Ethics and Deception in Psychological Research Essay Example

Ethics and Deception in Psychological Research Paper When conducting research studies many code of ethics come into play. A researcher has an obligation to follow the code of ethics. Many ethical standards must be followed when dealing with research. When conducting research as well as gathering data there are several ways to do so. Depending on whom you ask some ways are considered ethical and appropriate and some are unethical and inappropriate. Using deception to obtain information is a debatable issue on whether it is ethical or unethical by obtaining data in such a manner. The following paper will define what ethics is along with, discussing the concept of risk/benefit ratio, describing exactly what deception in research is, as well as evaluating the impact deception in research has on psychological research. Deception occurs whenever participants are not completely informed of procedures and goals of the research. According to Wikipedia, ethics is a branch of philosophy which seeks to address questions about mortality, how moral values should be determined, how a moral outcome can be achieved in a specific situation, how moral capacity or a moral agency develops and what its nature is, and what moral values people actually abide by (Wikipedia). Ethics deals greatly with morals. What is considered to be morally wrong depends on the individual you are speaking with. Morals describe how individuals should act and the principles that reflect what is good for individuals. We will write a custom essay sample on Ethics and Deception in Psychological Research specifically for you for only $16.38 $13.9/page Order now We will write a custom essay sample on Ethics and Deception in Psychological Research specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer We will write a custom essay sample on Ethics and Deception in Psychological Research specifically for you FOR ONLY $16.38 $13.9/page Hire Writer Another factor that is used to determine ethical standards is the risk/benefit ratio. The risk/benefit ratio is a subjective evaluation of the risk to a research participant relative to the benefit both individual and the society of the results of the proposed research. (Shaghnessy, Zechmeister, Zechmeister, 2009) The Institutional Review Boards (IRB) reviews all psychological research in order to protect the rights and welfare of the individuals participating in the research studies (Shaughnessy, Zechmeister, Zechmeister, 2009). In order for research to be approved benefits must outweigh the risks. The IRB will not approve research where the risks outweigh the benefits. There are several potential risks that one may run across in psychological research and these risks need to be observed to find out whether or not it will harm the participants of the study. Each individual will not be the same, what may be a risk for one participant may not be a risk for the other participants. The types of injuries may vary from those that are physical, social, or mental (Shaughnessy, Zechmeister, Zechmeister, 2009). No matter how small a risk may be, researchers should try to minimize the risks and protect each individual. When there happens to be a potential risk, researchers need to use informed consent procedures for all participants involved (Shaughnessy, Zechmeister, Zechmeister, 2009). Informed consent is a legal condition whereby a person can be said to have given consent based upon a clear appreciation and understanding of the facts, implications and future consequences of an action. In order to give informed consent, the individual concerned must have adequate reasoning faculties and be in possession of all relevant facts at the time consent is given. Impairments to reasoning and judgment which would make it impossible for someone to give informed consent include such factors as severe mental retardation, severe mental illness, intoxication, severe sleep deprivation, Alzheimers disease, or being in a coma. (http://psychology. wikia. com/wiki/Informed_consent). Researchers are ethically obligated to describe the research procedures clearly, identify any potential risks that might influence individuals willingness to participate, and answer any questions participants have regarding the research (Shaughnessy, Zechmeister, Zechmeister, 2009). There are several ways to gather data and information on a research or study. One way is to use deception or misrepresent oneself in research. In a classic study known as the Miligram Obedience Study of 1961, Stanley Miligram recruited 40men using a newspaper ad. In exchange for their participation, each person was paid $4. 50. Milgram developed an intimidating shock generator, with shock levels starting at 30 volts and increasing in 15-volt increments all the way up to 450 volts. The many switches were labeled with terms including slight shock, moderate shock and danger: severe shock. The final two switches were labeled simply with an ominous XXX. Each participant took the role of a teacher who would then deliver a shock to the student every time an incorrect answer was produced. While the participant believed that he was delivering real shocks to the student, the student was actually a confederate in the experiment who was simply pretending to be shocked. As the experiment progressed, the participant would hear the learner plead to be released or even complain about a heart condition. Once the 300-volt level had been reached, the learner banged on the wall and demanded to be released. Beyond this point, the learner became completely silent and refused to answer any more questions. The experimenter then instructed the participant to treat this silence as an incorrect response and deliver a further shock. ( http:// psychology. about. com/od/history of psychology/a/milligram. htm). Miligram wouldnt have come to the conclusions he did if he didnt misrepresent himself to the participants. If Miligram told the 40 men what he was doing the participants probably would not have cooperated with him. Deception and misrepresenting oneself for psychological research is very controversial and has a huge impact on research today. Deception has caused a great deal of harm to subjects all around the world, due to this informed consent has been put into place. The subjects are not aware of the real reasons of the study due to misrepresentation. When its all said and done, ethics is a big issue in conducting studies and research. Researchers are held accountable while conducting these studies and the have an obligation to follow the code of ethics during them. I personally feel that any type of deception should be labeled as unethical and should not be used. Furthermore, there are individuals that feel it is okay to use deception as long as it doesnt cause any harm to the individuals. Ethics is a large part of conducting research and every researcher needs to conduct himself in an ethical manner.

Iliad essays

Iliad essays Nine years after the Trojan War, the Greeks capture and rob a town allied with Troy called Chryse. The Greeks capture a pair of slaves named Chryseis and Briseis during this battle. The leader of the Greeks, Agamemnon, takes Chryseis as a prize, and the greatest Greek warrior Achilles takes Briseis. Apollo is prayed to by Chryses (father of the slaves) for the return of his daughters and sends a plague to the Greek camp. Agamemnon tries to find out the cause of the plague so he contacts the prophet Calchas. He finds out that Chryseis was the cause so he gives up his slave and takes Briseis from Achilles. Achilles becomes angered with this action and refuses to fight in the war. He strongly wishes that the Greeks become destroyed and ask his mother Thetis (sea-nymph) to enlist the services of Zeus (king of Gods). The Trojans and Greeks cease fire with each other but the Trojans breach the treaty so Zeus came to their assistance. Now the Greeks suffered greatly without the support of Zeus and Achilles refusal to fight. Also the great Greek warrior Diomedes proved fruitless. Some major battles occur for several days including Hector and Ajax, and Paris and Menelaus. The Greeks were forced back by the Trojans to protect their ships. Greeks get some hope when one night Diomedes and Odysseus get information about the plans of the Trojans. The next day several Greek commanders become wounded and the Trojans break through the Greek ramparts advancing all the way to the boundary of the camp and setting fire to a ship. Greeks felt that defeat was coming on because they would be stranded at Troy without the ships. Meanwhile, Achilles showed concern for his fellow Greeks and agreed to a plan by Nestor that allowed Achilles good friend Patroclus to go in his armor to battle for him. The presence of Patroclus proved helpful for the Greeks since the Trojans were pushed away from the ships and back to the city wall s. Hector soo...

Management & Organisation Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1250 words

Management & Organisation - Essay Example eatures and functions which are in line with the market consideration, clients responses, technological developments, innovation, supply chain procedural methods functioning and many more factors of relevant importance that are vital to be taken into account in order to derive maximum out of a business enterprise on international level. M& S services and activities are driven by organized philosophy which has enabled effective growth and development in the market in comparison to the rivals. The philosophy of mark and Spencer is based on the basic idea of â€Å" production and manufacturing of products of top most quality with due consideration of the costs but at the same time ensuring that the costs do not come down to a very low level which would ultimately compromise the quality. The bottom line of philosophy is that of quality retention which in other words is the clients’ satisfaction. Mark & Spencer has a rich history of productive market performance, however it has had share of low phases as well. One major turn of similar events was seen around the end of last century when during 1999 when the company performance graph in terms of the sales made went extremely low, and considerable stock market shares were lost to other rivals as well which resulted in loss of trust of the customers and overall net loss to the company both in terms of financial means and clients trust. The stocks dip by a good over 30 percent was a deep blow to the company (Bevan 2007). This came along in contrast to the outstanding figures and outputs achieved by the company in yester years when the company had over 18 percent of the clients captured in terms of the garments market, 30 percent of the undergarments of women were covered through Marks and Spencer(Alon 2000). Human resource management and domain is of high importance to any organization and its performance, M&S is no exception and there is always margin for improvement, enhancing the overall HR services and customers’