Question

Dr. Kushner is deciding whether he needs to give participants a reason for waking them up several times during the night. He knows that he cannot tell them the real reason, but he is unsure whether he should deceive them (give them a false reason why he is waking them up) or provide them with no cover story at all. Which of the following issues should be considered most heavily when deciding whether to use deception?

Select one:
a. Whether his institutional review board (IRB) will approve the use of deception
b. Whether his participants will be angry when they find out he used deception
c. Whether he can conduct the study just as well without deception
d. Whether he can create a convincing story that his participants will believe

Answer 1

Dr. Kushner should primarily consider whether his study can be conducted effectively without deception. Deception in research should be used sparingly and ethically, with full IRB approval and debriefing post-study. Voluntary participation, risks, confidentiality, and benefits to society should also weigh into this consideration.

Step-by-step explanation:

When Dr. Kushner is deciding whether to use deception in his experiment involving waking participants during the night, the most important issue to consider is c. Whether he can conduct the study just as well without deception. Deception in research is a contentious topic and should only be employed when absolutely necessary to maintain the integrity of the experiment and when it does not harm the participants. The Institutional Review Board (IRB) approval, potential participant anger, and creating a believable cover story are secondary considerations to the essential ethical question of the necessity and impact of the deception.

According to ethical guidelines, all participants in a study should provide informed consent and be aware of what they are consenting to, with the exception of studies where deception is scientifically justified and approved by an IRB. Furthermore, after the conclusion of such a study, a debriefing must be conducted to restore the participant's right to truthful information about the research they participated in.

When considering whether to use deception, researchers should also evaluate aspects like voluntary participation, fair selection of research subjects, confidentiality preservation, potential risks, and the societal benefits of the research findings. If Dr. Kushner can achieve his research objectives without the use of deception, it would be more ethically sound to avoid misleading participants.