Question

participants anonymously consented to an experiment where they would be classically conditioned to have a positive emotional response to advertisements for various products. in reality, the experimenter was attempting to see if subliminal messages in an advertisement influenced participant views on the product being advertised. which of the following ethical guidelines might be of concern to an institutional review board (irb) concerning this research?

a there might be more deception than is deemed appropriate.

b this would cause too much stress for the participants involved.

c the identities of the participants could be leaked to the public.

d participants would not be allowed to leave the study if they wanted to drop out.

Explanation:

The experimenters deceived participants about the true purpose (claimed classical conditioning for positive emotional response to ads, but actually studying subliminal messages). IRBs are concerned with appropriate deception levels. Option B: The experiment doesn't seem to involve stress - inducing tasks. Option C: Participants are anonymous, so identity leak is not a concern. Option D: No info suggests participants can't drop out. So the main concern is excessive deception.

Answer:

A. There might be more deception than is deemed appropriate.