Ethics of Psychology: The Little Albert Classical Conditioning Experiment
In the early part of the 20th century, Psychologists John Watson and Rosalie Rayner carried out a study on classical conditioning through an experiment on conditioning a rat phobia to a nine-month-old, Little Albert (Steen, 2011). The participants involved in the research were minor and animals, including a rat, a rabbit, a monkey and a dog. In addition, there was a video recording of the experiment, which was meant to observe behavior. I consider the study unethical based on the Ethical Principles of Psychologists and Code of Conduct (American Psychology Association, 2017). The code clearly stipulates two standards that are not sufficiently adhered to during the experiment. These are Standard 8.09 on Human care and use of animals in research and Standard 8.03 Informed Consent for Recording Voices and Images in Research. In the experiment, the participant is crying and is exhibiting fear. No efforts have been made to protect the participant from infection and direct contact with the animals. Similarly, animals used for treatment are mishandled. The monkey is suspended by a rope tied around its waist, the dog has no proper leash, and the rabbit is aimlessly thrown on the babies lap. To add on, the psychologists are not giving assurance during that the images have been obtained with authority from the parent of the minor. Don't use plagiarised sources.Get your custom essay just from $11/page
According to Digdona and Powell (2014), the early exposure of Little Albert to traumatizing noise falsely attached to a white rat could have negative effects on how the participant would relate with furry animals in life. Standard 8.09 (APA, 2017) states, reasonable efforts should be made to reduce discomfort, infection of illness and pain subjects. Little Albert should have had protective clothing on with at least lack of direct contact with the animals, e.g. caging or the introduction of a glass barrier. In addition, animals should not be unnecessarily subjected to pain and distress unless the research objective has more value. Handling the monkey, dog, rabbit and rat with care could not have affected the outcome of the research. With guidance from Standard 8.03 (APA, 2017), there should have been debriefing with consent from the authority of the participants that they allow their voices and images to be used in research with no personal identification of the research participants. The name and identity of Little Albert should have remained confidential.
Two major standards in the modern-day APA ethical code were violated, i.e. lack of both human and animal care as well as lack of informed consent for recording Voices and images during research. There is a compromise of the baby’s physical and mental health and the physical manhandling of a handful of animals. There are also controversial studies pointing out how Little Albert had a neurological disorder with abnormal physical reaction since birth, despite Walton recording him as a healthy and well-developed child (Digdonia & Powell). These ethical lapses during the experiment might have misguided the findings in early studies of classical conditioning which laid the foundations of behaviourism.
In conclusion, there were more ethical lapses in the Little Albert experiment with more harm being done than the benefits. Both the child and the animal rights were not adequately protected and were violated, based on the APA Ethical Code Of Conduct 2017, Standard 8.09 on Human care and use of animals in research and Standard 8.03 Informed Consent for Recording Voices and Images in Research.
Sources
American Psychological Association (2017) Ethical Principles of Psychologists and Code of Conduct. Retrieved from https://www.apa.org/ethics/code/index?item=3
Digdona, N. & Powell, R. (2014) Watson’s alleged Little Albert scandal; historical breakthrough or new Watson myth? Publicacions de la Universitat, de Valencia, 35(1), 47-60
Steen, J. (2011) Baby Albert Experiments. YouTube. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FMnhyGozLyE