GCSEPsychologyAQARevision NotesResearch MethodsSampling, Ethics, Reliability & ValidityEthical Considerations

Ethical Considerations (AQA GCSE Psychology)

Revision Note

Claire Neeson

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Psychology Content Creator

Informed consent & right to withdraw

  • The BPS (British Psychological Society) sets out and regulates how psychologists should conduct research in the UK (each country will have their own society e.g. n the USA it is the American Psychological Society)
  • Ethics boards are in place at universities and research institutions to review proposed research and ensure that it abides by the BPS code of conduct
  • Informed consent refers to the information that must be given to participants before the procedure
  • Participants should be provided with detailed information about the task they are about to perform, e.g.
    • How long the task is likely to take
    • What they will be required to do e.g. lie in an MRI scanner; recall a list of digits; run on a treadmill for 15 minutes
    • Any potential hazards that the task could involve e.g. if they are claustrophobic or have metal inserts in their body they cannot be placed into an MRI scanner
    • The purpose of the study (though not necessarily the aim, as this could affect the validity of the study) i.e. what is being investigated
  • With the above information fully disclosed, participants are then able to make an informed decision as to whether or not they wish to take part in the research 
  • If a participant wishes to take part in the study they must sign and date a consent form
  • If participants are below the age of 16, parental consent must be obtained
  • Participants may exercise their right to withdraw at any point in the research process 
  • If a participant withdraws from the study their data is destroyed

Deception & debriefing

  • Deception refers to any attempt to mislead or lie to participants
  • Research such as that conducted by Milgram (1963) actively deceived participants:
    • They were told that they were taking part in a study about punishment and learning
    • It was the participants'’ obedience that was being measured
    • How Milgram used deception would not be allowed today
  • Although researchers cannot deceive participants as Milgram did, they may decide to withhold some information from participants to protect the validity of the study:
    • If participants are given too much information about the aim of the study this could give rise to demand characteristics
    • If Bartlett (1932) had told participants that he was interested in how much unfamiliar cultural story detail they could recall, this could have influenced them to try harder: they would have been primed to look out for unusual story content
  • Debriefing takes place after the procedure has been completed
  • Researchers may read out and/or give the participants a written debriefing which will involve the following points:
    • The aim of the study (if this has been withheld up to this point)
    • If an independent groups design has been used, the participants will be told that another group also took part in the research - the other group were asked to perform a different task to the one that they performed
    • Access to any extra information on the topic e.g. reconstructive memory and to any helplines/counselling if applicable
  • Debriefing aims to restore the participants to the state (psychological/emotional) they were in before the study

Protection from harm & privacy

  • Participants must be protected from harm before, during and after the research process has taken place
  • Harm constitutes any physical, psychological or emotional damage inflicted on participants as a result of their participation in the research process
  • One way of protecting participants from harm is to ensure that they have given fully informed consent and that they are aware of their right to withdraw
  • Milgram (1963) did not protect his participants from harm; many of the men in his study suffered huge stress, anxiety and strain, with more than one of them even suffering a seizure during the task
  • Privacy refers to any invasion of an individual’s private space/environment which could be said to go beyond the boundaries of what is acceptable in terms of the topic being investigated
  • Dickerson et al. (1992) had female confederates hide in a swimming pool shower block and time the length of showers taken by participants (who were unaware that this was happening) which appears to violate the privacy ethic

Confidentiality & anonymity

  • Confidentiality refers to the guideline which states that participants’ data should not be disclosed or available to anyone outside of the research process
  • Part of confidentiality is that participants remain anonymous to all but the researcher
  • Numbers should be used instead of names on any participant response sheets or record of findings
  • Confidential and anonymous data cannot be traced back to any participant
  • When the research is published it should not give any indications as to who the participants were and details as to the location of the research should be kept as minimal as possible

Exam Tip

If an exam question asks you how you would apply/deal with ethical considerations within a study you are designing then be sure to explain how you would go about this. For example, if you are dealing with the right to withdraw, you might explain that the consent form should always make it clear that participants have the right to leave the process at any point, from start to finish. This assurance should also be given verbally by the researchers.

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    Claire Neeson

    Author: Claire Neeson

    Claire has been teaching for 34 years, in the UK and overseas. She has taught GCSE, A-level and IB Psychology which has been a lot of fun and extremely exhausting! Claire is now a freelance Psychology teacher and content creator, producing textbooks, revision notes and (hopefully) exciting and interactive teaching materials for use in the classroom and for exam prep. Her passion (apart from Psychology of course) is roller skating and when she is not working (or watching 'Coronation Street') she can be found busting some impressive moves on her local roller rink.