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Animals + ethics - Coggle Diagram
Animals + ethics
Practical issues
Generalisability
If animals are similar to humans, findings from animal studies can be generalised
Results from animal studies may have benefits for that species, instead of humans
Animals may not be representative
of human population, as there are many differences
Humans brains have more neurons per unti volume, suggesting we are more susceptible to a higher degree of pain
Reliability
High reliability, as animal studies are
highly controlled - variables such as environment,
diet, sleep, reproduction can be monitored and controlled
In Pavlov's (1927) study with dogs,
they were kept in sound-proof
chambers to cancel out any effects
from extraneous variables
Due to highly controlled studies, findings may not represent human experience - human behaviour is very complex so cannot be simplified down to isolated variables (reductionist), and high controls reduce ecological validity
Validity
Many similarities between structure and function of animal and human brains, so findings may be applicable to humans
Differences between animals and humans means that we may not be measuring what we think we're measuring - human behaviour is complex and cannot be reduced to isolated variables
Some diseases have to be artificially reproduced in animals, which may not be valid
Credibility
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Animals are not cognitively complex enough to be affected by prior knowledge/experience that would change their behaviour, so findings are credible
Animals reproduce quickly,
so it is possible to study the
effects over generations
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Ethical issues
In order for animal research to be allowed by the ethics committee, benefits must outweigh the costs
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