Читать книгу Abnormal Psychology - William J. Ray - Страница 147

As stated earlier, it is the right of a research participant not to be harmed. In most psychological research, physical pain and harm present no problems, either because they are absent completely or because the participant is fully informed of the particular procedure that will be used, such as making a loud noise or placing the participant’s hand in cold water to measure physiological responsiveness.

However, the question of psychological harm presents a much larger issue—one that will continue to be debated for years to come. This may be especially true when working with those with a psychopathology. Is it harmful to show participants something true but negative about themselves? Is it harmful to create situations in which participants feel negative emotions such as fear or anger? Is it harmful to make participants feel like failures in order to determine how this affects their performance? These are the types of questions that are being debated currently.

As a scientist, where do you go for help? There are two major sources: the APA’s guidelines on ethics and the institutional review board, also known as the human subjects committee or office of research compliance, at the institution where you study or work. In addition, many specialty organizations have adopted guidelines for specific populations. For example, the Society for Research in Child Development has established ethical standards for research with children.

institutional review board (IRB): a committee to determine whether the participants in a proposed research study are adequately protected in terms of both welfare and rights, and to determine when a risk is unreasonable