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St. Cloud State University

St. Cloud State University

Deception and the Debriefing Process

Deception and the Debriefing Process

Answers to your Questions

Examples and Templates

 

 

When is Debriefing Required?

Sometimes, in order to accomplish research objectives, investigators must deliberately mislead subjects during the research by withholding information or even providing false information. As a result, subjects are not fully informed about the research when they consent to participate. For example, you might:

  • stage an emergency, assault, or other situation
  • provide false feedback about a subject's performance
  • hide the true purpose of the research
  • conceal the identity of another researcher

When research involves a deceptive technique like those mentioned above, you are required to "debrief" subjects after their involvement in the research.

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What Information Must Be Provided to Subjects? The Debriefing Checklist

To dispel the deception, the following information must be explained to subjects either orally or in writing:

    1. ___ purpose of the research
    2. ___ your hypotheses -- what you expect to find
    3. ___ existence of deception in your study -- what subjects were led to believe contrasted with reality
    4. ___ reasons for your deception
    5. ___ whom to contact for answers to questions and how to contact them (typically, you as a researcher; a student must include contact information for an advisor as well)
    6. ___ the subject's right to withdraw data (if the data includes identifying information that enables the researcher to distinguish and eliminate an individual's responses)



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What Must I Consider Before Including Deception in my Research?

Consider the following questions:

  • Is deception essential to the research?

    You should use deception only when no other methodology will accomplish the research objective(s).

  • Will the deception present more than a minimal risk to subjects?

    You may not expose subjects to risks that they have not agreed to incur.

  • Will the deception adversely affect the rights and welfare of subjects?

    You may not use a deceptive techniques as part of the research if it compromises subjects or their rights.

  • Will the information withheld or falsely provided influence the willingness of subjects to participate in the research?

    You many not withhold information that -- if known -- might result in subjects refusing to participate: You may not provide false information that might result in subjects agreeing to participate when they may not have otherwise.

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