- Informed Consent
- Deception
- Freedom to Withdraw
- Protection from harm and debriefing
- Confidentiality
The first and important ethical principle is the "INFORMED CONSENT". This informed consent means that the participant is willing to participate in an experiment knowing the true nature of the experiment. Of course, this principle often causes dilemma for the one conducting an experiment. Because some experiments require "DECEPTION" or not telling the true nature of the experiment to the participants to gather data that are true. Deception is unethical but if the risks are minor it would do. Next is the "FREEDOM TO WITHDRAW", participants are given the privilege or the decision to withdraw at any time and any stage of the experiment. Before the experiment starts, the one conducting the experiment should tell the participants that they have the freedom to withdraw from the experiment at any time if they feel uncomfortable. Last for the principles that covers humans is the "PROTECTION FROM HARM AND DEBRIEFING", experimenter should not subject participants to anything that can have a negative after effect. Even an experiment that has minimal risk can impose an after effect to some participants, so the participant should have a way to contact the experimenter. Debriefing also includes thanking the participants and ensuring that no harm was done. "CONFIDENTIALITY", experimenter should treat the data gathered as a private matter. The dissemination of the data gathered would only be upon the agreement between the one conducting the experiment and the participants.
CODE OF ETHICS [ANIMALS]
There are three points in that are highlighted:
- Animal feels pain and their lives can be destroyed.
- Destroying or harming any living thing is dehumanizing to the human scientist.
- Claims about scientific progress being helped by animal research are forms of racism and like interracial bigotry, are completely unwarranted and unethical.
These points are reconsidered if and only if the benefits of the experiment outweighs the risks and harm that is inflicted on the animal.
TRUE EXPERIMENT
A TRUE EXPERIMENT uses a randomized sample. It is important to use a randomized population in a true experiment to ensure the prevention of biases. It is a good way in determining the cause-and-effect relationship between variables.
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