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Ethical Issues and Non-human Animals

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Title: Ethical Issues and Non-human Animals


1
Ethical Issues and Non-human Animals
  • Likely Question
  • Discuss ethical issues in the use of non-human
    animals in psychology

psychlotron.org.uk
2
Moral Justifications for Non-human animal research
  • So, should we experiment on animals?
  • Gray (1987) YES - We have a moral obligation to
    help humans before other animals balance human
    benefit v animal suffering.
  •  

3
Moral Justifications for Non-human animal research
  • Singer (75) SOMETIMES He argues this is
    Speciesism similar to racism, but if it
    results in the greatest good for the greatest
    number animal research is justified
  • Regan argues that we should NEVER do animal
    research on mature mammals, because they have
    inherent value.

4
You decide
  • Look at this research and decide who you agree
    with
  • Sheridan King (1972) Electrocuting Puppies
  • Lashley (1929) Removing parts of rats brains
  • Seligman (1967) Electrocuting dogs
  • Selye (1956) Stressing rats
  • Jouvet (1967) Cats on Flowerpots REM

5
You decide
  • What Criteria did you use?
  • Hopefully
  • Importance of the research
  • No alternatives to animal research
  • Minimum numbers of animals used
  • Suffering kept to a minimum

6
Arguments for Animal Research?
  • Animals are well-protected by law eg
    Animals(Scientific Procedures)Act(1986) and the
    BPS Guidelines of the same year.
  • The Principle of the 3Rs Replace, Reduce,
    Refine.
  • But Dunayer argues this is like having laws on
    how to keep slaves
  • AND See Kilkenny et al (2009)

7
Arguments for Animal Research
  • Animals are convenient to do research on, so we
    should try to use them (because Humans are WORTH
    MORE which is a moral question).

8
Arguments for Animal Research
  • Animal research has given a lot to both practical
    and theoretical psychology eg Learning Theory
    (Skinners rat and pigeons), Parental Deprivation
    (Harlows Monkeys)

9
Moral Arguments against using non-human animals
in research
  • Animals suffer which goes against their rights,
    often unjustifiably because the knowledge gained
    is relatively limited.

10
Moral Arguments against using non-human animals
in research
  • Animals are qualitatively different (both
    physically and mentally)from humans, which makes
    it wrong for us to do research on them when it
    will only give limited insight into human
    behaviour.

11
Moral Arguments against using non-human animals
in research
  • Singer(1991) argues that there is no
    justification in using animals for research and
    those who do are guilty of speciesism. He argues
    it is wrong to do research on any organism that
    can feel pain, because an animals pain is as
    important as human pain.

12
Essay Plan Paragraph 1
  • Define what we mean by an ethical issue how do
    the interests of human and non-human animals
    clash.
  • The key question is whether human benefits
    justify animal suffering summarise Gray, Singer
    and Regan

13
Essay Plan Paragraph 2
  • Moral arguments for animal research
  • Animal research has given a lot to psychology
    eg, Parental Deprivation (Harlows Monkeys)
  • SHOW HOW THIS research has benefitted humans and
    improved human life eg the importance of a good
    bond between mother and child in the years after
    birth

14
Essay Plan Paragraph 3
  • Animals are convenient to do research on, so we
    should try to use them (because Humans are WORTH
    MORE which is a moral question).
  • Show how Skinners research on rats and pigeons
    could not be done on humans and why it is
    justified

15
Essay Plan Paragraph 4
  • Animals suffer which goes against their rights,
    often unjustifiably because the knowledge gained
    is relatively limited.
  • Describe Jouvets research and the limited
    knowledge gained from it does it justify the
    suffering of the cats?

16
Essay Plan Paragraph 5
  • Animals are qualitatively different (both
    physically and mentally)from humans, which makes
    it wrong for us to do research on them when it
    will only give limited insight into human
    behaviour.
  • Does Selyes research into how rats respond to
    stress really tell us how humans will respond to
    stress?

17
Essay Plan Paragraph 6 can be used for or
against
  • Do Constraints Work
  • Animals(Scientific Procedures)Act(1986) and the
    BPS Guidelines of the same year.
  • The Principle of the 3Rs Replace, Reduce,
    Refine.
  • But Dunayer argues this is like having laws on
    how to keep slaves
  • AND See Kilkenny et al (2009)

18
Kilkenny et al (2009)
  • 271 animal studies in UK and USA (not all
    Psychological studies)
  • Only 59 mentioned number of animals used (
    inconsistent numbers in report)
  • CONCLUSION Either
  • Ban Animal Studies constraints dont work
  • Or Improve constraints and research

19
Essay Plan Conclusion
  • Write a conclusion based on the paragraphs you
    have already written can animal research be
    justified morally?

20
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21
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