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Ethical Guidelines » Consent, Deception and Debriefing

What you'll learn this session

Study time: 30 minutes

Cambridge spec: 7.7.1, 7.7.2

Why psychologists follow ethical guidelines
What consent, informed consent and valid consent mean
What deception is and why debriefing matters
How to spot ethical problems in a new study and suggest improvements

Ethical guidelines are tested in Section D of both papers. This lesson covers three guidelines: consent, avoiding deception and debriefing. The next lesson covers the rest.

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Why do we need ethical guidelines?

Psychologists study real people, so their research can affect how those people feel and what they think. Ethical guidelines are general rules that researchers need to follow to protect the rights and wellbeing of the participants.

The guidelines are there so that nobody is treated badly just because they agreed to help with a study. A researcher who wants interesting results still has to follow them.

Consent

Consent means a participant agrees to take part. Good research needs valid consent, which includes informed consent.

Key terms:

Consent: a participant's agreement to take part in research.
Valid consent: consent that counts properly, because it is voluntary and informed.
Informed consent: agreeing to take part after being told what the research will involve.

Voluntary agreement to participate means the person chooses to take part. Nobody pushes, tricks or pressures them into it.

✅ Voluntary

The participant decides for themselves. A teacher telling a class "you will all do this or lose break" is not voluntary.

📝 Informed

The participant is told what they will be asked to do before they agree, so they know what they are saying yes to.

If a researcher hides what the study is really about, people cannot give informed consent, because they do not know what they are agreeing to.

Learn this

Valid consent is voluntary and informed. If either part is missing, the consent is not good enough.

Avoiding deception

Deception means intentionally giving participants wrong or incomplete information. A guideline says researchers should try to avoid it.

Deception can be a lie. It can also be leaving something out. For example, a researcher tells participants a task tests "puzzle skills" when it is really testing how they react to a rude helper. Participants were given wrong information on purpose.

It matters because deception breaks informed consent. People who have been deceived have agreed to something different from what really happened.

Sometimes a study only works if participants do not know its true aim. Researchers should still avoid deception where they can. If it is used, the researcher must make up for it afterwards. That is what debriefing is for. Deception can also involve using a stooge, an actor who pretends to be a real participant. This is covered in a later lesson.

Debriefing

Debriefing means giving participants full information about the research once the data have been collected. It is used to reduce any impacts of deception.

A good debrief usually tells participants the real aim of the study and anything that was kept from them, and gives them the chance to ask questions. After it, nobody should leave confused, embarrassed or upset about what they were told.

⏰ Before the study

Ask for consent. Say what taking part involves. Avoid deception where possible.

🏁 After the data are collected

Debrief. Explain everything, including anything that was hidden, and answer questions.

Spotting problems in a new scenario

In the exam you meet a study you have not seen before. Read it and ask three questions:

Consent: did participants choose to take part, and were they told what it involved?
Deception: was anyone given wrong or incomplete information on purpose?
Debriefing: were they given full information at the end?

Worked example

A researcher tells a class of 12-year-olds they are doing a "word game". In fact, the researcher is timing how long each child takes to give up on an impossible puzzle. The children are not told anything more and go back to their lesson.

Problems: the children were deceived (they were given wrong information about the aim), so they could not give informed consent. They were also not debriefed.

Improvements: tell the children what the task involves before they agree and let them choose whether to take part. After the puzzle, debrief them fully, explaining the real aim and that the puzzle was impossible, so they do not think they failed.

How to improve adherence

Consent: ask people before the study begins, say what it involves, and make clear that it is their choice.
Deception: tell participants the true aim if the study can still work. If it cannot, give as little wrong or missing information as possible.
Debriefing: give a full explanation at the end, including what was hidden, and let people ask questions.

Common mistakes

Saying debriefing happens before the study. It happens after the data are collected.
Thinking debriefing makes deception acceptable. It only reduces the impact. Avoiding deception is still the first aim.
Writing "they did not give consent" without saying why. Say they were not told what it involved, or were not free to say no.
Thinking deception is only telling a lie. Leaving out important information also counts, because it is incomplete information.

Exam-style question

A researcher wants to find out whether people eat more when they are hungry. She tells a group of students they are tasting biscuits for a food company, but she is really counting how many biscuits each student eats. The students are not told this, and they leave after the tasting without any further information.

(a) Identify one ethical guideline the researcher has not followed and explain why. [2 marks]

(b) Suggest one way the researcher could improve how she follows the guidelines. [2 marks]

Model answer

(a) The researcher has not avoided deception (1) because she gave the students wrong information about the aim, saying it was a taste test when she was counting biscuits (1). Not debriefing, or lack of informed consent, would also be accepted with a correct reason.

(b) Debrief the students at the end (1), telling them the real aim and answering their questions, so any impact of the deception is reduced (1).

Exam tip

Name the guideline, then quote something from the scenario to show where it was broken.

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