Ethics Psych 231: Research Methods in Psychology

Announcements Exam 1: on Monday Univ college writing help:

APA style: Parts of a research report Abstract Body Introduction Methods Participants Materials/Apparatus Design Procedure Results Discussion References The rest Authors Notes, Footnotes, Tables, Figure Captions, Figures

Body Results Verbal statement of results: Describe the results but don’t interpret them here (that’s for the discussion) Statistical Outcomes Means, standard deviations, t-tests, ANOVAs, correlations, etc. Relate the analyses to the specific hypotheses Tables and figures These get referred to in the text, but actually get put into their own sections at the end of the manuscript

Body Results  Reading checklist Did the author get unexpected results? How does the author interpret the results? How would YOU interpret the results? What implications would YOU draw from these results? Writing checklist Is it clear how the hypotheses are tested by the analyses? Would a graph or table help clarify the results? What questions might the reader still have, and how could I answer them in this section?

Body Discussion (interpret the results) Relationship between purpose and results Theoretical (or methodological) contribution Implications Future directions (optional)  Reading checklist Does YOUR interpretation or the authors' interpretation best represent the data? Do you or the author draw the most sensible implications and conclusions? Writing checklist Have you stated your most convincing argument? Do the conclusions follow straightforwardly from the results?

The references References Author’s name Year Title of work Publication information Journal Issue Pages Adolescent Depression 29 References Barnett, P. A., & Gotlib, I. H. (1988). Psychosocial functioning and depression: Distinguishing among antecedents, concomitants, and consequences. Psychological Bulletin, 104. Beck, A. T. (1978). Beck Depression Inventory. San Antonio, TX: Psychological Corporation. Benoit, D., Vidovic, D., & Roman, J. (1991, April). Transmission of attachment across three generations. Paper presented at the Biennial Meeting of the Society for Research in Child Development. Benoit, D., Zeanah, C. H., & Barton, M. L. (1989). Maternal attachment disturbances in failure to thrive. Infant Mental Health Journal, 3, Benoit, D., Zeanah, C. H., Boucher, C., & Minde, K. (1989). Sleep disorders in early childhood: Association with insecure maternal attachment. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, 31, When something odd comes up, don’t guess. Look it up!

The rest Authors Notes Footnotes Tables Figure Captions Figures

Figures and tables These are used to supplement the text. To make a point clearer for the reader. Typically used for: The design Examples of stimuli Patterns of results

Ethics Ethics – people should be treated as ends not means

Ethical Responsibilities in Research Two basic categories of ethical concerns: Need to consider the rights of our participants in our research Need to behave ethically as scientists and practitioners CITI ethics training Can take short “courses” on ethics Starting in Jan. most 290, 390s (and probably some PSY 331 classes) will require it (lasts for 3 years) Social/Behavioral Research Course, Basic Course Students conducting no more than minimal risk research

Using humans in research For the most part the researcher has the power You know what is going to be done to the participants Participants may feel like they have to do it

Consider ethics at each step How are participants selected? What methods may be used on the participant population? What measurement techniques will be used? What design is appropriate? How are the data analyzed? How are the results reported? Ethical Responsibilities in Research

Respect for persons Basic courtesy Informed consent Debriefing Avoid deception Beneficence Protection from harm Cost/Benefits analysis Confidentiality Justice Freedom from coercion Equal chances of participation APA’s code of ethics

Informed consent Information to allow a person to decide if they want to participate Basic purpose of the study Participation is voluntary Risks involved Benefits involved Rights to refuse or terminate participation Assent - guardians if participants are not competent e.g., children, developmentally disabled people

Using deception in research Types Passive deception Withholding information about the study Active deception Deliberately misleading participants Avoid it when possible Alternative to deception Role-playing When not possible to avoid Make sure that you are up front with all possible risks Potential results must be worth it Must debrief participants as soon as possible (either right after participation or as soon as project is over)

Costs/Benefits analysis Costs: all potential risks to the participants Physical harm Psychological harm Loss of confidentiality Benefits: the “good” outcomes Direct benefits to participants Benefits to knowledge base Benefits to world at large

Institutional Review Board IRB Criteria Minimize risk Benefits > Risks Equal opportunity sampling Informed consent Documentation of consent Data monitoring Privacy & Confidentiality Monitoring of ethics

Scientific Integrity Fraud prevention Replication – repeat a research study to validate results Peer Review – critical analysis of research by peers in the same area Plagiarism – taking credit for another’s work or ideas Avoided by citing the ideas or words of others

Exam 1 Exam 1: 15% of final grade Short answer & multiple choice Covers – lectures, textbook, lab material Textbook Chapters 1, 2, 3, 5, 8