Cb. Fisher et D. Fyrberg, PARTICIPANT PARTNERS - COLLEGE-STUDENTS WEIGH THE COSTS AND BENEFITS OF DECEPTIVE RESEARCH, The American psychologist, 49(5), 1994, pp. 417-427
The contributions of prospective participant perspectives to ethical d
ecisions regarding the design and institutional review board (IRB) app
roval of deceptive research are considered in terms of American Psycho
logical Association ethical guidelines and current theoretical, empiri
cal, and metaethical frameworks. The value of participant-investigator
partnerships is illustrated through a study assessing how college stu
dents rate the scientific merits, methodological alternatives, psychol
ogical discomfort, efficacy of dehoaxing, and cost-benefit balance of
three recently published deception studies. Enhancing the protection o
f human subjects participating in deceptive research is discussed in t
erms of the compatibility of deceptive practices with the moral ideolo
gies of participants and the challenges to ethical decision making rai
sed by the interpretation and application of data based on participant
perspectives.