Masters in Psychology ~ 1.3

x AALiYah

Introduction to Foundations, Psychology Graduate Studies

week3 objectives:

• Code of Ethics

• Research

• Maturity

discussions age appropriateness for research studies.

the submission of the assignment on the Stanford Prison Experiment.

class objectives included identifying code of ethics in the field of psychology.

my original goals:

1. I want to know about legal psychology.

2. I want to see an example of a legal psychology case.

3. I want to see a successful family therapy case.

excerpt on my additions to the discussion:

• •               “'Adolescents Lack Sufficient Maturity to Consent to Medical Research'

•  'Drawing the line at age 14: Why Adolescents Should Be Able to Consent to Participation in Research' Adolescents should be able to consent to participation in research, with the adult-family member of their choosing present. The age limit for other maturity-level activities of comparison should be considered: driving, consumption of alcoholic beverages, smoking, etc. Just as adult supervision adds to the allowance of the young to participate in adult activities. Also, consideration in the fact that age is but a number, and that individuals mature at different rates, not solely based on the number of 365-day cycles they have been “alive.” Just as environment influences behavior, number does not guarantee experience or development.  

• What are the ethical issues of your position? The ethical issues of my position are… “It can be challenging enough for fully mature adults to walk away from physicians who appear to be offering beneficial treatment, or who may attempt to manipulate patients into participating in a research study.” (Cherry, 2023). By the reference, there is no guarantee that even with the presence of the adult of the adolescent’s choosing, that there is enough maturity in the room to consent to participation.  

• What is the ethical support for your position? The ethical support of my position:   “Arguments in favor of permitting adolescents to exercise their own judgment to participate in human subjects medical research often fail adequately to distinguish between the intellectual and affective components of consent to medical research, much less sufficiently to recognize the necessity of effective personal agency. (24) There is no clear correlation between an adolescent's intellectual abilities and that adolescent's effective executive capacity to make mature judgments. The risk of coercion or morally inappropriate undue influence, for example, can easily exist in the medical research environment. It can be challenging enough for fully mature adults to walk away from physicians who appear to be offering beneficial treatment, or who may attempt to manipulate patients into participating in a research study. Children, including adolescents, are socialized to follow instructions and adapt to adult wishes and expectations. (25) This includes not just parents and relatives, but other adults perceived as being in authority: teachers, administrators, coaches, police officers, nurses, and doctors and so forth. Adolescents have much less control over their social and physical environment than do adults. Adolescents generally lack the freedom easily to extricate themselves from the settings in which medical research occurs, whether the hospital, a doctor's office, or other health care settings, or even their school. In addition to questions regarding capacity, this risk of undue influence together with a lack of easy retreat and exit also threatens the likelihood that adolescent consent is actually free and voluntary.” (Cherry, 2023).    

• What guidelines from the APA Ethical Principles of Psychologists and Code of Conduct apply?

• Applicable APA Ethical Principles of Psychologists and Code of Conduct:  

  • 3. Follow informed-consent rules

  • 4. Respect confidentiality and privacy

• Five Principles for Research Ethics:

  • 1. Discuss intellectual property frankly: “Academe’s competitive ‘publish-or-perish’ mindset can be a recipe for trouble when it come to who gets credit for authorship. The best way to avoid disagreements about who should get credit and in what order is to talk about these issues at the beginning of a working relationship.” – “When researchers and students put such understanding in writing, they have a helpful tool to continually discuss and evaluate contributions as the research progresses.” – “APA stipulates that psychologists take credit only for work they have actually performed or to which they have substantially contributed and that publication credit should accurately reflect the relative contributions…”

  • 2. Be conscious of multiple roles: “..psychologists should think carefully before entering iinto multiple relationships with any person or group, such as recruiting students or clients as participants in research studies or investigating the effectiveness of a product of a company whose stock they own.” – “..experts also recommend that supervisors set up timely and specific methods to give students feedback and keep a record of the supervision, including meeting times, issues discussed and duties assigned.”
    

  • 3. Follow informed-consent rules: “When done properly, the consent process ensures that individuals are voluntarily participating in the research with full knowledge of relevant risks and benefits.” – “The federal standard is that the person must have all of the information that might influence their willingness to participate in a form that they can understand and comprehend..” “APA's Ethics Code mandates that psychologists who conduct research should inform participants about:

  • ·       The purpose of the research, expected duration and procedures.

  • ·       Participants' rights to decline to participate and to withdraw from the research once it has started, as well as the anticipated consequences of doing so.

  • ·       Reasonably foreseeable factors that may influence their willingness to participate, such as potential risks, discomfort or adverse effects.

  • ·       Any prospective research benefits

  • . ·       Limits of confidentiality, such as data coding, disposal, sharing and archiving, and when confidentiality must be broken. ·       Incentives for participation.

  • ·       Who participants can contact with questions.”  

  • 4. Respect confidentiality and privacy: “…researchers need to devise ways to ask whether participants are willing to talk about sensitive topics without putting them in awkward situations, say experts. That could mean they provide a set of increasingly detailed interview questions so that participants can stop if they feel uncomfortable.”

  • 5. Tap into ethics resources: APA's Ethics Code https://www.apa.org/ethics/code    

  •   References
    

https://www.apa.org/monitor/jan03/principles

https://www.apa.org/ethics/code

Cherry, Mark J. "Adolescents Lack Sufficient Maturity to Consent to Medical Research." Journal of Law, Medicine & Ethics, vol. 45, no. 3, fall 2017, pp. 370+. Gale In Context: College, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A528710939/CSIC?u=uphoenix&sid=ebsco&xid=4a06bc54. Accessed 23 Dec. 2023.http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/1073110517737528"

excerpt frm my assignment:

"Sxxxxxxxxx Axxxxxxxxx: Stanford Prison Experiment

Stanford Prison Experiment Introduction

            Standford Prison Experiment was constructed like a simulated matrix, an imitation of a prison reality to be observed. In doing so, inhumane activities occurred in the form of physical and psychological torture resulting in rebellion and termination. Deception tactics, including manipulation for fear of visiting parents would terminate the antics early, were made to prolong the inevitable. Code of Ethics were heavily violated as if check-listed to do so in this widely spoken of test.

Emulation Experiment

            “Our prison was physically constructed in the basement of Stanford's Psychology Department building. We took the doors off some laboratory rooms and replaced them with some especially made doors and cell numbers. (13) We boarded up either end of a long corridor. That corridor was the yard, and was the only place outside of his cell where the prisoner was allowed to walk. (14) At one end of the hall was a small opening through which we could videotape and record the events that occurred. On one side of the corridor was a small closet which became the “hole,” or solitary confinement. An intercom system allowed us to bug the cells and make public announcements to the prisoners. There were no windows or clocks to judge the passage of time, which later resulted in some time-distorting experiences.” (Zimbardo et al., 1971., pg. 6)

“The prisoners removed their stocking caps, ripped off their numbers and barricaded themselves inside the cells by putting their beds against the door. And now the problem was, what were we going to do about this rebellion? The guards were very much upset because the prisoners also began to taunt and curse them to their faces.”(Zimbardo et al., 1971., pg. 9)

“The rebellion had been crushed but now a new problem faced the guards. Sure, nine guards with clubs could put down a rebellion by nine prisoners, but you couldn't have nine guards on duty at all times. It's obvious that our prison budget could not support such a ratio of staff to inmates. So what were they going to do? One of the guards then came up with an ingenious solution. "Let's use psychological tactics instead of physical ones." Psychological tactics amounted to setting up a privilege cell. (46)” (Zimbardo et al., 1971., pg. 10) “We were worried that when the parents saw the state of our jail and of their children, they might insist on taking them home. To counter this, we first grossly manipulated the situation, and then we subtly manipulated the visitors.” (Zimbardo et al., 1971., pg. 12)

            “Here was a last futile attempt of a prisoner to assert his individuality by refusing to eat. The guards tried, but they couldn't get him to do so. Here was a chance for the other prisoners to reorganize and solidify behind this new act of rebellion. What did they do? How did the guards handle this" Well, the guards did everything they could to force-feed him.  They even tried to get the other prisoners to feed him. They began to punish his cell mates if he wouldn't eat, and finally they even threatened to cut off Thursday night visiting hours, an hour before the visitors came, if #416 didn't eat. The prisoners then exploded, not against the guards for this arbitrary rule, but against #416, screaming at him, cursing him, telling him he had to eat, that they weren't going to be inconvenienced by his stupid act of defiance. The guards then took #416 and put him in the hole, solitary, for three hours, although their own rule stated one hour was the limit. Still he refused. At this point he should have become a hero to the other prisoners. But what was he? He had become a trouble-maker..” (Zimbardo et al., 1971., pg. 19)

Quiet Rage: Stanford Prison Experiment

Qualitative Research Method involving observing individuals’ reality with real-world problems was used for this experiment. By viewing the film and then reading the book, the amount of construct for this simulation speaks to the intent of the researchers. Perhaps observing data already collected from current [real] prisons may have been an appropriate alternative to this simulation to qualify as the qualitative research sought. After viewing the film, a review of the film’s title describes said intent of the researchers – ‘quiet’ defined as, “carried out discreetly, secretly, or with moderation,” and ‘rage’ defined as, “a vehement desire or passion; an instance of aggressive behavior..”  (New Oxford American Dictionary Version 230 (294), 2023) – Quiet Rage matches want to covertly inflict harm. This is as if using the guise of an experiment to torture. As if to cause the very anxieties and related illness that psychologists seek to treat.

APA Ethics, Ethical Principles of Psychologists, and APA Code of Conduct

Due to thorough analysis referenced throughout this assessment, among all of the codes and principles violated, two APA ethics guidelines and two ethical issues are as follows: Principle A: Beneficence and Nonmaleficence, Principle E: Respect for People's Rights and Dignity, 1.03 Conflicts Between Ethics and Organizational Demands, 3.04 Avoiding Harm (Ethical Principles of Psychologists and Code of Conduct, 2003).

Diversity

Diversity defined as, “the practice or quality of including or involving people from a range of different social and ethnic backgrounds and of different genders, sexual orientations, etc.” (New Oxford American Dictionary Version 230 (294), 2023). This experiment did not include diversity as it was done on mainly middle-class, males, for the effect of specific target market and minor variable. “Adverts were placed in local newspapers offering $15 per day for participants in this program. Of the 75 responses, the 24 male subjects judged to be most mentally and emotionally stable were selected. Mainly middle class and white, they were divided into two groups randomly, of 12 prisoners and 12 guards.” (Shuttleworth, 2008).

Sxxxxxxxxx Analysis

“In 1971, the psychologist Philip Zimbardo tried to show that prison guards and convicts would tend to slip into predefined roles, behaving in a way that they thought was required, rather than using their own judgment and morals. Zimbardo was trying to show what happened when all of the individuality and dignity was stripped away from a human, and their life was completely controlled. He wanted to show the dehumanization and loosening of social and moral values that can happen to guards immersed in such a situation.” (Shuttleworth, 2008).

This experiment heavily reminded me of the MTV show Jackass, and, of the small window of what I caught wind of regarding hazing in certain secret societal clubs, sororities, and fraternities. “The film, like its small-screen namesake, presents a series of self-deprecating stunts performed by the unlikeliest of heroes. Led by professional stuntman Johnny Knoxville, the Jackass gang partakes in endless debauchery including ‘Tropical Pole Vault’ and ‘Anal Firecrackers’. (Brayton, 2007). “Just like ritual clowns, Jackass garners humor not just from physical pain but also psychological pain in the form of negative emotions like fear. This may not just be their own fear but also the fear of others.” (Hye-Knudsen, 2023) Just as the simulated guards instructed the prisoners in this experiment to do things such as cleaning toilets with their hands, “Both Jackass and ritual clowns similarly mine the negative emotion of disgust for humor. Disgust evolved to keep us away from things that contain pathogens, including human bodily excretions like urine and feces ([44]).” (Hye-Knudsen, 2023) Just as the simulated guards instructed the prisoners to wear dresses with intent to strip them of their masculinity, “Jackass also derives humor from violating the norms of masculinity and heterosexuality.” (Hye-Knudsen, 2023) “The inveterate violations of traditional ritual clowns are sanctioned by custom and offered ritual, even sacred status, protecting them from critique despite their outrageous nature.” (Hye-Knudsen, 2023)

To summarize what I would have done differently, I would not have conducted this experiment at all. Everyone knows right from wrong; it needs not explaining as it is felt by all but chosen to ignore or deviate from by most. Anyone with a rightful heart would choose a different topic altogether, especially with such persistence that the absolutely crumbling is the only way they will stop. Even for scientific or record purposes, there are some things that simply do not need testing, they already are what they are: wrongfully positioned people will not play the position properly, those who are not fit to be in positions of authority will allow wrongdoings or abuse the authority, and those who follow crowds will always join with whatever the majority is. Nevertheless, an experiment on what is already known does allow for confirmation: the weak will fold, the strong will endure, and the truth will be felt.

References

Brayton, S. (2007). MTV’s Jackass: Transgression, Abjection and the Economy of White Masculinity. Journal of Gender Studies., 16(1), 57–72.. https://doi.org/10.1080/09589230601116190

Ethical Principles of Psychologists and Code of Conduct. (2003, June 1). American Psychological Association. https://www.apa.org/ethics/code/

Hye-Knudsen, M. (2023). Jackass, Ritual Clowning, and the Comic Themes of Universal Occurrence. Penn State University Press. Style, 57(4), 466–494

New Oxford American Dictionary Version 230 (294) (2023). Diversity. Apple Inc.

New Oxford American Dictionary Version 230 (294) (2023). Quiet. Apple Inc.

New Oxford American Dictionary Version 230 (294) (2023). Rage. Apple Inc.

Shuttleworth, M. (2008, June 22). Stanford Prison Experiment. Explorable.com. https://explorable.com/stanford-prison-experiment

Style, Volume 57, Number 4, 2023, pp. 466-494 (Article) https://doi.org/10.5325/style.57.4.0466

 Zimbardo, P. G., Haney, C., Banks, W. C., & Jaffe, D. (1971). The Stanford prison experiment. Zimbardo, Incorporated.

Zimbardo, P., White, G., & Johann. (1971). THE STANFORD PRISON EXPERIMENT: A Simulation Study of the Psychology of Imprisonment conducted August 1971 at Stanford University. Philip G Zimbardo, Inc. https://studylib.net/doc/18407847/the-stanford-prison-experiment "

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