Research Ethics About Children

Introduction

Research is always needed in psychology in order to gain insight into a specific field of interest or to back up an individual’s theory, but the way in which this research is conducted is of great importance. Each research experiment involving humans or any other living creature will follow a set of ethical guidelines which will protect the participant from physical and psychological harm. This is particularly important when involving children due to the fact that children are very vulnerable and at a crucial part of their development as a person.

This paper will analyse three articles and determine whether or not the research experiments that were conducted on children by the article authors were conducted in a child-friendly manner and whether it was ethically accountable. Each article deals with the fears that young children have with regard to different factors or backgrounds. A key focus point in all three of these articles will be the manner in which the experiments were conducted and whether specific guidelines were followed with regard to consent and the children’s knowledge of the experiment.

Child-friendly

With regard to Fears of South African Children affected by HIV/AIDS, each interview was conducted individually by either Pedro Zwemstra (the first author) or a Xhosa-speaking community counsellor. In order to make the environment a more child-friendly one each interview was started with small talk accompanied by the child drawing his/herself which allowed the children to feel more at ease. No time limit was set for the interviews so that there was no pressure on the children to answer the needed questions in a rushed time frame, this also gave the interviewer ample time to briefly explain the procedure and to assure confidentiality. The interviews were ended by the interviewer asking the child what his/her biggest wish was, this negates any stress or anxiety that could have arouse from the interview.

In the case of...