The Ethics of Psychology Research

The first unit of AP Psychology focuses on experimental types, steps, and the ethics surrounding them. In this article, I will briefly discuss the American Psychology Association’s standard experimental ethics and the role of review boards.

Their first ethical policy is Informed Consent. This policy ensures that the participants are fully informed about their role in the experiment so that they can consent. The researchers must comprehensively explain the experiment’s purpose, risks, and benefits and make sure the participants understand before they consent. This policy protects the anonymity and mental/physical health of the participants.

Their next ethical policy is to protect participants from harm/discomfort. This ensures that no intentional harm will be done and aims to minimize any possible harm to the participant. If informed consent exists, the participants should know if anything will be outside their comfort zone, unsafe, or prompt triggers. Because of the policy, participants can withdraw from the experiment at any time.

The third ethical policy is confidentiality. Anonymity is crucial to conducting a safe, bias-free experiment. When the results are published, the participants must be anonymous to safeguard their information and keep the data private. Confidentiality maintains trust with the researchers and respect for the participants and helps eliminate bias within the research.

The final ethical policy is debriefing. Debriefing happens after the experiments is concluded. It helps other researchers understand the true nature of the experiment and attempt to replicate the experiment. While informed consent and debriefing are similar, the main difference is the time at which it occurs and who it is to. The debriefing ensures that the experiment went according to plans and followed guidelines. 

Institutional Review Boards (IRBs) are federally-mandated, locally-administered groups charged with evaluating risks and benefits of human participant research.  They uphold the policies and standards of the APA and review all studies, experiments, and observations to ensure they follow the rules.  However, it is important to note that IRB’s are not always able to address all of the ethical issues surrounding research.  Researchers still bear the responsibility of acting professionally and adhering to the general codes codes of conduct that govern all scientific research.