Social Validation Ethical Practices When Conducting Research

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Social ValidationEthical Practices When
Conducting Research

• EDEX 5150
• Spring, 2007

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Agenda

• Discuss value of social validity.
• Discuss types of socially valid data.
• Discuss limitations of social validity.
• Discuss ethics involved in single subject
  research.

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Need for Social Validation

• By definition, single subject research involves
  applied research--it is about understanding
  behavioral relationships in targeted
  environments.
• As such, it involves people who impact other
  people in those or other settings or environments.

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• As a democracy that values individual freedom and
  choice, we, as a society, believe that
  people--especially those who are most devalued or
  marginalized (persons with disabilities)--have
  the right to inform researchers about
  interventions/treatments and their effects, and,
  ultimately, whether they wish to receive the
  intervention/treatment.

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Historical Antecedents

• Nuremberg Trials
• The Perils of Behavior Modification--fear of
  behavioral language manipulation, control,
  consequent responding, behavior is determined, no
  real free will, distrust of self-reports (verbal
  behavior).
• How people felt got little attention--later
  realization that the social importance of
  research is necessary (Kazdin, Wolf).

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Social Validity

• Social validity aims to assess the acceptability
  of behavioral interventions with key
  stakeholders person receiving the intervention,
  parents, cooperating teachers, therapists,
  siblings, peers, and other persons in
  individuals universe.
• Social validity seeks to obtain data on
  acceptability and desirability of the goals,
  procedures, and/or magnitude of effects
  (outcomes).

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• Social validity involves
• Subjective Evaluations
• or
• Normative Comparisons

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Subjective Evaluations

• Questionnaires (e.g., survey).
• Forced choice procedures (e.g., Which of the
  following skills would you like to improve?, or
  Which of the following self-determination
  strategies do you wish to learn?).

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• Likert-scale Do you think this goal is an
  appropriate learning skill for Ellen?
• 1________3_______5
• I strongly I agree I strongly
• disagree agree
• Interview (structured or open-ended questions).

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Normative Comparisons

• Comparison is made between target group and
  normative population (Would typical third
  graders have this goal? Would we use this
  behavior management procedure with third
  graders? What is the frequency of occurrence
  of on task behaviors for third graders?)
• Such social validity gives the intervention
  validity and acceptability.

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Limitations

• Is the normative group representative?
• Is the normative level acceptable?

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General Limitations of Social Validity

• Subjective--opinions/perceptions may differ from
  observational data.
• Verbal data vs. behavioral performance (say vs.
  do)
• Acquiescence
• Primary or secondary measure?

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Ethics

• Goal of science is to advance knowledge, with the
  understanding that scientists will conduct
  research in an ethical manner.
• This is especially true for professionals who
  work with people (e.g., physicians,
  psychologists, educators).

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Ethical Assumptions When Conducting Research

• Research is designed to benefit the participant.
• Informed consent is provided.
• Welfare and dignity of person is protected.
• Participant may decline to participant at any
  time.
• Research should not involve discomfort, harm, or
  danger, but if these may be present, the
  participant must be fully informed, and efforts
  to minimize them must be taken.

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• Full confidentiality needs to be guaranteed.
• In particular, these safeguards must be
  guaranteed for special populations.

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Ethical Practices

• Behavioral research requires in most cases a
  human subjects review in which the researcher
  describes how s/he will respect the rights of
  participants--in particular, why the target
  behavior is interfering with normal functioning
  and why the intervention, if successful, will
  make life better for the participant.

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Informed Consent

• Need to describe
• Purpose of study
• Procedures to follow
• Discomforts and risks
• Potential benefits
• Period of time
• How informed consent will be
  obtained
• How will confidentiality be guaranteed

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• Is the information sensitive?
• (Most educational data arent.)
• Can the human subjects be identified?
• (Dont use names, but what about someone with
  a unique condition?)
• Is there a plan to control access to the data?

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Researcher Behavior

• Must be expert.
• Must be courteous.
• Should involve teachers as partners and not make
  top-down decisions encourage input, share data.

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Ethical Problems with Single Subject Research

• Extended baselines.
• Reversals.
• Stability.
• Experimental conventions.
• Need to convince stakeholders that intervention
  is warranted, that design allows one to have
  confidence in studys findings, and that all
  students will receive appropriate intervention.