Disclosure of Deception by Debriefed Subjects: Another Look

Abstract

This study was concerned with the problem of disclosure of deception procedures by debriefed undergraduate subjects. A peer-counseling experimental situation using a deception procedure was used in the study. Subjects (229 males and 296 females) who had been debriefed and asked not to disclose any information about the research were contacted by telephone. The findings suggest that subjects who agreed to maintain confidentiality tended less frequently to disclose information than control subjects. The sex of the subject was not associated with the disclosure of information. Finally, the sex of the caller was not related to the revealing of information.