformation, malinfrmation and misinformation

1. disinformation: Information that is false and deliberately created to harm a person, social group, organization or country. Sometimes called “fake news”

2. misinformation: Information that is false, but not deliberately created with the intention of misleading readers or causing harm

3. malinformation: Information that is based on real facts, but deliberately manipulated to inflict harm on a person, organization or country.

name and briefly define some psychological causes of conspiracy theories

1. attribution error: people overestimate causes that arise from human motives, while underestimating causes related to situation factors (social context, random chance)

2. confirmation bias: tendency to attend to, focus on, and give greater credence to evidence that fits with our existing beliefs.

define echo chambers

groups of users who share a strong opinion and align themselves in a group where they are exposed to content similar to their beliefs

define spoofing and different ways it is used 

disguising a communication from an unknown source as originating from a known, trusted source

1. caller ID spoofing: deliberately falsifying the information shown on a phone’s caller ID display to disguise an identity

2. email spoofing: email sent from a false sender address, asking the recipient to provide sensitive data

3. online spoofing: Posting a fake news story on a fraudulent website designed to look legitimate Spoofing content uses urgent and emotional language to convince people.

define a vanity journal 

One that does not hide the fact that it publishes for a fee with no review