A health psychologist plans to conduct a study into alcohol use with adolescents in a country where the legal drinking age is 18.She plans to collect a sample of around 40 people under the age of 18 (20 male and 20 female)from a local youth organization and conduct face-to-face interviews and administer questionnaires that measure alcohol consumption, personality, and well-being and she also plans to secretly observe whether the young people accept alcoholic drinks at the end-of-year function organized by the youth organization.Which of the following statements is true?
A)The only ethical issue in this research is that the young people will be covertly observed.
B)Covert observation is a matter that the ethics committee would have to consider as it raises numerous concerns about privacy and informed consent.
C)Covert observation is ethically acceptable so long as deception is not used.
D)Because hidden cameras are used all the time in reality television (that is only for entertainment), there is no problem in using them in serious scientific research to advance human knowledge.
E)Both (a)and (b).

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Covert observation raises numerous concerns about privacy and informed consent, and it is a matter that the ethics committee would have to consider. The other options are incorrect. A is incorrect because there are several other ethical issues present, such as obtaining informed consent from minors and protecting their confidentiality. C is incorrect because covert observation always raises ethical concerns, regardless of whether deception is used. D is incorrect because reality television is not held to the same ethical standards as scientific research and entertainment should not be used as a comparison for ethical research practices.

A Health Psychologist Plans to Conduct a Study into Alcohol