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Discussion

July 2, 2025/in Psychology Questions /by Besttutor

RESPOND TO THREE OF MY CLASSMATES DISCUSSIONS.

Review the “How do I Know I am Learning” resource located in the Topic 2 Resources and answer the following questions:

· What is the relationship between the topic objectives, the assignment, and the rubric? How is each component important to completing an assignment?

· What are some strategies you have learned from the readings and assignments in this course so far that will help you complete your assignments both accurately and efficiently?

 

 

 

 

Ah-Lan Coloma

Sep 4, 2023, 11:51 PM

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The topic objectives organize what will be in the course. The assignments display the student’s level of competency and knowledge of what was covered. The rubric shows the criteria used to grade the assignments. As a student, the topic objectives will help you understand the areas of the course that are most important. These highlights will help the student properly prepare for course assignments. The rubric will help guide us in presenting our understanding. That’s the relationship that the three share. You can’t have one without the other.

To complete my assignments accurately and efficiently, I will exercise time management. I plan to use the course calendar and the syllabus to help me manage my DQ requirements. I will use the tools provided within this course to ensure that I’m citing correctly in my assignments, and using credible resources to complete my work. In addition, I plan to chip away at harder tasks throughout the week so I don’t feel rushed. I will use the ‘Promodoro technique’ to work over my time here with GCU.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tyler Zimmer

Sep 4, 2023, 8:58 PM

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The topic objectives, assignment and rubric all collectively work together. The objective allows you to see what is important and what will be presented in the week to come. The assignment allows you to show what you have taken from the readings and apply them to the objectives. The rubric allows you top see what you shall be graded on. This will allow you to refer back to the objectives and tie those into the assignment.

 

One strategy that has helped me is the idea of time management and not letting procrastination set in. Being able to set time aside during the evening to work on the readings and then apply them to the questions will help me to effectively understand the content rather than  rushing through it at the end of the week. I also use the calendar and announcements in order to stay on top of my work. It is appreciated that everything is laid out so you know what to expect during the week.

 

 

Brandi Strickland

Sep 4, 2023, 7:59 PM

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The topic, objective and rubric all work together to help us understand the assignment and what is expected. The topic and objective go together by telling what the assignment is and what is needed to complete it correctly. The rubric tells how assignments are graded and the requirements you must meet for the grades. You can look at the rubric throughout working on your assignment to make sure you are meeting all criteria. I think the things that will help me be successful is definitely time management, looking at all the resources offered and reviewing all of the assignments before starting them, and then again durning and after completion before submitting to make sure that I have met all criteria needed.

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Pyschology

July 2, 2025/in Psychology Questions /by Besttutor

EXERCISE AND SPORTS PSYCHOLOGY 17

 

 

 

 

 

 

Exercise and Sports Psychology

Bethany Hamilton: What makes a successful athlete?

Prerna Dayal

Bryant University

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Abstract

This application paper undertakes to elaborate various exercise and sport psychology aspects which are relative to the career of a well-known female surfer Bethany Hamilton. It looks at various aspects of her life, and how she applied certain sports psychology principals that helped her become a successful athlete and overcome numerous obstacles.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

INTRODUCTION

Bethany Hamilton was born in Lihue, Kauai, Hawaii on February 8 1990. She grew up with two older brothers Noah and Tim. All members of her family had a history and surfing and exposed Bethany to competitive surfing at age 8. Nature and Nurture both intended for her to become one the greatest athletes with her family’s support throughout the process. At age 9 Bethany received her first sponsorship by Rip Curl and by age 13, came second in the NSSA national championships in California.

On October 31st 2003 the water Bethany was lying on with her surf was gleaming and unruffled, what came next was a life changing event for her. She suddenly noticed something grab hold of her entire arm pulling her back and forth, until she saw a pool of red in the water realizing her arm was gone. Within no time the enormous 14ft Tiger shark disappeared into the deep waters. 13-year-old Bethany couldn’t fathom what had happed, as her friend slowly dragged her 200 yards using a surfboard leash. The shark bite was an extremely exasperating since she no longer had an arm; one of the most important tools for surfing. Bethany took it upon herself to change this notion and returned to the water just one month after the attack. The radical change in her body was difficult to adjust to, however, she showed astonishing recovery and a positive attitude. In an interview with ABC News, she mentions “Well, I think that I should just have a positive attitude toward things and the challenges coming up and if I have a bad attitude, then it’s not really going to make it anything better. If I don’t get back on my board, I’ll be in a bad mood forever.” This shows that she wasn’t obligated to express that she could successfully bounce back, but most importantly for her own satisfaction. Bethany surfed for the love of the sport, surfing was in her blood, and she chose to outshine in the male-dominated sport.

Bethany began receiving a lot of support from her fans after returning to the waters. She used this opportunity to motivate others. Her father helped her get back into surfing, and her family was very supportive. She put her heart and soul into relearning how to surf as she mentions “the transition from two arms to one was far from easy”. After one year of rigorous training, Bethany competed in the National Surfing Championship and won her first national trophy. There was no turning back for her she won several championships and began writing about her journey as a surfer. She was also awarded the Best Comeback Athlete by ESPY in 2004 and received the Courage Teen Choice award. Along with continued participation competitively and solely for pleasure MTV published her autobiography the same year called Soul Surfer: A true Story of Faith, Family and Fighting to Get Back on the Board. She received a worthy response for her best-selling book and created a documentary of the book in 2007. In the documentary she talks highly about her faith and how it helped her overcome so many obstacles as a teenager and after the release she claimed that her determination began to decline. She married Adam Dirks in August 2013 and announced that she was pregnant in 2015. Her husband encouraged Bethany to surf competitively and bring her spark back, just one year after their marriage she won the Pipelines Women’s Pro Competition.

RECOVERY AND ACHIEVEMENT MOTIVATION

Bethany Hamilton’s incident of a shark attack was the last thing a surfer could expect while surfing, she lost one of the very significant body part used for the sport. Losing an arm is not only frustrating for an athlete but also difficult to deal with during teenage years, where people are still learning about their bodies. The highest rates of issues related to body image occur during the teen and early adulthood years. However, Bethany was very motivated towards her goal and had a strong sense of self, she was unstoppable despite the harsh circumstances. She claims that her faith in god was something that helped her stay motivated even before the shark attack. Her confidence in god made her believe that everything that was happening to her happened for a bigger and much greater reason. It took the load off her shoulders and lowered her stress levels.

She had a high Achievement Motivation which is the desire to strive for task success, persist in the face of failure and have pride in accomplishments. In her interview with Tampa Bay she mentions (2015) “Just dealing with fame and becoming a girl and struggling with my body image and the media and this world that we live in is so incredibly challenging, it can really bring you down.” Her journey was incredibly hard, but she had the power to bounce back hastily. She felt threatened in various situations while learning how to surf and swim again. Bethany mentions (2015) “I think at first, adjusting to life with one arm was essentially really challenging because I was so used to doing everything with two arms, and all of the sudden, I’m relearning how to put my hair up and relearning how to surf. I remember trying to paddle out surfing, and there were just waves crashing on me over and over again. Sometimes I would come in crying and frustrated and discouraged.” Her achievements motivated her to further motivate other people and being a role model for all her supporters and fans. According to the 5 personality viewpoints Bethany successful fits into the Phenomenological Approach where the person uses they understanding and interpretation of the situation that determines their behavior. She interpreted her shark bite as a learning and never looked at it as a shortcoming she adopted a much more adaptive approach.

 

 

 

 

Achievement of Goal Theory

Image result for achievement behavior

Bethany Hamilton gave birth to her first child after which she continued training rigorously since she had time constraints to train she used her time more judiciously. She competed in the WST Swatch Women’s Pro and stood in the 13th position. Bethany, claims that it was disappointing to lose, but it was also a good learning to motivate her so that she could do better in the future. She focused on both Achievement goals; outcome oriented as well as Task oriented. This determines that she placed a lot of stress on winning as well as getting better to reach optimal performance. She mentioned in an interview with The Guardian (2015) that “I want to make the most of it, so I feel like I’m wiser with my time now.” Bethany experienced role conflict at this stage due to the conflicting demands of competing and being a mother. Yet she persisted to compete further and was supported by her husband at every step, he chose to be a stay at home dad to let Bethany fulfil her training requirements. She looked for more challenging situations and won third place in the Fiji Women’s Pro Competition. In the process, she beat Stephanie Gilmore and Tyler Wright, who were the top-ranked surfers and world champions for surfing. She also got nominated for her first WSL Big Wave Award for her performance on the wave Jaws after her period of loss.

COMPETENCE MOTIVATION THEORY

Competence motivation theory –feelings of competence, worthiness and control influence motivation. The basis of this theory is on the assumption that humans have an inborn motivation to be competent. The competence perception is relative to a person’s effective sate or urge. For instance in the positive effect of this perception, one attempts to follow success for mastery purposes while the negative side following lack of success in bid to improve. In the case of Bethany it was a positive effect as she sought to master the skill of surfing she once was an expert in. The urge to be perceived as competent after losing a limb may have also played a role of getting her back to the ocean once again she always said that sports should not have a disable section but a “section for those who are good at the sport in a unique manner”.

ADAPTIVE PERFECTIONISM

She always set extremely high standards for herself which is what made her a perfectionist. She spent hours training just to be on top, but she used every wave as an opportunity to train, make a mistake and pick herself up. Despite all other distractions after she began to gain fame she made sure to take out time for training. This is a great example of Adaptive perfectionism where there is a healthy commitment to achieve goals.

LEADERSHIP

The term leader has many definitions, but one commonly used definition is that a leader a person who inspires a group of individuals towards the attainment of their set goals or a person who sets a good example to others on how something should be done. In conjunction with this subheading, it is very clear that Bethany Hamilton has portrayed leadership qualities through various actions she has shown to the society.

Bethany Hamilton’s efforts to overcome her disability is relative to a whole group in the society who have disabilities. As it is the norm in the society, people either born with a disability or either those that have acquired a disability are seen as inferior to those people without any disabilities. It is prevalent in the modern day society that people with disabilities are looked down upon and are usually perceived to lack any ability to contribute something important to the society, but Bethany has beaten all odds to overcome that misleading perception.

By chasing her dreams and overcoming various obstacles that stood in the way, Bethany was able to overcome her disability and become a professional surfer. Having set such standards, she has shown other people with a disability that anything can be achieved if you put your mind to it. She has also set a good leadership goal by motivating them to pursue their dreams no matter the disabilities that face them.

Apart from the motivation she gives to people with disabilities, Bethany also sets a good example as a leader as run her charity works such as “The Friends of Bethany” which works to help amputees and survivors of shark attacks. On top of that, she has published some books such as: Devotion for the Soul Surfer, Rise Above, Ask Bethany and A Soul Surfer Bible which not provide motivation to people with disabilities but also to normal people who just lack motivation. Other attributes that portray Bethany as a leader is the perseverance, passion and the courage she has in doing what she does. Not many surfers have had encounters with sharks and still have the guts of going back to the ocean. The passion for surfing which is what made her go back to surfing is also a clear indicator she is an emergent leader as leaders love what they do without being coerced in anyway

SELF CONFIDENCE

Despite Bethany facing many adversities, she has used many of her accomplishments to inspire faith and hope among those who lack motivation. After her attack, Bethany kept a confident attitude, and she hoped to proclaim the word of God and inspire others to have faith anmd trrust in God too. “Raised in a religious family, she clung to the idea that she was part of a greater plan” (Hamilton 2012). Bethany made appearances on many talk shows such as Oprah, and she was interviewed for numerous newspaper and magazine articles that were printed globally. Additionally she has a movie based on her novel ‘The Soul Surfer’. Bethany works hand in hand with organizations such as the World Vision Foundation to help children with disabilities, and taking it upon herself to attend mission trips with her church to help others such as visiting Thailand to help reconstruct homes after a tsunami disaster (Hamilton 2010).

Furthermore, Bethany started a non-profit corporation called ‘Friends of Bethany’ to help other people who have lost limbs; the organization provides emotional support and tries to help families in monetary need with supply of prosthetics. Also, Bethany’s novel Soul Surfer reached the top of the bestseller list, and one of her main priorities for writing her story was to help others deal with difficult moments and find relief and faith in God to overcome their strife’s (Hamilton 2012). Bethany has also won several inspirational awards such as the Best Comeback Athlete ESPY Award and the Special Courage Award at the Teen Choice Awards in 2004 .Also, she has maintained to surf competitively and has won numerous surfing awards. In 2004, she placed fifth in the Pro Junior NSSA regional event in Hawaii only after few months on making her comeback. In the year of 2007, Hamilton completed in the top 20 surfers at both the U.S. Open tournament in Huntington and the Reef Hawaiian Pro competition.

She finished as the fourteenth position on the Women’s World Qualifying Series in 2008 and 2009. Bethany believes, “It’s exciting to know that by being who I am and all that I’ve been through, I’ve had a positive influence on those who require overcoming a barrier to accomplish a goal” (Sandler, 2007). All in all, Bethany Hamilton has achieved many great accomplishments and inspired millions of people worldwide to keep their faith and strive for achievements despite adversities that they have encountered.

PSYCHOLOGICAL SKILLS TRAINING

Also referred to as PST, is a consistent practice of psychological or mental skills. Such mental skills include regulation of arousal levels or maintenance of concentration skills. Psychological skills training is very important to sports participants because at times they fall victim to various mental letdowns or their mistakes thus this mental aspect often overshadows their physical performance aspect but PST functions to regulate this kind of behavior( Kornspan, 2009). With this kind of training sports men and women can enhance their performance as they are well equipped whether mentally or physically.

For people like Bethany who have had a traumatic experience, this kind of training can come in handy. This is because this traumatic experiences usually affect the performance as traumatic experiences are bound to affect subjects psychologically. For Bethany, after losing her hand, she had to make many readjustments, especially in her training. The reality of surfing with one hand was also hard to accept, but eventually, she overcame all these setbacks. Were it not for her attributes of a tough mental athlete she could not have made it. The attributes that make a mentally tough athletes include, remaining unaffected by competition and adversity for instance in the case of Bethany the shark attack leading to amputation to one of her hands did not deter her from pursuing her dreams. Through rehabilitation conducted medical professionals, surfing training and intense workouts and the right mental attitude, Bethany is what she is today.

COMMUNICATION

Communication can be simply defined as the action of conveying anticipated meanings from a person or a group to another group or a person. Communication is a very important aspect of the day to day events of every individual. For individuals who have verbal impairment established forms of communication have been established which help them to go about their lives like normal people.

For people who have undergone any traumatic experience, communication is very important. This is because it helps in reducing the trauma that may have been inflicted and ultimately, eradicate it. For the case of Bethany who also had a traumatic experience, communication came in handy to erase the trauma caused and thus healing emotionally so as getting back to surfing. Frequent communication with family members and concerned professionals helped a lot. In her book The Soul Surfer, Bethany explains how she used to joke around and make fun of herself with members of her family and hospital attendants which in return assisted her to accept who she was eventually helping her overcome her trauma.

Communication to her worldwide readers through her books about her spiritual journey has strengthened her as she talks about her acceptance of the events that happened. Bethany talks about accepting the situation without asking any questions why it happened to her but rather embracing it and growing stronger in God’s faith. Her books also act as a source of motivation to many of her readers globally who are about to despair due to trauma or other similar adverse situations.

TRAITS OF SUCCESSFUL ATHLETES

Successful athletes have various common traits that often contribute to their success. They are consistent in their day to day workout and fitness routines. Despite losing one limb Bethany has learnt to exercise intensely to keep her body fit for surfing competitions a trait she has acquired.They have realistic expectations and work towards them. It was absurd for Bethany to think after her injury she would go on with surfing normally. She knew it was going to be a hard journey and put her mind to it. A trait she acquired and learnt after her ordeal. They have a burning desire to improve on their mistakes and to perfect what they do. Bethany passion for surfing is what made her go back to surfing even after the incident which is not an acquired trait. They have unwavering focus on their set targets. Despite having trouble to get back on the board Bethany did not despair rather she put more effort which is an acquired trait.

 

AROUSAL REGULATION

Arousal regulation refers to the ability or the capacity to be in a position to control your emotions. Arousal regulation is important because of the following reasons: it helps people to remain focused, it helps subjects to take control of their emotions and final it assists in recuperating from various setbacks (Thatcher & Rahman, 2011).  The setbacks may include injuries, poor performance or maybe failing to make the cut for the travelling team.

In the cause of Bethany, an amputation of a limb was the setback she was facing. The loss of a limb or any body part is not an incidence many people are likely to take lightly or overcome whether adults or children, but Bethany was determined to do so. The ability to put her emotions under control helped her understand what is, cannot change. Bethany in her book The Soul Surfer explains how she had made a decision not to pity herself or allow anyone else to. She was not willing to sit around and do nothing either. Bethany also explains how most of the times she would come out of the water after she was unable to swim or keep balance but ultimately she was able through keeping her emotions in control and eventually focusing.

IMAGERY

The imagery in sports basically refers to using all your senses while rehearsing your sport in your mind. Imagery in sports has a number of benefits which include: boosting the ability to compete effectively, it helps the subjects involved to make the most out of training, it assists in helping the subjects involved to remain motivated and finally it helps subjects to keep in good form even when training is hard or next to impossible at all especially after injuries (Kornspan, 2009).

In the instance of Bethany after the aftermath of the shark attack, through therapy, she was able to recuperate. But the major setback she faced was learning to surf without an arm. It is her visualization of seeing herself getting on that surfboard that enabled her to do so without forgetting support from family and friends and the great love for surfing.

CONCLUSION

To conclude, Bethany Hamilton’s is a passionate surfer who was inspired by her parents and siblings and religious faith, struggled through hardships caused by a shark attack, yet used her achievements to encourage others to have faith and hope. Bethany overcame a tragic shark attack that could have ended her surfing career or even ended her life, yet her determination to believe in herself and God has made her known globally as a living miracle and motivation. Bethany believes, “I’m living proof that there’s no such thing as a handicap. It’s only in your head” (Hamilton, 138). As she proceeds to travel around the world while attending and volunteering to aid others in need, Bethany will continue to develop her legacy as a strong-minded and caring soul. Bethany strives to prevail as an icon of hope and inspiration by touching lives through her platform of faith and sport. Overall, Bethany Hamilton’s legacy of faith and hope to overcome difficulty will continue to live on even long after her time.

Bethany Hamilton set an example for millions of people and made various contributions to get her personal message out in the world. She used her experiences for personal growth and life skills. She continues to be an important figure and inspiration, a fearless and courageous woman.

 

References

Barney, L. (2016, August 25). Bethany Hamilton: surfing with only one arm isn’t as hard as beating the stigma. Retrieved November 15, 2017, from https://www.theguardian.com/sport/2016/aug/25/bethany-hamilton-surfing-espy-award

Bethany Hamilton talks surf and overcoming obstacles. (2015, May 13). Retrieved November 15, 2017, from http://www.tampabay.com/tb-two/news/bethany-hamilton-talks-surf-and-overcoming-obstacles/2229549

Hamilton, B. & Rikkers, D. (2010). Ask Bethany : FAQs : surfing, faith & friends. Grand Rapids, Mich: Zonderkidz.

Hamilton, B. (2012). Soul Surfer : A True Story of Faith, Family and Fighting to Get Back on the Board. New York: Simon & Schuster UK

Kornspan, A. (2009). Fundamentals of sport and exercise psychology. Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics.

Sandler, M. (2007). Bethany Hamilton : follow your dreams. New York: Bearport Pub.

Surfing Star Bethany Hamilton Goes Inside The Ride Of Her Lifetime. (n.d.). Retrieved November 15, 2017, from http://www.espn.com/espnw/athletes-life/article/14555790/surfing-star-bethany-hamilton-goes-ride-lifetime

Thatcher, J., Day, M. & Rahman, R. (2011). Sport and exercise psychology. Exeter England: Learning Matters

News, A. (Ed.). (2005, November 21). Young Surfer Tells Tale of Shark Attack. Retrieved November 15, 2017, from http://abcnews.go.com/2020/story?id=124360&page=1

Weinberg, R.S., & Gould, D.). Foundations of Sport and Exercise Psychology. (6th edition.). Champaign, IL: Human Kinetics.

 

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Goals and Objective

July 2, 2025/in Psychology Questions /by Besttutor

Assignment

Please answer each question below:

 

· Revisit the goals and objectives from your Practicum Experience Plan. Explain the degree to which you achieved each during the practicum experience.

· Reflect on any three (3) most challenging patients you encountered during the practicum experience.

· What was most challenging about each?

· What did you learn from this experience?

· What resources were available?

· What evidence-based practice did you use for the patients?

· What would you do differently?

· How are you managing patient flow and volume?

· How can you apply your growing skillset to be a social change agent within your community?

· Reflect on how you might improve your skills and knowledge and communicate those efforts to your Preceptor.

· Answer the questions: How am I doing? What is missing?

 

2-3 PAGES

 

 

*********INITIAL GOAL FROM MARCH 1ST ***

 

Now, write three to four (3–4) possible goals and objectives for this practicum experience. Ensure that they follow the SMART Strategy, as described in the Learning Resources.

1. Goal: my first goal is that in 4 weeks’ time, I will be able documents recommendations for psychiatric consultations accurately without help

a. Objective: keep accurate running log of all the client’s

b. Objective: record a detail data of the patient

c. Objective: systematically review each clients care plans

 

2. Goal: my second goal is to be able to develop SMART goals for practicum experiences in 4 weeks’ time

a. Objective: making structured goals that anyone who reads them will easily understand.

b. Objective: keeping an up-to-date notes and establish a schedule whereby my notes, treatment plans and assessment are complete at a specific time during the week.

c. Objective: outlining a precise realistic scope by drafting a prospectus of my project

 

3. Goal: my third goal is to improve my Pharmacotherapeutic skills by the end of this practicum.

a. Objective: knowing the appropriate evidence based clinical practice guidelines for psychotherapeutic plan

b. Objective: understanding the perception of each client regarding the therapeutic process.

4. Goal: by the end of this practicum, I would be able to accurately distinguish and develop exceptional diagnostic reasoning skills.

a. Objective: understand the process of differential diagnosis

b. Objective: making a list of possible diagnosis for the patient base on the symptoms the patient present with and narrowing it to the appropriate diagnosis.

c. Objective: continue to maintain boundary with client

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Ethics Assessements

July 2, 2025/in Psychology Questions /by Besttutor

ETHICS AWARENESS INVENTORY PAPER

Write a 1,050- to 1,250-word paper regarding the EAI and your results. Address the following:

 

  • Explain the importance of understanding your personal ethical perspective.
  • Analyze the relationship between personal and professional ethics in psychology.
  • Describe the APA decision-making process and discuss how it facilitates ethical professional behavior.
  • List and explain your EAI scores and what they mean for you professionally
  • Describe how your ethical awareness inventory scores relate to the concept of aspirational and enforceable standards.

 

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SOCW-6210-6351-Wk3

July 2, 2025/in Psychology Questions /by Besttutor

Discussion 1:

 

Social and Emotional Intelligence

What ideas or phrases come to mind when you hear the term intelligence? Prior to the current emphasis on emotional and social intelligence, individuals tended to associate intelligence with one measurement: intelligence quotient or the IQ. While the IQ focuses on intellectual abilities, emotional intelligence focuses on an individual’s awareness of his or her feelings and the feelings of others, and social intelligence focuses on an individual’s interpersonal skills (Zastrow & Kirst-Ashman, 2016, pp. 506-509).

 

To prepare for this Discussion, read “Working With People With Disabilities: The Case of Andres” on pages 28–31 in Social Work Case Studies: Foundation Year. Consider what you have learned about social and emotional intelligence in this week’s resources as well as what you learn about the person and environment as it relates to young and middle adulthood.

 

Post a Discussion that includes the following:

 

o   An explanation of how social and emotional intelligence are related to cultural factors

o   An explanation about how you, as a social worker, might apply the concepts of emotional and/or social intelligence to the case of Andres

o   An explanation of how social workers, in general, might apply social and emotional intelligence to social work practice. (Include a specific example in the explanation.)

 

Be sure to support your posts with specific references to the resources. If you are using additional articles, be sure to provide full APA-formatted citations for your references.

 

References (use 2 or more)

 

Plummer, S. -B., Makris, S., & Brocksen, S. M. (Eds.). (2014). Social work case studies: Foundation year. Baltimore, MD: Laureate International Universities Publishing. [Vital Source e-reader].

 

Zastrow, C. H., & Kirst-Ashman, K. K. (2016). Understanding human behavior and the social environment (10th ed.). Boston, MA:  Cengage Learning.

 

 

 

 

 

Working With Clients With Disabilities: The Case of Andres

 

 

Andres is a 68-year-old male originally from Honduras. He is married and the father of two grown children: a daughter who is married with one child and a son who is unmarried. Andres lives with his wife in a brownstone in an upper-class urban neighborhood, and they are financially stable. He relies on Medicare for his health insurance. Andres is a retired child psychiatrist who completed medical school in Honduras and committed his career to working with Latino children and families in a major metropolitan area. Andres’ wife is a clinical psychologist who still maintains an active practice. Andres has a good relationship with his children, seeing them at least once a week for dinner, and his granddaughter is the light of his life.

Approximately 6 years ago, Andres was diagnosed with a rare brain tumor and Parkinson’s disease. Prior to his diagnosis, Andres was still on staff at a hospital, jogged daily, and had plans to travel with his wife. In a short time, Andres’ health deteriorated significantly. He now uses a cane and walker to ambulate. His speech is slow and soft. He requires assistance to get dressed and eat at times due to severe tremors and the loss of dexterity in his hands. Andres has fallen on multiple occasions and therefore cannot go out alone. He suffers from depression and anxiety and is currently on medication for these conditions. Andres spends a majority of time at home reading. He has lost contact with many of his friends and almost all of his professional colleagues.

Andres presented for treatment at an outpatient mental health setting. His daughter suggested it because she was concerned about her father’s worsening depression. Andres came into treatment stating his family thought he needed to talk to someone. He complied, but was unsure if treatment was really necessary. Andres agreed to weekly sessions and was escorted to each session by an aide who helped him at home.

While Andres had difficulty stating specific goals in the beginning, the focus of treatment became obvious to both of us early on, and we were able to agree to a treatment plan. Across multiple spheres of his life, Andres was struggling with accepting his illness and the resulting disabilities. In addition, he was extremely socially isolated despite the fact that he lived with his family and they were supportive of his medical needs. Finally, Andres’ role and identity had changed in his family and the world overall.

In a mere 6 years, Andres had lost his independence. He went from being a man who jogged every day to a man who could not carry a glass of water from one room to the next in his own home. Andres was trying valiantly to hold on to his independence. While his wife and his children were willing to provide any assistance he needed, Andres hated the idea of asking for help. As a result, he did things that compromised his balance, and he had several bad falls. In addition, Andres’ wife had assumed responsibility for all of the family’s affairs (i.e., financial, household, etc.), which had been Andres’ job before he got sick. Andres struggled as he saw his wife overwhelmed by all that she now had to take on. At the same time, he did not feel like he had the ability to reclaim any of what had been “taken” from him. Together, Andres and I identified the things he felt he was capable of doing independently and worked on how he could go about reclaiming some of the independence he had lost. We spoke about how he could communicate his needs, both for help and independence, to his family. We explored his resistance to asking for help. On many occasions Andres would say, “I was the one my children came to for help; now they have to help me. I can’t stand that.”

In addition to the struggles Andres faced in his everyday life, he also had to cope with the reality of his illness. Andres was well aware that his illness was degenerative, and with each change in his condition, this became a stronger reality. Andres frequently spoke of “a miracle cure.” He constantly researched new and experimental treatments in hopes that something new would be found. While I never attempted to strip Andres of his hope for a cure, we spent a considerable amount of effort getting Andres to accept his condition and work with what was possible now. For example, Andres had always been resistant to physical therapy (PT), but during our treatment, he began PT to work on maintaining his current balance rather than trying to cure his balance problems. Facing his illness meant facing his own mortality, and Andres knew his fate as much as he wanted to deny it. He often spoke of the things he would never experience, like his granddaughter graduating from high school and traveling through Europe with his wife.

Andres’ treatment lasted a little bit more than a year. He demonstrated significant improvement in his ability to communicate with his wife and children. Andres continued to struggle with asking for help, repeatedly putting himself in compromising situations and having several more falls. After the fact, he was able to evaluate his actions and see how he could have asked for limited assistance, but in the moment it was very difficult for him to take the active step of asking for help. Andres was also able to reconnect with an old friend who he had avoided as a result of his physical disabilities and feelings of inadequacy. We were forced to terminate when I left my position to relocate out of state.

 

 

_________________________________________________________

 

 

 

Discussion 2: The Impact of Social Policy

 

Social policies can have a significant impact on individuals and families, as well as the organizations and agencies that implement the policies. In some cases, the policy, as written, appears comprehensive and effective. Yet, despite appearances, the policy might fail to be effective as a result of improper implementation, interpretation, and/or application of the policy. As a social worker, how might you reduce the potential negative impact faulty social policies might have on organizations and agencies, as well as the populations you serve?

 

For this Discussion, review this week’s resources, including cases “Working with Immigrants and Refugees: The Case of Luisa” and “Social Work Policy: Benefit Administration and Provision.” Then, select either of the cases and consider how the social welfare policies presented in the case influenced the problems facing Luisa or Tessa. Finally, think about how policies affect social agencies and how social workers work with clients such as Tessa or Luisa.

 

·      Post an explanation of the effects of the social welfare policies presented in the case study you selected on Luisa or Tessa.

 

·      Be specific and reference the case study you selected in your post.

 

·      Finally, explain how policies affect social agencies and how social workers work with clients, such as Tessa or Luisa.

 

Support your post with specific references to the resources. Be sure to provide full APA citations for your references.

 

 

References (use 2 or more)

 

Plummer, S.-B., Makris, S., & Brocksen, S. (Eds.). (2014). Social work case studies: Foundation year. Baltimore: MD: Laureate International Universities Publishing. [Vital Source e-reader].

 

Popple, P. R., & Leighninger, L. (2015). The policy-based profession: An introduction to social welfare policy analysis for social workers. (6th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Pearson Education.

 

 

Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. (2011). Policy basics: Introduction to the federal budget process. Retrieved from www.cbpp.org/files/3-7-03bud.pdf

 

 

Working With Immigrants and Refugees: The Case of Luisa

Luisa is a 36-year-old, married, Latino female who immigrated to the United States from Colombia. She speaks only Spanish, so a translator must be used for communication. She came to the United States on a visa, but remained beyond the allotted time. While in the United States, she met and married Hugo, who was in the country with documentation. Once Luisa married Hugo, she became pregnant with a daughter, who is now 3 years old.

Luisa has a 10-year-old son named Juan in Colombia. Luisa has always had the desire to reunite with Juan and bring him to the United States to live with her. After her marriage and status change, she began the process of sponsoring Juan. She has been advised that in order for sponsorship to be achieved, she cannot receive welfare benefits because she needs to prove that she can support herself and her child.

Luisa came to the local welfare agency after she and her daughter entered the domestic violence shelter. She reported that Hugo had a history of violence, which was exacerbated when he drank alcohol. Hugo had been drinking more frequently, and the episodes of violence had increased in severity. The domestic violence program requires all residents to apply for any available benefits in order to remain enrolled in their services.

In one particular episode, Hugo almost fractured her orbital bones. She had extensive facial bruising and blood pooled in one eye. Luisa is quite fearful of Hugo. She is also financially dependent on him. She is reluctant to apply for benefits because she fears that this will compromise her ability to sponsor her son in Colombia. She is tearful and tells me that she cannot sacrifice her son’s opportunity to come to the United States.

Luisa is socially isolated because she has no family in the United States, and Hugo has restricted her ability to socialize and establish friendships. However, she is a practicing Catholic and does belong to a church that offers bilingual services.

Luisa began to discuss returning to Hugo because she felt that this was her only viable option. I advised her that under the new federal changes in immigration laws she might be allowed to apply for benefits and still sponsor her son because she is experiencing domestic violence. I explained that we would need to speak to an immigration lawyer to verify this, but it could possibly be an alternative to returning to Hugo.

Luisa reported that she had given money to lawyers in the past who had been unhelpful. She was suspicious of the law’s ability to protect her. Hugo had also threatened to report her to the authorities, stating that he would tell them she only married him to remain in the country. Although this is not true, she feared that he would do this, and she would never see her daughter again.

I offered to speak with someone at the domestic violence program and advocate that they allow her some time to research her options. I told Luisa that these were difficult decisions to make and that she would be supported in her decision. I told her that she knew what was best for her family. I offered to research the options that she might have under this new federal program. I also asked for permission to contact the priest at her church so that she might be able to review her situation with a religious leader in the community. Luisa agreed.

Two weeks later, Luisa applied for services on behalf of her daughter and herself. She has decided not to return to Hugo.

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Week 5: Sleep Journal And Reflection Paper

July 2, 2025/in Psychology Questions /by Besttutor

Specifically, for this assignment you will:

Keep a sleep/dream journal for at least 10 days throughout Weeks 3 and 4. In your journal make note of:

any dreams you had

any initial thoughts about the dream – events of the day that may relate, etc.

your general sleep schedule (if you have a tracker such as fitbit, include data on your sleep patterns as well – wakefulness, restlessness, times asleep/awake per night, total sleep, etc.)

your general eating habits by day

your general exercise habits by day

anything else of note in your psychological or physical health (stress, excitement, changes, etc.)

You may use any format you wish to record the data (notepad, computer, hardcopy spreadsheet, etc.).

Complete a 3-4 page reflection (not counting title or reference pages) in which you analyze the results of your sleep/dream journal. Consider how your psychological and physical health interacted. What patterns did you see? Discuss the impact that various factors such as fatigue, diet, stress and exercise had on your dreams and sleep patterns. Explain how this insight may impact your behaviors in the future to lead to better psychological and physical health.

NO COPY and Past Reflection minimum 3 pages, double spaced

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Psychotherapy theory paper(Psychology Major Please)

July 2, 2025/in Psychology Questions /by Besttutor

For each theory discussed you will submit a paper with the following sections:

I. Brief 3 or more sentences summary of theory

II. Brief descriptions of major tenets of the theory (3 or more sentences per tenet)

III. Brief descriptions of common techniques of the theory (3 or more sentences per technique)

IV. Personal reflection/reaction to the theory (2 paragraphs)

V. Questions about the theory or its implementation (2 questions)

The first 3 sections will serve as a brief summary to which you may refer back in future courses, during practicum experiences, or when preparing for comps. The latter 2 sections are meant to help you process your reactions to each theory. Remember that you will have already summarized the theory in sections 1-3, so section 4 should focus on the thoughts and feelings that arose for you as you read the chapters associated with each theory.

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Quiz

July 2, 2025/in Psychology Questions /by Besttutor

Question 1    1.    Which of the following is NOT a tip for choosing a co-leader?      a.  Share all aspects of planning and running the group.     b.  Work with leaders with whom you can have a cooperative and honest relationship.     c.  Find people who are the same age as you.     d.  Interview all prospective co-leaders.      5 points       Question 2    1.    The curative factor that helps people feel that they are not alone or isolated with the “uniqueness” of their problems is _____      a.  linking.     b.  altruism.     c.  universality.     d.  congruence.      5 points       Question 3    1.    “Tandeming” is _____      a.  a group skill.     b.  a form of member resistance.     c.  a problematic co-leader communication pattern.     d.  a curative factor only available in co-facilitated groups.      5 points       Question 4    1.    Adlerian theory focuses on human beings in _____      a.  a vocational context.     b.  a social context.     c.  a psychosexual context.     d.  an academic context.      5 points       Question 5    1.    Gestalt groups focus on _____      a.  historical exploration.     b.  family systems.     c.  here-and-now interactions.     d.  listening skills.      5 points       Question 6    1.    “Empowerment” primarily deals with the issue of _____      a.  primacy.     b.  linkage.     c.  self-advocacy.     d.  justice modeling.      5 points       Question 7    1.    The “curative factors” were established by _____      a.  Homeyer.     b.  Siepmann.     c.  Morrison.     d.  Yalom.      5 points       Question 8    1.    One distinct advantage of group over individual counseling is the ability to _____      a.  work on goals.     b.  terminate effectively.     c.  choose a theory.     d.  discover others.      5 points       Question 9    1.    If the group leader moves out of an ethnocentric lens and more fully recognizes the richness of the cultural elements of each member, which dimension is being experienced?      a.  Justice potential.     b.  Creativity.     c.  Multi-leveled linking.     d.  Multicultural integration.      5 points       Question 10    1.    In developing your own theory, you should find a congruence between _____      a.  your beliefs and the group’s beliefs.     b.  your beliefs and your professor’s beliefs.     c.  the philosophy of the theory and the rules of your site.     d.  the philosophy of the theory and your beliefs.      5 points       Question 11    1.    The group providing an immediate, first-hand opportunity for the group members to change their perceptions and to practice more mature social living is an example of _____      a.  cohesion.     b.  reality testing lab.     c.  linking.     d.  extrapolation.      5 points       Question 12    1.    Pregroup interviews can be used to _____      a.  orient the member to the group.     b.  go over group rules.     c.  assess if the member is a good fit for the group.     d.  all of the above.      5 points       Question 13    1.      Which of the following is a possible disadvantage of group counseling?        a.  Higher cost.     b.  More one-on-one focus.     c.    Some people do not feel safe in a group.       d.  Lack of real learning.      5 points       Question 14    1.    The primary problematic elements of dual relationships involve _____      a.  trust and mistrust.     b.  social justice and oppression.     c.  power differential and exploitation.     d.  role shift and role combining.      5 points       Question 15    1.     Confidentiality in group work _____      a.   cannot be guaranteed.     b.   can be guaranteed.     c.   applies only to counseling groups.     d.   is protected by law.      5 points       Question 16    1.    Two common types of co-leader incompatibility include _____      a.  political and financial.     b.  theoretical and personality.     c.  religious and spiritual.     d.  racial and family of origin.      5 points       Question 17    1.    This leadership style is egalitarian in orientation and participation by all group members in establishing goals is encouraged.      a.  Democratic.     b.  Assertive.     c.  Process Observer.     d.  Explorer.      5 points       Question 18    1.    Advertising and networking are two critical pieces of which step of group creation?      a.  Reaching out.     b.  Forming.     c.  Marketing and recruiting.     d.  Setting up.      5 points       Question 19    1.    One benefit of consulting the literature about your group idea is that it _____      a.  prevents you “reinventing the wheel.”     b.  improves your reading skill.     c.  expands your profit margin.     d.  covers your ethical obligation.      5 points       Question 20    1.    The division of the American Counseling Association that focuses on group work is _____      a.  American Group Work Association.     b.  Association of Group Work.     c.  American Group Society.     d.  Association for the Specialists in Group Work.      5 points

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DB3 – Chapter 2

July 2, 2025/in Psychology Questions /by Besttutor

You are expected to use the textbook as your first source and to cite in-text where you used the the text information. A complete reference list is expected at the end of each discussion. You are expected to respond thoughtfully to at least one classmate (see the rubric and samples in the syllabus). Do not wait until the deadline to submit. You may get closed out and you will not have time to read what others have written and respond thoughtfully. Review the section under the Syllabus tab for sources you cannot use. 

We will explore psychological perspectives (also known as theories or paradigms).

Be sure to review the textbook, readings and activities in the Module.

Then choose the one perspective/theory/paradigm  which you think best explains abnormal behavior in TODAY’S world. You must choose one. Justify your choice. Give an example of how this perspective would explain behavior.

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Methods in Behavioral Research, Ch. 3

July 2, 2025/in Psychology Questions /by Besttutor

ETHICS IN BEHAVIORAL RESEARCH CHP. 3

 

LEARNING OBJECTIVES

· Summarize Milgram’s obedience experiment.

· Discuss the three ethical principles outlined in the Belmont Report: beneficence, autonomy, and justice.

· Define deception and discuss the ethical issues surrounding its use in research.

· List the information contained in an informed consent form.

· Discuss potential problems in obtaining informed consent.

· Describe the purpose of debriefing research participants.

· Describe the function of an Institutional Review Board.

· Contrast the categories of risk involved in research activities: exempt, minimal risk, and greater than minimal risk.

· Summarize the ethical principles in the APA Ethics Code concerning research with human participants.

· Summarize the ethical issues concerning research with nonhuman animals.

· Discuss how potential risks and benefits of research are evaluated.

· Discuss the ethical issue surrounding misrepresentation of research findings.

· Define plagiarism and describe how to avoid plagiarism.

Page 44ETHICAL PRACTICE IS FUNDAMENTAL TO THE CONCEPTUALIZATION, PLANNING, EXECUTION, AND EVALUATION OF RESEARCH. Researchers who do not consider the ethical implications of their projects risk harming individuals, communities, and behavioral science. This chapter provides an historical overview of ethics in behavioral research, reviews core ethical principles for researchers, describes relevant institutional structures that protect research participants, and concludes with a discussion of what it means to be an ethical researcher.

MILGRAM’S OBEDIENCE EXPERIMENT

Stanley Milgram conducted a series of studies (1963, 1964, 1965) to study obedience to authority. He placed an ad in the local newspaper in New Haven, Connecticut, offering a small stipend to men to participate in a “scientific study of memory and learning” being conducted at Yale University. The volunteers reported to Milgram’s laboratory at Yale, where they met a scientist dressed in a white lab coat and another volunteer in the study, a middle-aged man named “Mr. Wallace.” Mr. Wallace was actually a confederate (i.e., accomplice) of the experimenter, but the participants did not know this. The scientist explained that the study would examine the effects of punishment on learning. One person would be a “teacher” who would administer the punishment, and the other would be the “learner.” Mr. Wallace and the volunteer participant then drew slips of paper to determine who would be the teacher and who would be the learner. The drawing was rigged, however—Mr. Wallace was always the learner and the volunteer was always the teacher.

The scientist attached electrodes to Mr. Wallace and placed the teacher in front of an impressive-looking shock machine. The shock machine had a series of levers that, the individual was told, when pressed would deliver shocks to Mr. Wallace. The first lever was labeled 15 volts, the second 30 volts, the third 45 volts, and so on up to 450 volts. The levers were also labeled “Slight Shock,” “Moderate Shock,” and so on up to “Danger: Severe Shock,” followed by red X’s above 400 volts.

Mr. Wallace was instructed to learn a series of word pairs. Then he was given a test to see if he could identify which words went together. Every time Mr. Wallace made a mistake, the teacher was to deliver a shock as punishment. The first mistake was supposed to be answered by a 15-volt shock, the second by a 30-volt shock, and so on. Each time a mistake was made, the learner received a greater shock. The learner, Mr. Wallace, never actually received any shocks, but the participants in the study did not know that. In the experiment, Mr. Wallace made mistake after mistake. When the teacher “shocked” him with about 120 volts, Mr. Wallace began screaming in pain and eventually yelled that he wanted out. What if the teacher wanted to quit? This happened—the volunteer participants became visibly upset by the pain that Mr. Wallace seemed to be experiencing. The experimenter told the teacher that he could Page 45quit but urged him to continue, using a series of verbal prods that stressed the importance of continuing the experiment.

The study purportedly was to be an experiment on memory and learning, but Milgram really was interested in learning whether participants would continue to obey the experimenter by administering ever higher levels of shock to the learner. What happened? Approximately 65% of the participants continued to deliver shocks all the way to 450 volts.

Milgram went on to conduct several variations on this basic procedure with 856 subjects. The study received a great deal of publicity, and the results challenged many of our beliefs about our ability to resist authority. The Milgram study is important, and the results have implications for understanding obedience in real-life situations, such as the Holocaust in Nazi Germany and the Jonestown mass suicide (see Miller, 1986).

But the Milgram study is also an important example of ethics in behavioral research. How should we make decisions about whether the Milgram study or any other study is ethical? The Milgram study was one of many that played an important role in the development of ethical standards that guide our ethical decision making.

What do you think? Should the obedience study have been allowed? Were the potential risks to Milgram’s participants worth the knowledge gained by the outcomes? If you were a participant in the study, would you feel okay with having been deceived into thinking that you had harmed someone? What if it was a younger sibling? Or an elderly grandparent? Would that make a difference? Why or why not?

In this chapter, we work through some of these issues, and more. First, let us turn to an overview of the history of our current standards to help frame your understanding of ethics in research.

HISTORICAL CONTEXT OF CURRENT ETHICAL STANDARDS

Before we can delve into current ethical standards, it is useful to briefly talk about the origin of ethics codes related to behavioral research. Generally speaking, modern codes of ethics in behavioral and medical research have their origins in three important documents.

The Nuremberg Code and Declaration of Helsinki

Following World War II, the Nuremberg Trials were held to hear evidence against the Nazi doctors and scientists who had committed atrocities while forcing concentration camp inmates to be research subjects. The legal document that resulted from the trials contained what became known as the Nuremberg Code: a set of 10 rules of research conduct that would help prevent future research atrocities (see http://www.hhs.gov/ohrp/archive/nurcode.html).

Page 46The Nuremberg Code was a set of principles without any enforcement structure or endorsement by professional organizations. Moreover, it was rooted in the context of the Nazi experience and not generally seen as applicable to general research settings. Consequently, the World Medical Association developed a code that is known as the Declaration of Helsinki. This 1964 document is a broader application of the Nuremberg that was produced by the medical community and included a requirement that journal editors ensure that published research conform to the principles of the Declaration.

The Nuremberg Code and the Helsinki Declaration did not explicitly address behavioral research and were generally seen as applicable to medicine. In addition, by the early 1970s, news about numerous ethically questionable studies forced the scientific community to search for a better approach to protect human research subjects. Behavioral scientists were debating the ethics of the Milgram studies and the world was learning about the Tuskegee Syphilis Study, in which 399 African American men in Alabama were not treated for syphilis in order to track the long-term effects of this disease (Reverby, 2000). This study, supported by the U.S. Public Health Service, took place from 1932 to 1972, when the details of the study were made public by journalists investigating the study. The outrage over the fact that this study was done at all and that the subjects were African Americans spurred scientists to overhaul ethical regulations in both medical and behavioral research. The fact that the Tuskegee study was not an isolated incident was brought to light in 2010 when documentation of another syphilis study done from 1946 to 1948 in Guatemala was discovered (Reverby, 2011). Men and women in this study were infected with syphilis and then treated with penicillin. Reverby describes the study in detail and focuses on one doctor who was involved in both the Guatemala and Tuskegee studies.

As a result of new public demand for action, a committee was formed that eventually produced the  Belmont Report . Current ethical guidelines for both behavioral and medical researchers have their origins in The Belmont Report: Ethical Principles and Guidelines for the Protection of Human Subjects of Research (National Commission for the Protection of Human Subjects of Biomedical and Behavioral Research, 1979). This report defined the principles and applications that have guided more detailed regulations developed by the American Psychological Association and other professional societies and U.S. federal regulations that apply to both medical and behavioral research investigations.

The three basic ethical principles of the Belmont Report are:

· Beneficence—research should confer benefits and risks must be minimal. The associated application is the necessity to conduct a risk-benefit analysis.

· Respect for persons (autonomy)—participants are treated as autonomous; they are capable of making deliberate decisions about whether to participate in research. The associated application is informed Page 47consent—potential participants in a research project should be provided with all information that might influence their decision on whether to participate.

· Justice—there must be fairness in receiving the benefits of research as well as bearing the burdens of accepting risks. This principle is applied in the selection of subjects for research.

APA ETHICS CODE

The American Psychological Association (APA) has provided leadership in formulating ethical principles and standards. The Ethical Principles of Psychologists and Code of Conduct—known as the  APA Ethics Code —is amended periodically with the current version always available online at http://apa.org/ethics/code. The Ethics Code applies to psychologists in their many roles including teachers, researchers, and practitioners. We have included the sections relevant to research in Appendix B.

APA Ethics Code: Five Principles

The APA Ethics Code includes five general ethical principles: beneficence and nonmaleficence, fidelity and responsibility, integrity, justice, and respect for rights and responsibilities. Next, we will discuss the ways that these principles relate to research practice.

Principle A: Beneficence and Nonmaleficence As in the Belmont Report, the principle of Beneficence refers to the need for research to maximize benefits and minimize any possible harmful effects of participation. The Ethics Code specifically states: “Psychologists strive to benefit those with whom they work and take care to do no harm. In their professional actions, psychologists seek to safeguard the welfare and rights of those with whom they interact professionally and other affected persons and the welfare of animal subjects of research.”

Principle B: Fidelity and Responsibility The principle of Fidelity and Responsibility states: “Psychologists establish relationships of trust with those with whom they work. They are aware of their professional and scientific responsibilities to society and to the specific communities in which they work.” For researchers, such trust is primarily applicable to relationships with research participants.

Researchers make several implicit contracts with participants during the course of a study. For example, if participants agree to be present for a study at a specific time, the researcher should also be there. If researchers promise to send a summary of the results to participants, they should do so. If participants are to receive course credit for participation, the researcher must immediately let the instructor know that the person took part in the study. These may seem Page 48to be little details, but they are very important in maintaining trust between participants and researchers.

Principle C: Integrity The principle of Integrity states: “Psychologists seek to promote accuracy, honesty and truthfulness in the science, teaching and practice of psychology. In these activities psychologists do not steal, cheat or engage in fraud, subterfuge or intentional misrepresentation of fact.” Later in this chapter, we will cover the topic of integrity in the context of being an ethical researcher.

Principle D: Justice As in the Belmont Report, the principle of Justice refers to fairness and equity. Principle D states: “Psychologists recognize that fairness and justice entitle all persons to access to and benefit from the contributions of psychology and to equal quality in the processes, procedures and services being conducted by psychologists.”

Consider the Tuskegee Syphilis study, or the similar study conducted in Guatemala. In both cases there was a cure for syphilis (i.e., penicillin) that was withheld from participants. This is a violation of principle D of the APA Ethics Code and a violation of the Belmont Report’s principle of Justice.

Principle E: Respect for People’s Rights and Dignity The last of the five APA ethical principles builds upon the Belmont Report principle of Respect for Persons. It states: “Psychologists respect the dignity and worth of all people, and the rights of individuals to privacy, confidentiality, and self-determination. Psychologists are aware that special safeguards may be necessary to protect the rights and welfare of persons or communities whose vulnerabilities impair autonomous decision making. Psychologists are aware of and respect cultural, individual, and role differences, including those based on age, gender, gender identity, race, ethnicity, culture, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, disability, language, and socioeconomic status, and consider these factors when working with members of such groups. Psychologists try to eliminate the effect on their work of biases based on those factors, and they do not knowingly participate in or condone activities of others based upon such prejudices.”

One of the ethical dilemmas in the Milgram obedience study was the fact that participants did not know that they were participating in a study of obedience. This limited participants’ rights to self-determination. Later, we will explore this issue in depth.

Protecting Research Subjects

The preamble to the APA Ethics Code states: “Psychologists are committed to increasing scientific and professional knowledge of behavior and people’s understanding of themselves and others and to the use of such knowledge to improve the condition of individuals, organizations and society.” By internalizing and adhering to ethical principles we support and nurture a healthy science. Page 49With this in mind, we will consider the ways in which research subjects—humans and animals—are protected in behavioral research.

ASSESSMENT OF RISKS AND BENEFITS

The principle of beneficence leads us to examine potential risks and benefits that are likely to result from the research; this is called a  risk-benefit analysis.  Ethical principles require asking whether the research procedures have minimized risk to participants.

The potential risks to the participants include such factors as psychological or physical harm and loss of confidentiality; we will discuss these in detail. In addition, the cost of notconducting the study if in fact the proposed procedure is the only way to collect potentially valuable data can be considered (cf. Christensen, 1988). The benefits include direct benefits to the participants, such as an educational benefit, acquisition of a new skill, or treatment for a psychological or medical problem. There may also be material benefits such as a monetary payment, some sort of gift, or even the possibility of winning a prize in a raffle. Other less tangible benefits include the satisfaction gained through being part of a scientific investigation and the potential beneficial applications of the research findings (e.g., the knowledge gained through the research might improve future educational practices, psychotherapy, or social policy). As we will see, current regulations concerning the conduct of research with human participants require a risk-benefit analysis before research can be approved.

Risks in Behavioral Research

Let’s return to a consideration of Milgram’s research. The risk of experiencing stress and psychological harm is obvious. It is not difficult to imagine the effect of delivering intense shocks to an obviously unwilling learner. A film that Milgram made shows participants protesting, sweating, and even laughing nervously while delivering the shocks. You might ask whether subjecting people to such a stressful experiment is justified, and you might wonder whether the experience had any long-range consequences for the volunteers. For example, did participants who obeyed the experimenter feel continuing remorse or begin to see themselves as cruel, inhumane people? Let’s consider some common risks in behavioral research.

Physical harm Procedures that could conceivably cause some physical harm to participants are rare but possible. Many medical procedures fall into this category, for example, administering a drug such as alcohol or caffeine. Other studies might expose subjects to physical stressors such as loud noise, extreme hot or cold temperatures, or deprivation of sleep for an extended period of. The risks in such procedures require that great care be taken to make them ethically acceptable. Moreover, there would need to be clear benefits of the research that would outweigh the potential risks.

Page 50Stress More common than physical stress is psychological stress. The participants in the Milgram study were exposed to a high level of stress; they believed that they were delivering fatal doses of electricity to another person. Milgram described one of his participants:

While continuing to read the word pairs with a show of outward strength, she mutters in a tone of helplessness to the experimenter, “Must I go on? Oh, I’m worried about him. Are we going all the way up there (pointing to the higher end of the generator)? Can’t we stop? I’m shaking. I’m shaking. Do I have to go up there?”

She regains her composure temporarily but then cannot prevent periodic outbursts of distress (Milgram, 1974, p. 80).

There are other examples. For instance, participants might be told that they will receive some extremely intense electric shocks. They never actually receive the shocks; it is the fear or anxiety during the waiting period that is the variable of interest. Research by Schachter (1959) employing a procedure like this showed that the anxiety produced a desire to affiliate with others during the waiting period.

In another procedure that produces psychological stress, participants are given unfavorable feedback about their personalities or abilities. Researchers may administer a test that is described as a measure of social intelligence and then told that they scored very high or very low. The impact of this feedback can then be studied. Asking people about traumatic or unpleasant events in their lives might also cause stress for some participants. Thus, research that asks people to think about the deaths of a parent, spouse, or friend, or their memories of living through a disaster could trigger a stressful reaction.

When using procedures that may create psychological distress, the researcher must ask whether all safeguards have been taken to help participants deal with the stress. Usually a debriefing session following the study is designed in part to address any potential problems that may arise during the research.

Confidentiality and privacy Another risk is the loss of expected privacy and confidentiality. Confidentiality is an issue when the researcher has assured subjects that the collected data are only accessible to people with permission, generally only the researcher. This becomes particularly important when studying topics such as sexual behavior, divorce, family violence, or drug abuse; in these cases, researchers may need to ask people very sensitive questions about their private lives. Or consider a study that obtained information about employees’ managers. It is extremely important that responses to such questions be confidential; revealing the responses of an individual could result in real harm. In most cases, researchers will attempt to avoid confidentiality problems by making sure that the responses are completely anonymous—there is no way to connect any person’s identity with the data. This happens, for example, when questionnaires are administered to groups of people and no Page 51information is asked that could be used to identify an individual (such as name, taxpayer identification number, email address, or phone number). However, in other cases, such as a personal interview in which the identity of the person might be known, the researcher must carefully plan ways of coding data, storing data, and explaining the procedures to participants so that there is no question concerning the confidentiality of responses.

Invasion of privacy becomes an issue when the researcher collects information under circumstances that the subject believes are private—free from unwanted observation by others. In some studies, researchers make observations of behavior in public places without informing the people being observed. Observing people as they are walking in a public space, stopped at a traffic light, or drinking in a bar does not seem to present any major ethical problems. However, what if a researcher wishes to observe behavior in more private settings or in ways that may violate individuals’ privacy (see Wilson & Donnerstein, 1976)? For example, would it be ethical to rummage through people’s trash or watch people in public restrooms? The Internet has posed other issues of privacy. Every day, thousands of people post messages on websites. The messages can potentially be used as data to understand attitudes, disclosure of personal information, and expressions of emotion. Many messages are public postings, much like a letter sent to a newspaper or magazine. But consider websites devoted to psychological and physical problems that people seek out for information and support. Many of these sites require registration to post messages. Consider a researcher interested in using one of these sites for data. What ethical issues arise in this case? Buchanan and Williams (2010) address these and other ethical issues that arise when doing research using the Internet.

INFORMED CONSENT

Recall Principle E of the APA Ethics Code (Respect for People’s Rights and Dignity)—research participants are to be treated as autonomous. They are capable of making deliberate decisions about whether to participate in research. The key idea here is informed consent—potential participants in a research project should be provided with all information that might influence their active decision of whether or not to participate in a study. Thus, research participants should be informed about the purposes of the study, the risks and benefits of participation, and their rights to refuse or terminate participation in the study. They can then freely consent or refuse to participate in the research.

Informed Consent Form

Participants are usually provided with some type of informed consent form that contains the information that participants need to make their decision. Most commonly, the form is presented for the participant to read and agree Page 52to. There are numerous examples of informed consent forms available on the Internet. Your college may have developed examples through the research office. A checklist for an informed consent form is provided in Figure 3.1. Note that the checklist addresses both content and format. The content will typically cover (1) the purpose of the research, (2) procedures that will be used including time involved (remember that you do not need to tell participants exactly what is being studied), (3) risks and benefits, (4) any compensation, (5) confidentiality, (6) assurance of voluntary participation and permission to withdraw, and (7) contact information for questions.

 

FIGURE 3.1

Creating an informed consent form

Page 53The form must be written so that participants understand the information in the form. In some cases, the form was so technical or loaded with legal terminology that it is very unlikely that the participants fully realized what they were signing. In general, consent forms should be written in simple and straightforward language that avoids jargon and technical terminology (generally at a sixth- to eighth-grade reading level; most word processors provide grade-level information with the Grammar Check feature). To make the form easier to understand, it should not be written in the first person. Instead, information should be provided as if the researcher were simply having a conversation with the participant. Thus, the form might say Participation in this study is voluntary. You may decline to participate without penalty, instead of I understand that participation in this study is voluntary. I may decline to participate without penalty. The first statement is providing information to the participant in a straightforward way using the second person (“you”), whereas the second statement has a legalistic tone that may be more difficult to understand. Finally, if participants are non-English speakers, they should receive a translated version of the form.

Autonomy Issues

Informed consent seems simple enough; however, there are important issues to consider. The first concerns lack of autonomy. What happens when the participants lack the ability to make a free and informed decision to voluntarily participate? Special populations such as minors, patients in psychiatric hospitals, or adults with cognitive impairments require special precautions. When minors are asked to participate, for example, a written consent form signed by a parent or guardian is generally required in addition to agreement by the minor; this agreement by a minor is formally called assent. The Society for Research on Child Development has established guidelines for ethical research with children (see http://www.srcd.org/about-us/ethical-standards-research).

Coercion is another threat to autonomy. Any procedure that limits an individual’s freedom to consent is potentially coercive. For example, a supervisor who asks employees to fill out a survey during a staff meeting or a professor requiring students to participate in a study in order to pass the course is applying considerable pressure on potential participants. The employees may believe that the supervisor will somehow punish them if they do not participate; they also risk embarrassment if they refuse in front of co-workers. Sometimes benefits are so great that they become coercive. For example, a prisoner may believe that increased privileges or even a favorable parole decision may result from participation. Sometimes even an incentive can be seen as coercive—imagine being offered $1,000 to participate in a study. Researchers must consider these issues and make sure that autonomy is preserved.

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Withholding Information and Deception

It may have occurred to you that providing all information about the study to participants might be unwise. Providing too much information could potentially invalidate the results of the study; for example, researchers usually will withhold information about the hypothesis of the study or the particular condition an individual is participating in (see Sieber, 1992). It is generally acceptable to withhold information when the information would not affect the decision to participate and when the information will later be provided, usually in a debriefing session when the study is completed. Most people who volunteer for psychology research do not expect full disclosure about the study prior to participation. However, they do expect a thorough debriefing after they have completed the study. Debriefing will be described after we consider the more problematic issue of deception.

It may also have occurred to you that there are research procedures in which informed consent is not necessary or even possible. If you choose to observe the number of same-sex and mixed-sex study groups in your library, you probably do not need to announce your presence and obtain anyone’s permission. If you study the content of the self-descriptions that people write for an online dating service, do you need to contact each person to include their information in your study? When planning research, it is important to make sure that you do have good reasons not to obtain informed consent.

In research, deception occurs when there is active misrepresentation of information about the nature of a study. The Milgram experiment illustrates two types of deception. First, as noted earlier, participants were deceived about the purpose of the study. Participants in the Milgram experiment agreed to take part in a study of memory and learning, but they actually took part in a study on obedience. Who could imagine that a memory and learning experiment (that title does sound tame, after all) would involve delivering high-intensity, painful electric shocks to another person? Participants in the Milgram experiment did not know what they were letting themselves in for.

The Milgram study was conducted before informed consent was routine; however, you can imagine that Milgram’s consent form would inaccurately have participants agree to be in a memory study. They would also be told that they are free to withdraw from the study at any time. Is it possible that the informed consent procedure would affect the outcome of the study? Knowledge that the research is designed to study obedience would likely alter the behavior of the participants. Few of us like to think of ourselves as obedient, and we would probably go out of our way to prove that we are not. Research indicates that providing informed consent may in fact bias participants’ responses, at least in some research areas. For example, research on stressors such as noise or crowding has shown that a feeling of “control” over a stressor reduces its negative impact. If you know that you can terminate a loud, obnoxious noise, the noise produces less stress than when the noise is uncontrollable. Studies by Gardner (1978) and Dill, Gilden, Hill, and Hanslka (1982) have demonstrated Page 55that informed consent procedures do increase perceptions of control in stress experiments and therefore can affect the conclusions drawn from the research.

It is also possible that the informed consent procedure may bias the sample. In the Milgram experiment, if participants had prior knowledge that they would be asked to give severe shocks to the other person, some might have declined to be in the experiment. Therefore, we might limit our ability to generalize the results only to those “types” who agreed to participate. If this were true, anyone could say that the obedient behavior seen in the Milgram experiment occurred simply because the people who agreed to participate were sadists in the first place!

Second, the Milgram study also illustrates a type of deception in which participants become part of a series of events staged for the purposes of the study. A confederate of the experimenter played the part of another participant in the study; Milgram created a reality for the participant in which obedience to authority could be observed. Such deception has been most common in social psychology research; it is much less frequent in areas of experimental psychology such as human perception, learning, memory, and motor performance. Even in these areas, researchers may use a cover story to make the experiment seem plausible and involving (e.g., telling participants that they are reading actual newspaper stories for a study on readability when the true purpose is to examine memory errors or organizational schemes).

The problem of deception is not limited to laboratory research. Procedures in which observers conceal their purposes, presence, or identity are also deceptive. For example, Humphreys (1970) studied the sexual behavior of men who frequented public restrooms (called tearooms). Humphreys did not directly participate in sexual activities, but he served as a lookout who would warn the others of possible intruders. In addition to observing the activities in the tearoom, Humphreys wrote down license plate numbers of tearoom visitors. Later, he obtained the addresses of the men, disguised himself, and visited their homes to interview them. Humphreys’ procedure is certainly one way of finding out about anonymous sex in public places, but it employs considerable deception.

Is Deception a Major Ethical Problem in Psychological Research?

Many psychologists believe that the problem of deception has been exaggerated (Bröder, 1998; Kimmel, 1998; Korn, 1998; Smith & Richardson, 1985). Bröder argues that the extreme examples of elaborate deception cited by these critics are rare.

In the decades since the Milgram experiments, some researchers have attempted to assess the use of deception to see if elaborate deception has indeed become less common. Because most of the concern over this type of deception arises in social psychological research, attempts to address this issue have focused on social psychology. Gross and Fleming (1982) reviewed 691 social psychological studies published in the 1960s and 1970s. Although most research in the 1970s still used deception, the deception primarily involved false cover stories.

Page 56Has the trend away from deception continued? Sieber, Iannuzzo, and Rodriguez (1995) examined the studies published in the Journal of Personality and Social Psychology in 1969, 1978, 1986, and 1992. The number of studies that used some form of deception decreased from 66% in 1969 to 47% in 1978 and to 32% in 1986 but increased again to 47% in 1992. The large drop in 1986 may be due to an increase that year in the number of studies on such topics as personality that require no deception to carry out. Also, informed consent was more likely to be explicitly described in 1992 than in previous years, and debriefing was more likely to be mentioned in the years after 1969. However, false cover stories are still frequently used. Korn (1997) has also concluded that use of deception is decreasing in social psychology.

There are three primary reasons for a decrease in the type of elaborate deception seen in the Milgram study. First, more researchers have become interested in cognitive variables rather than emotions and so use methods that are similar to those used by researchers in memory and cognitive psychology. Second, the general level of awareness of ethical issues as described in this chapter has led researchers to conduct studies in other ways. Third, ethics committees at universities and colleges now review proposed research more carefully, so elaborate deception is likely to be approved only when the research is important and there are no alternative procedures available (ethics review boards are described later in this chapter).

THE IMPORTANCE OF DEBRIEFING

Debriefing occurs after the completion of a study. It is an opportunity for the researcher to deal with issues of withholding information, deception, and potential harmful effects of participation. Debriefing is one way that researchers can follow the guidelines in the APA Ethics Code, particularly Principles B (Fidelity and Responsibility), C (Integrity), and E (Respect for People’s Rights and Dignity).

If participants were deceived in any way, the researcher needs to explain why the deception was necessary. If the research altered a participant’s physical or psychological state in some way—as in a study that produces stress—the researcher must make sure that the participant has calmed down and is comfortable about having participated. If a participant needs to receive additional information or to speak with someone else about the study, the researcher should provide access to these resources. The participants should leave the experiment without any ill feelings toward the field of psychology, and they may even leave with some new insight into their own behavior or personality.

Debriefing also provides an opportunity for the researcher to explain the purpose of the study and tell participants what kinds of results are expected and perhaps discuss the practical implications of the results. In some cases, researchers may contact participants later to inform them of the actual results of the study. Thus, debriefing has both an educational and an ethical purpose.

The Milgram study can also teach us something about the importance of debriefing. Milgram described a very thorough debriefing. However, an Page 57examination of original records and interviews with subjects by Perry (2013) reveals that often the debriefing was little more than seeing that Mr. Wallace was indeed not harmed. Many subjects were rushed from the lab; some did not even learn that no shocks were actually administered but only found that out when Milgram mailed a report of his research findings to the subjects 6 months after data collection was completed (and some never received the letter). Today we would consider Milgram’s less than thorough debriefing immediately following the experiment to be a real problem with his research procedure.

Despite all the problems of the stress of the procedure and the rather sloppy debriefing, most of the subjects in the Milgram studies were positive about their experience. The letter that Milgram sent with a detailed report of the study included a questionnaire to assess subjects’ reactions to the experiment; 92% of the subjects returned the questionnaire. The responses showed that 84% were glad that they had participated, and 74% said they had benefited from the experience. Only 1% said they were sorry they had participated (Blass, 2004). Other researchers who have conducted further work on the ethics of the Milgram study reached the same conclusion (Ring, Wallston, & Corey, 1970).

More generally, research on the effectiveness of debriefing indicates that debriefing is an effective way of dealing with deception and other ethical issues that arise in research investigations (Oczak, 2007; Smith, 1983; Smith & Richardson, 1983). There is some evidence that in at least some circumstances, the debriefing needs to be thorough to be effective. In a study on debriefing by McFarland, Cheam, and Buehler (2007), participants were given false feedback about their ability to accurately judge whether suicide notes were genuine. After making judgment, they were told that they had succeeded or failed at the task. The researchers then gave different types of debriefing. A minimal debriefing only mentioned that the feedback they received was not based on their performance at all. A more thorough debriefing also included information that the suicide notes were not real. Participants with the additional information had a more accurate assessment of their ability than did subjects receiving the minimal debriefing procedure.

INSTITUTIONAL REVIEW BOARDS

While the Belmont Report provided an outline for issues of research ethics and the APA Ethics Code provides guidelines as well, the actual rules and regulations for the protection of human research participants were issued by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). Under these regulations (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2001), every institution that receives federal funds must have an Institutional Review Board (IRB) that is responsible for the review of research conducted within the institution. IRBs are local review agencies composed of at least five individuals; at least one member of the IRB must be from outside the institution. Every college and university in the United States that receives federal funding has an IRB; in addition, most psychology departments have their own research Page 58review committee (Chastain & Landrum, 1999). All research conducted by faculty, students, and staff associated with the institution is reviewed in some way by the IRB. This includes research that may be conducted at another location such as a school, community agency, hospital, or via the Internet.

The federal regulations for IRB oversight of research continue to evolve. For example, all researchers must now complete specified educational requirements. Most colleges and universities require students and faculty to complete one or more online tutorials on research ethics to meet these requirements.

The HHS regulations also categorized research according to the amount of risk involved in the research. This concept of risk was later incorporated into the Ethics Code of the American Psychological Association.

Exempt Research

Research in which there is no risk is exempt from review. Thus, anonymous questionnaires, surveys, and educational tests are all considered exempt research, as is naturalistic observation in public places when there is no threat to anonymity. Archival research in which the data being studied are publicly available or the participants cannot be identified is exempt as well. This type of research requires no informed consent. However, researchers cannot decide by themselves that research is exempt; instead, the IRB at the institution formulates a procedure to allow a researcher to apply for exempt status.

Minimal Risk Research

A second type of research activity is called minimal risk, which means that the risks of harm to participants are no greater than risks encountered in daily life or in routine physical or psychological tests. When minimal risk research is being conducted, elaborate safeguards are less of a concern, and approval by the IRB is routine. Some of the research activities considered minimal risk are (1) recording routine physiological data from adult participants (e.g., weighing, tests of sensory acuity, electrocardiography, electroencephalography, diagnostic echography, and voice recordings)—note that this would not include recordings that might involve invasion of privacy; (2) moderate exercise by healthy volunteers; and (3) research on individual or group behavior or characteristics of individuals—such as studies of perception, cognition, game theory, or test development—in which the researcher does not manipulate participants’ behavior and the research will not involve stress to participants.

Greater Than Minimal Risk Research

Any research procedure that places participants at greater than minimal risk is subject to thorough review by the IRB. Complete informed consent and other safeguards may be required before approval is granted.

Researchers planning to conduct an investigation are required to submit an application to the IRB. The application requires description of risks and benefits, procedures for minimizing risk, the exact wording of the informed consent form, how participants will be debriefed, and procedures for maintaining confidentiality. Even after a project is approved, there is continuing review. If it is a long-term project, it will be reviewed at least once each year. If there are any changes in procedures, researchers are required to obtain approval from the IRB. The three risk categories are summarized in Table 3.1.

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TABLE 3.1 Assessment of risk

 

RESEARCH WITH NONHUMAN ANIMAL SUBJECTS

Although much of this chapter has been concerned with the ethics of research with humans, you are no doubt well aware that psychologists sometimes conduct research with animals (Akins, Panicker, & Cunningham, 2005). Animals are used in behavioral research for a variety of reasons. Researchers can carefully control the environmental conditions of the animals, study the same animals over a long period, and monitor their behavior 24 hours a day if necessary. Animals are also used to test the effects of drugs and to study physiological and genetic mechanisms underlying behavior.

Page 60About 7% of the articles in Psychological Abstracts (now PsycINFO) in 1979 described studies involving nonhuman animals (Gallup & Suarez, 1985), and data indicate that the amount of research done with animals has been steadily declining (Thomas & Blackman, 1992). Most commonly, psychologists work with rats and mice and, to a lesser extent, birds (usually pigeons); according to surveys of animal research in psychology journals, over 95% of the animals used in research are rats, mice, and birds (see Gallup & Suarez, 1985; Viney, King, & Berndt, 1990). Some of the decline in animal research is attributed to increased interest in conducting cognitive research with human participants (Viney, et al., 1990). This interest in cognition is now extending to research with dogs. Canine cognition labs have been growing at universities in the United States, Canada, and around the world (e.g., Yale, Harvard, Duke, Barnard, University of Florida, University of Western Ontario; see, for example, dogcognition.com). Typically the subjects are family pets that are brought to the lab by their owners.

In recent years, groups opposed to animal research in medicine, psychology, biology, and other sciences have become more vocal and active. Animal rights groups have staged protests at conventions of the American Psychological Association, animal research laboratories in numerous cities have been vandalized, and researchers have received threats of physical harm.

Scientists argue that animal research benefits humans and point to many discoveries that would not have been possible without animal research (Carroll & Overmier, 2001; Miller, 1985). Also, animal rights groups often exaggerate the amount of research that involves any pain or suffering whatsoever (Coile & Miller, 1984).

Plous (1996a, 1996b) conducted a national survey of attitudes toward the use of animals in research and education among psychologists and psychology majors. The attitudes of both psychologists and psychology students were quite similar. In general, there is support for animal research: 72% of the students support such research, 18% oppose it, and 10% are unsure (the psychologists “strongly” support animal research more than the students, however). In addition, 68% believe that animal research is necessary for progress in psychology. Still, there is some ambivalence and uncertainty about the use of animals: When asked whether animals in psychological research are treated humanely, 12% of the students said “no” and 44% were “unsure.” In addition, research involving rats or pigeons was viewed more positively than research with dogs or primates unless the research is strictly observational. Plous concluded that animal research in psychology will continue to be important for the field but will likely continue to decline as a proportion of the total amount of research conducted.

Animal research is indeed very important and will continue to be necessary to study many types of research. It is crucial to recognize that strict laws and ethical guidelines govern both research with animals and teaching procedures in which animals are used. Such regulations deal with the need for proper housing, feeding, cleanliness, and health care. They specify that the research must avoid any cruelty in the form of unnecessary pain to the animal. In addition, institutions in which animal research is carried out must have an Institutional Animal Care and Page 61Use Committee (IACUC) composed of at least one scientist, one veterinarian, and a community member. The IACUC is charged with reviewing animal research procedures and ensuring that all regulations are adhered to (see Holden, 1987).

The APA Ethics Code (see Appendix B) addresses the ethical responsibilities of researchers when studying nonhuman animals. APA has also developed a more detailed Guidelines for Ethical Conduct in the Care and Use of Nonhuman Animals (http://www.apa.org/science/leadership/care/guidelines.aspx). Clearly, psychologists are concerned about the welfare of animals used in research. Nonetheless, this issue likely will continue to be controversial.

BEING AN ETHICAL RESEARCHER: THE ISSUE OF MISREPRESENTATION

Principle C of the APA Ethics Code focuses on integrity. The ethical researcher acts with integrity and in so doing does not engage in misrepresentation. Specifically, we will explore two specific types of misrepresentation: fraud and plagiarism.

Fraud

The fabrication of data is fraud. We must be able to believe the reported results of research; otherwise, the entire foundation of the scientific method as a means of knowledge is threatened. In fact, although fraud may occur in many fields, it probably is most serious in two areas: science and journalism. This is because science and journalism are both fields in which written reports are assumed to be accurate descriptions of actual events. There are no independent accounting agencies to check on the activities of scientists and journalists.

Instances of fraud in the field of psychology are considered to be very serious (cf. Hostetler, 1987; Riordan & Marlin, 1987), but fortunately, they are very rare (Murray, 2002). Perhaps the most famous case is that of Sir Cyril Burt, who reported that the IQ scores of identical twins reared apart were highly similar. The data were used to support the argument that genetic influences on IQ are extremely important. However, Kamin (1974) noted some irregularities in Burt’s data. A number of correlations for different sets of twins were exactly the same to the third decimal place, virtually a mathematical impossibility. This observation led to the discovery that some of Burt’s presumed co-workers had not in fact worked with him or had simply been fabricated. Ironically, though, Burt’s “data” were close to what has been reported by other investigators who have studied the IQ scores of twins.

In most cases, fraud is detected when other scientists cannot replicate the results of a study. Suspicions of fabrication of research data by social psychologist Karen Ruggiero arose when other researchers had difficulty replicating her published findings. The researcher subsequently resigned from her academic position and retracted her research findings (Murray, 2002). Sometimes fraud is detected by a colleague or by students who worked with the researcher. For example, Stephen Page 62Breuning was guilty of faking data showing that stimulants could be used to reduce hyperactive and aggressive behavior in children (Byrne, 1988). In this case, another researcher who had worked closely with Breuning had suspicions about the data; he then informed the federal agency that had funded the research.

A recent case of extensive fraud that went undetected for years involves a social psychologist at Tilburg University in the Netherlands (Verfaellie & McGwin, 2011). Diederik Stapel not only created data that changed the outcome of studies that were conducted, he also reported results of studies that were never conducted at all. His studies were published in prestigious journals and often reported in popular news outlets because his research reported intriguing findings (e.g., being in a messy, disorderly environment results in more stereotypical and discriminatory thoughts). Students eventually reported their suspicions to the university administration, but the fact that Stapel’s misconduct continued for so long is certainly troublesome. According to a committee that investigated Stapel, one cause was the fact the professor was powerful, prestigious, and charismatic. He would work closely with students to design studies but then collect the data himself. He would invite a colleague to take his existing data set to analyze and write a report. These are highly unusual practices but his students and colleagues did not question him.

Fraud is not a major problem in science in part because researchers know that others will read their reports and conduct further studies, including replications. They know that their reputations and careers will be seriously damaged if other scientists conclude that the results are fraudulent. In addition, the likelihood of detection of fraud has increased in recent years as data accessibility has become more open: Regulations of most funding agencies require researchers to make their data accessible to other scientists.

Why, then, do researchers sometimes commit fraud? For one thing, scientists occasionally find themselves in jobs with extreme pressure to produce impressive results. This is not a sufficient explanation, of course, because many researchers maintain high ethical standards under such pressure. Another reason is that researchers who feel a need to produce fraudulent data have an exaggerated fear of failure, as well as a great need for success and the admiration that comes with it. Every report of scientific misconduct includes a discussion of motivations such as these.

One final point: Allegations of fraud should not be made lightly. If you disagree with someone’s results on philosophical, political, religious, or other grounds, it does not mean that they are fraudulent. Even if you cannot replicate the results, the reason may lie in aspects of the methodology of the study rather than deliberate fraud. However, the fact that fraud could be a possible explanation of results stresses the importance of careful record keeping and documentation of the procedures and results.

Plagiarism

Plagiarism refers to misrepresenting another’s work as your own. Writers must give proper citation of sources. Plagiarism can take the form of submitting an entire paper written by someone else; it can also mean including a paragraph or Page 63even a sentence that is copied without using quotation marks and a reference to the source of the quotation. Plagiarism also occurs when you present another person’s ideas as your own rather than properly acknowledging the source of the ideas. Thus, even if you paraphrase the actual words used by a source, it is plagiarism if the source is not cited.

Although plagiarism is certainly not a new problem, access to Internet resources and the ease of copying material from the Internet may be increasing its prevalence. In fact, Szabo and Underwood (2004) report that more than 50% of a sample of British university students believe that using Internet resources for academically dishonest activities is acceptable. It is little wonder that many schools are turning to computer-based mechanisms of detecting plagiarism.

It is useful to further describe plagiarism as being “word for word” or “paraphrased.” Word-for-word plagiarism is when a writer copies a section of another person’s work word for word without providing quotation marks indicating that the segment was written by somebody else, nor a citation indicating the source of the information. As an example, consider the following paragraph from Burger (2009):

“Milgram’s obedience studies have maintained a place in psychology classes and textbooks largely because of their implications for understanding the worst of human behaviors, such as atrocities, massacres, and genocide.” (Burger, 2009, p.10).

Word-for-word plagiarism would be if a writer wrote the following in his or her work without attributing it to Burger (2009):

Since they were conducted in the 1960s, Milgram’s obedience studies have maintained a place in psychology classes and textbooks largely because of their implications for understanding the worst of human behaviors, including atrocities, massacres, and genocide.

In that case, plagiarized text is highlighted. Note that adding a few words, or changing a few words, does not change the fact that much of the text is taken from another source, without attribution.

Being an ethical writer would mean using quotation marks around sentences that were directly taken from the original source and including a citation. For instance:

Burger (2009) concluded that since they were conducted in the 1960s “Milgram’s obedience studies have maintained a place in psychology classes and textbooks largely because of their implications for understanding the worst of human behaviors, such as atrocities, massacres, and genocide.” (p. 10).

Paraphrasing is when a writer expresses the meaning of a passage of text without using the actual words of the text. So, in paraphrasing plagiarism the words are not directly copied without attribution, but the ideas are copied without attribution. Page 64Note that there is not a “number or percentage of words” that moves writing from plagiarism to not being plagiarism, but rather it is the underlying idea.

An example of paraphrasing plagiarism is more difficult. Let us use the same passage:

“Milgram’s obedience studies have maintained a place in psychology classes and textbooks largely because of their implications for understanding the worst of human behaviors, such as atrocities, massacres, and genocide.” (Burger, 2009, p. 10).

One example of paraphrasing plagiarism would be:

Humans are capable of many vile and reprehensible acts. The reality is that Milgram’s studies have remained important to psychology because they seem to explain these behaviors.

Here the basic idea presented is directly related to the passage in Burger (2009). In this case, ethical writing may be:

Humans are capable of many vile and reprehensible acts. The reality is that Milgram’s studies have remained important to psychology because they seem to explain these behaviors (Burger, 2009).

Figure 3.2 provides a useful guide in how to understanding plagiarism in your own writing using two key questions: Did I write the words? And did I think of the idea?

 

FIGURE 3.2

Guide for avoiding plagiarism in writing

Page 65Plagiarism is wrong and can lead to many severe consequences, including academic sanctions such as a failing grade or expulsion from the school. Because plagiarism is often a violation of copyright law, it can be prosecuted as a criminal offense as well. Finally, it is interesting to note that some students believe that citing sources weakens their paper—that they are not being sufficiently original. In fact, Harris (2002) notes that student papers are actually strengthened when sources are used and properly cited.

CONCLUSION: RISKS AND BENEFITS REVISITED

You are now familiar with the ethical issues that confront researchers who study human and animal behavior. When you make decisions about research ethics, you need to consider the many factors associated with risk to the participants. Are there risks of psychological harm or loss of confidentiality? Who are the research participants? What types of deception, if any, are used in the procedure? How will informed consent be obtained? What debriefing procedures are being used? You also need to weigh the direct benefits of the research to the participants, as well as the scientific importance of the research and the educational benefits to the students who may be conducting the research for a class or degree requirement (see Figure 3.3).

These are not easy decisions. Consider a study in which a confederate posing as another subject insults the participant (Vasquez, Pederson, Bushman, Kelley, Demeestere, & Miller, 2013). The subject wrote an essay expressing attitudes on a controversial topic; subsequently, the subject heard the confederate evaluate the essay as unclear, unconvincing, and “one of the worst things I have read in a long time.” The subject could then behave aggressively in choosing the amount of hot sauce that the other person would have to consume in another part of the experiment. The insult did lead to choosing more hot sauce, particularly if the subject was given an opportunity to ruminate about it rather than being distracted by other tasks. Instances of aggression following perceived insults are common so you can argue that this is an important topic. Do you believe that the potential benefits of the study to society and science outweigh the risks involved in the procedure?

Obviously, an IRB reviewing this study concluded that the researchers had sufficiently minimized risks to the participants such that the benefits outweighed the costs. If you ultimately decide that the costs outweigh the benefits, you must conclude that the study cannot be conducted in its current form. You may suggest alternative procedures that could make it acceptable. If the benefits outweigh the costs, you will likely decide that the research should be carried out. Your calculation might differ from another person’s calculation, which is precisely why having ethics review boards is such a good idea. An appropriate review of research proposals makes it highly unlikely that unethical research will be approved.

Page 66

 

FIGURE 3.3

Analysis of risks and benefits

Ethical guidelines and regulations evolve over time. The APA Ethics Code and federal, state, and local regulations may be revised periodically. Researchers need to always be aware of the most current policies and procedures. In the following chapters, we will discuss many specific procedures for studying behavior. As you read about these procedures and apply them to research you may be interested in, remember that ethical considerations are always paramount.

In the time when Stanley Milgram was conceptualizing his obedience experiments there were no institutional review boards. If there had been, it might have been a difficult study to have approved. Participants were not informed of the purpose of the study (indeed, they were deceived into thinking that it was a study of learning), and they were also deceived into thinking that they were harming another person. The struggle is, of course, that if participants had known the true nature of the study, or that they were not really delivering electric shocks, the results would not have been as meaningful.

The Milgram study was partially replicated by Berger in 2009. That study is included as the Illustrative Article for this chapter.

Page 67

ILLUSTRATIVE ARTICLE: REPLICATION OF MILGRAM

Burger (2009) conducted a partial replication of the classic Stanley Milgram obedience studies.

First, acquire and read the article:

Burger, J. M. (2009). Replicating Milgram: Would people still obey today? American Psychologist, 64(1), 1–11. doi:10.1037/a0010932

Then, after reading the article, consider the following:

1. Conduct an informal risk-benefit analysis. What are the risks and benefits inherent in this study as described? Do you think that the study is ethically justifiable given your analysis? Why or why not?

2. Do you think that the study is ethically justifiable given your analysis? Why or why not?

3. How did Burger screen participants in the study? What was the purpose of the screening procedure?

4. Burger paid participants $50 for two 45-minute sessions. Could this be considered coercive? Why or why not?

5. Describe the risks to research participants in Burger’s study.

6. Burger uses deception in this study. Is it acceptable? Do you believe that the debriefing session described in the report adequately addresses the issues of deception?

Study Terms

APA Ethics Code (p. 47)

Autonomy (Belmont Report) (p. 46)

Belmont Report (p. 46)

Beneficence (Belmont Report) (p. 47)

Confidentiality (p. 50)

Debriefing (p. 56)

Deception (p. 54)

Exempt research (p. 58)

Fidelity and Responsibility (p. 47)

Fraud (p. 61)

IACUC (p. 61)

Informed consent (p. 51)

Institutional Review Board (IRB) (p. 57)

Integrity (p. 48)

Justice (Belmont Report) (p. 48)

Minimal risk research (p. 58)

Paraphrasing plagiarism (p. 63)

Plagiarism (p. 62)

Respect for person (p. 48)

Risk (p. 49)

Risk-benefit analysis (p. 49)

Word-for-word plagiarism (p. 63)

Page 68

Review Questions

1. Discuss the major ethical issues in behavioral research including risks, benefits, deception, debriefing, informed consent, and justice. How can researchers weigh the need to conduct research against the need for ethical procedures?

2. Why is informed consent an ethical principle? What are the potential problems with obtaining fully informed consent?

3. What alternatives to deception are described in the text?

4. Summarize the principles concerning research with human participants in the APA Ethics Code.

5. What is the difference between “no risk” and “minimal risk” research activities?

6. What is an Institutional Review Board?

7. Summarize the ethical procedures for research with animals.

8. What constitutes fraud, what are some reasons for its occurrence, and why does it not occur more frequently?

9. Describe how you would proceed to identify plagiarism in a writing assignment.

Activities

1. Find your college’s code of student conduct online and review the section on plagiarism. How would you improve this section? What would you tell your professors to do to help students avoid plagiarism?

2. Indiana University created an excellent online resource called “How to Recognize Plagiarism” (you can find it here: https://www.indiana.edu/∼istd/plagiarism_test.html). Complete the test!

3. Consider the following experiment, similar to one that was conducted by Smith, Lingle, and Brock (1978). Each participant interacted for an hour with another person who was actually an accomplice. After this interaction, both persons agreed to return 1 week later for another session with each other. When the real participants returned, they were informed that the person they had met the week before had died. The researchers then measured reactions to the death of the person.

a. Discuss the ethical issues raised by the experiment.

b. Would the experiment violate the guidelines articulated in APA Ethical Standard 8 dealing with research with human participants? In what ways?

c. What alternative methods for studying this problem (reactions to death) might you suggest?

d. Would your reactions to this study be different if the participants had played with an infant and then later been told that the infant had died?Page 69

4. In a procedure described in this chapter, participants are given false feedback about an unfavorable personality trait or a low ability level. What are the ethical issues raised by this procedure? Compare your reactions to that procedure with your reactions to an analogous one in which people are given false feedback that they possess a very favorable personality trait or a very high ability level.

5. A social psychologist conducts a field experiment at a local bar that is popular with college students. Interested in observing flirting techniques, the investigator instructs male and female confederates to smile and make eye contact with others at the pub for varying amounts of time (e.g., 2 seconds, 5 seconds, etc.) and varying numbers of times (e.g., once, twice, etc.). The investigator observes the responses of those receiving the gaze. What ethical considerations, if any, do you perceive in this field experiment? Is there any deception involved?

6. Should people who are observed in field experiments be debriefed? Write a paragraph supporting the proposition and another paragraph supporting the con position.

7. Dr. Alucard conducted a study to examine various aspects of the sexual behaviors of college students. The students filled out a questionnaire in a classroom on the campus; about 50 students were tested at a time. The questionnaire asked about prior experience with various sexual practices. If a student had experience, a number of other detailed questions were asked. However, if the student did not have any prior experience, he or she skipped the detailed questions and simply went on to answer another general question about a sexual experience. What ethical issues arise when conducting research such as this? Do you detect any specific problems that might arise because of the “skip” procedure used in this study?

8. Read the following research scenarios and assess the risk to participants by placing a check mark in the appropriate box (answers on next page).

Page 70

 

9. Review this slide show that describes the Stanford Prison Experiment: http://www.prisonexp.org. Then address questions 12 and 13 from the Discussion Questions on the website:

· Was it ethical to do this study? Was it right to trade the suffering experienced by participants for the knowledge gained by the research? (The Page 71experimenters did not take this issue lightly, although the Slide Show may sound somewhat matter-of-fact about the events and experiences that occurred.) (Source: http://www.prisonexp.org/discussion.htm)

· How do the ethical dilemmas in this research compare with the ethical issues raised by Stanley Milgram’s obedience experiments? Would it be better if these studies had never been done? (Source: http://www.prisonexp.org/discussion.htm)

Answers

QUESTION 8:

a. Greater than minimal risk

b. Minimal risk

c. No risk

d. Minimal risk

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