An Attempt to Assess Effects of Implementing A. P. A. Ethical Guidelines on Data Collected in a Classroom Setting

Abstract

An attempt was made to determine what effect implementation of the APA Ethical Principles would have on cognitive and affective data collected in a classroom setting. A total of 126 graduate and 90 undergraduate male and female subjects were assigned randomly to six treatment groups. The groups were provided different levels of information on a continuum ranging from no disclosure to full disclosure on the purpose and expectations of the research. A logical task and Scott's Academic Self-concept Scale were given. The data among all treatment groups yielded nonsignificant differences, which is inconsistent with published literature on artifacts in research. The results indicated that implementation of ethical principles in one classroom setting may not affect the internal validity of research with similar paper-and-pencil tasks.

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