Deck 3: Ethics in Research

Question 1

Which of the following best describes the danger of psychological harm to the participant in behavioral research?

A)Psychological harm occurs on a regular basis.
B)Psychological harm never occurs to participants.
C)Psychological harm is not part of the ethical concerns of scientists.
D)Psychological harm is not likely, but scientists must always watch out for the possibility that it might occur.

Answer 1

D

Question 2

A participant who chooses not to complete an experiment after it has begun

A)must not incur any loss of benefits.
B)must be asked to return to the experiment at a later date.
C)must be told that his or her decision could affect the validity of the research.
D)must participate in another experiment instead.

Answer 2

A

Question 3

Which of the following is part of informed consent?

A)Information about the research hypothesis
B)A statement of the findings of the research
C)Information about how the collected data will be kept confidential
D)A statement requiring the participant to finish the experiment

Answer 3

C

Question 4

Characteristics of an ethical research project include which of the following?

A)The rights of the participants are considered before the rights of the experimenter, but the relationship between them should be more beneficial to the researcher.
B)The experimenter fully explains to the participants every detail of the research, and the exact outcomes intended before starting.
C)After the experiment is over, any deception that has been used is made public, and the necessity for it is explained.
D)The experimenter explains the underlying research hypothesis and purpose of the experimental procedure before the research begins.

Question 5

When no information identifying the participant is taken by the researcher, the collected data are said to be

A)confidential.
B)unmarked.
C)anonymous.
D)wasted.

Question 6

According to the guidelines of the American Psychological Association, deception can be used

A)whenever the experimenter needs to study natural behavior.
B)only if the experiment could not be conducted without using deception.
C)never-deception is always unethical.
D)anytime when necessary as long as the participant is debriefed.

Question 7

Which is NOT one of the four basic goals of ethical research?

A)Providing freedom of choice
B)Keeping the participant free of physical or mental harm
C)Honestly describing the research being performed
D)Using deception to make sure results will not be hindered

Question 8

It is not appropriate to argue that research should not be conducted because

A)research is conducted.
B)a large range of scientific fields use research.
C)the accomplishments of famous scientists are well known.
D)there are potential benefits of conducting research.

Question 9

Research that is conducted outside of the laboratory

A)may have more ethical concerns because the participants may not know they are being studied.
B)has fewer ethical concerns because the experimental procedures are less extreme.
C)cannot be ethically conducted.
D)is subject to different ethical principles than laboratory experiments.

Question 10

A study in which participants are fully informed about the nature of the research and asked to behave "as if" they were in a social setting of interest is known as a(n)

A)acting experiment.
B)simulation study.
C)simulated realism experiment.
D)deceptive study.

Question 11

Which of the following are potential benefits of scientific research?

A)Knowledge gained for the society at large
B)Knowledge gained by the participant about how scientific research is conducted
C)Knowledge gained for the scientist concerning the area being studied
D)All of the above are potential benefits.

Question 12

Why are ethics a concern in behavioral research?

A)Because the participants are human and researchers are obligated to protect them from harm.
B)Because researchers can be fined by the American Psychological Association if they do not follow ethical guidelines.
C)Because animals are not given equal rights during an experiment.
D)Behavioral scientists do not normally need to consider ethical issues when conducting research.

Question 13

The Stanford prison experiment, in which college students were recruited to play the roles of guards and prisoners in a prison, is an example of a

A)deception study.
B)simulation study.
C)correlational study.
D)mutual disclosure study.

Question 14

The purpose of informed consent is to

A)assess the participant's reactions to the experiment.
B)explain the hypothesis of the experiment, and what exactly is being studied in the experiment.
C)provide participants with information about the experiment so that they can make a free choice of whether they want to participate.
D)create awareness of the power differential.

Question 15

Which one of the following is NOT part of informed consent?

A)A statement that participation is voluntary
B)A description of risks
C)Making sure that there will be no long term effects for the participant
D)A description of the procedures

Question 16

Which of the following best describes the likely behavior of a research participant?

A)The participant will normally be willing to leave the experiment if he or she experiences discomfort.
B)It may be difficult for the participant to express a desire to leave the experiment.
C)The experiment will cause psychological discomfort to many individuals.
D)The participant will usually be aware of the research hypothesis.

Question 17

Which scientific fields face ethical dilemmas?

A)Only behavioral science
B)Medical science and behavioral science
C)Physical science and medical science
D)All fields of science

Question 18

Which of the following is a right of the experimental participant?

A)The right to be informed of all outcomes of the research
B)The right to sue the university if he or she is injured
C)The right to fully understand the research hypothesis
D)The right to withdraw from participation without any penalty at any time

Question 19

One of the major difficulties involved in studying human beings is that

A)they often behave differently when they are being studied than they would otherwise.
B)suspicion checks reveal that measures of deception rarely work.
C)participants will rarely give their informed consent to participate.
D)the IRB only permits about 5 percent of all proposed studies to be carried out.

Question 20

Which of the following organizations provides ethical guidelines for research?

A)American Psychological Association
B)U.S.Department of Research
C)United Legion of Ethics
D)American Ethical Association

Question 21

After an experiment in which participants have been put in a negative mood is over, the participants complete a questionnaire in which they list all of the positive things about themselves that they can think of.This technique is probably part of which of the following?

A)A simulation study
B)Informed consent
C)An unethical study
D)A process debriefing

Question 22

Researchers use many procedures to help prevent long-lasting negative consequences for research participants.These normally include all except which of the following?

A)A thorough debriefing
B)Providing an opportunity for participants to leave the experiment at any time
C)Providing participants with a phone number of whom to call with further concerns
D)Providing the participants with a list of research papers concerning the topic of study

Question 23

When is a suspicion check used?

A)During the post-experimental interview
B)Only in studies that do not use deception
C)During the experimental procedures
D)Only in simulation studies

Question 24

Which of the following is an important APA guideline that must be followed when conducting research with human participants?

A)Having one or more control groups
B)Providing adequate significance testing
C)Using either random sampling or random assignment
D)Providing informed consent

Question 25

The difference between debriefing and process debriefing is that process debriefing involves

A)passively undoing any potentially harmful effects.
B)showing the participants' data to them.
C)actively undoing any potentially harmful effects.
D)guaranteeing that participants are returned to their original state.

Question 26

Which of the following is part of the ethics of animal research?

A)The animals are allowed to move freely about the laboratory.
B)If necessary, the animals are killed slowly to minimize the amount of pain.
C)The researchers who use animals are trained to care for them.
D)The animals are kept confined to cages.

Question 27

Which of the following is a potential negative consequence of the use of deception in behavioral research?

A)The participants may believe the deception.
B)The deception may cause the participants to guess what is being studied.
C)Participants may learn to expect to be deceived in future experiments, making those experiments harder to conduct.
D)The deception may undermine the ability of the researcher to fully understand the collected data.

Question 28

The major goal of the Institutional Review Board is to

A)determine the cost benefit ratio of proposed research.
B)make sure animals are treated humanely.
C)answer questions on informed consent and debriefing.
D)advise researchers about proper lab procedures.

Question 29

Which of the following is true regarding the use of animals in behavioral research?

A)Researchers do not use animals in research.
B)Animals are never harmed in any way.
C)Animals are not subjected to any stress.
D)Animals may sometimes be harmed during the research, but in general they are treated as humanely as possible.

Question 30

Why is deception usually used in research?

A)Because the scientific method requires it
B)Because the experimental method requires it
C)Because some research topics could not be studied without it
D)So that the participants cannot tell others about the research hypothesis

Question 31

The debriefing is frequently combined with which of the following?

A)The post experimental interview
B)Informed consent
C)The data collection
D)The deception

Question 32

Which of the following best represents the goals of ethical research?

A)Making sure participants do not know the experimental manipulation
B)Giving participants a chance to guess what the research is about.
C)The welfare of research participants is taken into consideration and the research is reported honestly and fairly.
D)Allowing participants to discuss the study with the researcher when it is finished

Question 33

Which of the following is NOT a goal of the post-experimental interview?

A)To see if the participant had suspicions about the nature of the experiment
B)To educate the participants about behavioral research
C)To get the participant interested in participating in follow up experiments
D)To eliminate any long-term consequences of having participated in the experiment

Question 34

Which of the following is an important aspect of informed consent?

A)Informing the participant about the results of the study.
B)Informing the participant about any potential discomfort and risk
C)Keeping the names of the experimenters confidential
D)Informing the participant whether he or she is in the experimental or the control condition

Question 35

There must be at least __________ individuals on the panel of the IRB, including at least one individual whose primary interest is in a nonscientific domain.

A)four
B)seven
C)six
D)five

Question 36

In an experiment in which participants have been asked to think about their failures, the experimenter asks them to think about their successes before they leave.This is an example of which of the following?

A)Suspicion check
B)Post-experimental interview
C)Process debriefing
D)Significance test

Question 37

The process of asking the participants questions to help determine how they interpreted and reacted to the experimental procedure is known as the

A)informed consent.
B)post experimental interview.
C)simulation debriefing.
D)hypothesis check.

Question 38

Which of the following best describes why the power and status differential between the experimenter and the participant must always be taken into consideration?

A)The researcher has a great deal of power over the behavior of the participants while they are in the experimental session.
B)Unless the researcher uses his or her power, the participant may not pay attention to the experimental script.
C)Experimental demand may be created if the participant feels more powerful than the researcher.
D)It is important that all participants feel a similar degree of powerlessness within an experiment

Question 39

Deception within an experiment can become unethical when

A)the participant acts more like how he or she would act in a natural setting.
B)the participant is debriefed on why they were deceived after the experiment is over.
C)a participant feels frustrated during the study and continues to feel that way for several days.
D)despite being suspicious about the study, the participant trusts the aims of the researcher.

Question 40

Which of the following is important when using animals as research participants?

A)Pain or stress should be inflicted only at the end of the study.
B)Animals should never be administered drugs.
C)Informed consent must always be used.
D)All psychologists using animals must have proper training in the care, maintenance, and handling of the animal species.

Question 41

A researcher would be engaging in unethical behavior if he or she

A)conducted an experiment using deception that was approved by the Institutional Review Board.
B)only reported the findings that rejected the null hypothesis.
C)required the participant to continue the experimental session even if they expressed a desire to leave.
D)shared his or her ideas with fellow faculty members before their submission to a journal.

Question 42

Correctly identify the following processes in the order in which a participant might experience them in a research study

A)Informed consent, suspicion check, debriefing
B)Informed consent, debriefing, suspicion check
C)Suspicion check, informed consent, debriefing
D)Suspicion check, debriefing, informed consent

Question 43

When information identifying the participant is collected by the researcher, but it is not shared with anyone else, the collected data are said to be

A)confidential.
B)unmarked.
C)anonymous.
D)wasted.