What does 'deception' in research refer to?

Deception in research refers to the practice of offering participants incomplete information to facilitate the study. This can involve withholding specific details about the study's purpose, procedures, or the full nature of the risks involved. The rationale behind using deception is often to prevent bias that could arise if participants were aware of the study's true intentions, thereby helping researchers to gather more accurate data on behaviors, attitudes, or responses that they are investigating.

Using this approach requires careful ethical consideration to ensure that participants are not harmed and that they are debriefed afterward to provide them with the accurate information they did not receive before or during the study. It is crucial that researchers ensure that the potential benefits of the research justify the use of deception and that participants' autonomy and informed consent are still upheld to the greatest extent possible within the research context.