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Based on the ethical requirements of debriefing, explain why the researcher's current protocol is insufficient. What specific component of the debriefing process was neglected, and what must the researcher do to resolve this issue?
Case context: A social psychologist conducts a study on how negative feedback affects motivation. Participants are told they performed poorly on a cognitive task (a deception designed to induce mild frustration and self-doubt). In the debriefing session immediately following the task, the researcher explains that the task performance feedback was completely fabricated, explains the study's true focus, and dismisses the participants. Despite this explanation, several participants leave the lab expressing feelings of inadequacy and looking visibly distressed.
Question: Based on the ethical requirements of debriefing, explain why the researcher's current protocol is insufficient. What specific component of the debriefing process was neglected, and what must the researcher do to resolve this issue?
Sample answer: The researcher's protocol is insufficient because they neglected the requirement to minimize or reverse any harm or negative emotions induced during the experiment. Merely disclosing the deception and explaining the study design did not resolve the participants' negative emotional states. To address this, the researcher must take proactive steps to return the participants' mental and emotional states to normal before they leave the lab. For example, they could have the participants engage in a positive task, such as thinking happy thoughts, watching a happy video, or listening to happy music, to reverse the induced self-doubt.
Key points:
- Identify that the researcher failed to minimize or reverse the negative emotions (frustration/self-doubt) induced by the study.
- Explain that disclosing deception and research design alone is ethically insufficient if psychological distress remains.
- Describe the necessity of returning the participants' mental or emotional states to normal before they leave.
- Suggest a concrete action to alleviate the distress (e.g., happy thoughts, happy music, happy video, or self-esteem restoration).
Rubric: The answer should explain that revealing deception is not enough if negative emotions persist. It must identify that the researcher failed to minimize or reverse the negative emotions/frustration induced by the fake feedback. Finally, it must describe a proactive step to return the participant's mood or mental state to normal.
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Research Methods in Psychology - 4th American Edition @ KPU
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Debriefing Script
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Research Protocol
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