Case Study

Explain the modified procedure the researcher should use to eliminate the deception while still addressing the research question. Comprehensively explain why this modification successfully removes deception from the study.

Case context: A psychology researcher wants to study whether the age of college professors affects students' expectations of their teaching ability. The researcher gathers photographs of family members of different ages to show to participants. In the initial design, the researcher plans to tell participants that the photos are of real college professors. However, before submitting the proposal to the Institutional Review Board (IRB), the researcher decides to modify the procedure to eliminate deception.

Question: Explain the modified procedure the researcher should use to eliminate the deception while still addressing the research question. Comprehensively explain why this modification successfully removes deception from the study.

Sample answer: The researcher should modify the instructions by telling participants to imagine that the pictured individuals in the photos are college professors and to rate them accordingly. This modification removes deception because it replaces the false claim that the photos depict real professors with an explicit instruction to engage in a hypothetical scenario. Since the participants are aware they are imagining the scenario rather than being misled about the identity of the people in the photos, deception is eliminated.

Key points:

  • Instruct participants to imagine the pictured individuals are professors.
  • Ask participants to rate the pictured individuals accordingly based on this imagined scenario.
  • Eliminates deception by removing the false claim about the identity of the pictured individuals.
  • Allows the study of age-related expectations without misleading the participants.

Rubric: Grading Rubric: - 2 points: Identifies the nondeceptive alternative of asking participants to imagine the pictured individuals are professors. - 2 points: Explains that the change removes the false claim, making the task hypothetical and thereby eliminating deception.

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Updated 2026-05-27

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Research Methods in Psychology - 4th American Edition @ KPU

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