4 Ethics

Textbook Chapters (or similar texts)

• Informed Consent Checklist

• Overview of Belmont Report

• Overview of IRB

• Research Ethics: Washington State University

• Research Ethics: University of Minnesota

• What is Ethics in Research

Popular Press Articles

• Stanford Prison Experiment Continues to Shock

• Time to Dismiss the Stanford Prison Experiment

Videos

• A Closer Look at the Stanford Prison Experiment

Other Documents

• Belmont Report

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Inquiry-based Activity: Modern research ethics

Introduction: In many introductory psychology textbooks, the Stanford Prison Experiment is discussed as a tenet of social psychology. The ethical quandaries associated with the study are sometimes discussed, though often in passing as an after note. This activity will have students work through ethical questions faced by research psychologists, using the Stanford Prison Experiment as an example. They will also compare ethical requirements from decades past with requirements for modern research, with the understanding that past unethical studies may have been unproblematic at the time they were conducted.

Question to pose to students: Instructors should provide brief overview of the Stanford Prison Experiment, either in-class or by assigning a pre-class reading on the study. Students will then be asked to consider the following: Under current ethical standards, would the Stanford Prison Experiment be allowed? If yes, why? If no, what aspects of the study could be modified to make it allowable?

Students form a hypothesis: On their own, students should answer the questions above. Then, in pairs or small groups, they should discuss answers and form team-answers.

Students test their hypotheses: Have students look at resources regarding the Belmont Report and Institutional Review Boards. Given these requirements that govern modern research, were students correct in saying the Stanford Prison Experiment would/would not be allowed? Instruct students to modify their answers if necessary based on the Belmont Report and Institutional Review Boards.

Do the students’ hypotheses hold up?: Student groups should report out on their original answers, whether or not they modified their answers based on new information, and what their final answers are. Many students will report that the Stanford Prison Experiment would no longer be allowed to take place, but may not have completely understood the ethical principles underlying that answer. Discuss how their answers evolved in the context of new research standards. How do groups think the study could have been modified to match modern standards?