Scenario B: Consider the following experiment. Each participant interacted for a

Question

Scenario B: Consider the following experiment. Each participant interacted for an hour with another person who was actually a research confederate (an actor working for the researcher). The confederate either presented herself as similar or dissimilar to the participant. After this interaction, both persons agreed to return 1 week later for another session with each other. When the real participants returned, they were falsely informed that the person they had met the week before had died. The researchers then compared how long the participant spent viewing a picture of the “deceased” depending on whether the person had presented as similar or dissimilar to them. The participant was never told that the reported death was untrue.

Write a hypothesis that is tested in this study.

Discuss the ethical issues raised in the experiment.

What would you recommend the experimenters do to protect the participants and minimize risk of harm?

Explanation / Answer

a) The hypothesis being tested here is whether we recall persons more who are dissimilar to us. The length of time for which we view the picture gives an estimate of how much more we recall about that person.

b) There are several ethical issues raised in the experiment:

- As the person is an actor, she is very likely appear on screen in the future. This can affect some of the participants badly well after the experiment is over.

- Some participants may grieve for longer or may not be able to absorb this well. This will especially be true if they felt that they had bonded well with the actor. Thus, there are consequences well beyond the realms of the experiment.

- If they happen to meet the person directly in the future, they may get into a mental shock.

- As the participants will now feel that the conversation was incomplete, there will not be any closure. This can affect some participants as they may ponder over things unsaid during the previous meet. This can affect them mentally.

c) It might be better if the participants are younger and emotinally stable. Also, it would be better to tell that the death reported was untrue later. An actual meeting with the actor will also help as it will help participants get closure.

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