Question

What are the ethical guidelines that a psychologist needs to follow while conducting a psychological enquiry?

Answer 1

The following are the ethical guidelines that a psychologist needs to follow while conducting a psychological enquiry:

• Voluntary Participation − The person on whom the study has to be conducted has the choice of whether to participate or not in the study.

• Informed Consent − The participants should be informed about the nature of the study and its impact upon them before it starts.

• Debriefing − The participants have to be provided with information to complete their understanding of the research and enable them to leave the place or laboratory in the same mental and physical state as before the test was conducted.

• Sharing the results − The researcher has to share the results of the study with the participants to fulfil their expectations. The opinion of participants about the results also provides new insights to the researcher.

• Confidentiality of Data Source − The researcher has to make sure that the information given by the participants is kept confidential and not shared with other interested parties.

Henceforth, it is necessary for the researcher to ensure certain ethics and principles in order to respect an individual’s privacy and protect him/her from any harm caused by the research.