Ethical guidelines, peer review & economy

Ethical guidelines: What are ethical issues in psychological research?

Considerations regarding participants’ welfare, the integrity of research and the use of data.

What does DRIPP stand for?

• Deception

• Right to withdraw

• Informed consent

• Privacy (+ confidentiality)

• Protection from harm

What is deception, why is it unethical, how to deal with it?

• Deception- deliberately withholding info from participants or misleading them about the true aim of the study.

• Unethical- participants can’t give fully informed consent + may take part in research that conflicts with their beliefs.

• Dealt- Full debrief, explanation of true aim, right to withdraw data + researcher contact details.

Whats the right to withdraw, why is it important, how to deal with it?

• Right to withdraw- Participants can leave the study at any time and request their data be removed.

• Importance- protects from unnecessary harm or stress.

• Dealt- fully debrief etc

What is informed consent + how can it be unethical?

• Informed consent- participants agree to take part after being informed of aims + nature of the research.

• Unethical- participants may unknowingly take part in research that goes against their wishes/beliefs.

• Dealt- presumptive consent, prior general consent, retrospective consent, children as participants.

What is presumptive consent?

Sample of people asked if they would participate in the study; their responses used to infer consent from future participants.

What is prior general consent?

Participants agree in advance to take part in a range of studies, some may involve deception.

What is retrospective consent?

Consent obtained after participation taken place.

How is consent obtained for participants under 16?

Written consent must be obtained from a parent or guardian.

What is privacy, why is it unethical + deal (protected)?

• Privacy- The right of individuals to control how info about them is communicated to others.

• Unethical- Participants may reveal info they did not wish to share + later feel embarrassed/distressed.

• Protected- Thru informed consent, right to withdraw and explaining how info will be kept secure.

Why is privacy important?

Personal info could otherwise be used against a participants wishes.

What is confidentiality?

Protecting participants’ personal info during + after the study.

How is confidentiality maintained?

By using pseudonyms, participant numbers or initials + ensuring anonymity.

What is protection from harm, importance, dealt?

• Protection from harm- Researchers must protect participants from physical + psychological harm, like stress.

• Important- Participants should leave the same state they entered.

• Protection- reminding participants of their right to withdraw, debrief, counselling if required.

Peer review: What is peer review?

Independent assessment of research by experts in the same field before publication.

Why is peer review used?

To assess the quality, validity and suitability of research before publication.

What are the aims of peer review?

To assess validity, methodology, significance, originality and whether research should be published.

How does peer review influence research funding?

Helps determine which research projects are worthy of receiving funding.

What are the strengths of peer review?

• Improves the quality and validity of published research by identifying flaws before publication.

• Prevents plagiarised or poorly conducted research entering the public domain.

• Increases trust in psychological journals because research has been checked by experts.

• Helps protect the reputation of psychology as a scientific discipline.

What are the weaknesses of peer review?

• Reviewers may be biased and unfairly criticise rivals due to competition for funding and recognition.

• Difficult to find suitable experts for new or specialised topics.

• Reviewers may favour research that supports existing theories, creating publication bias.

• Important or innovative research may be rejected because it challenges established ideas.

Economy: What’s meant by economy?

How society produces, distributes and consumes goods and services.

What are the implications of psychological research for the economy?

Psychological research can affect productivity, health, education and workplace performance, leading to economic benefits or costs.

Why are the economic implications of psychological research difficult to measure?

Psychological interventions often have widespread, long-term effects that are not easily quantified.