Development of Video-based Situational Judgment Tests for Training Ethical Reasoning Strategies

This project aims to develop and evaluate innovative training approaches to enhance ethical decision-making skills among early-career researchers in the social sciences. Recognizing the limitations of current computer-based ethics training programs, the research team proposes to create hybrid approaches that combine the beneficial aspects of traditional face-to-face instruction with the scalability of digital platforms.

The project seeks to improve the ability of researchers to navigate ethical dilemmas on key topics such as data management, how to conduct a research study, and professional and business practices. Project outcomes have the potential to enhance the integrity and responsibility of research not only in the social sciences, but also to serve as a model for innovative ethics instruction practices across disciplines, ultimately benefiting society through more professionally sound scientific practices.

Additionally, by making the most effective training resources freely available, this project will foster ethical research cultures within academic and professional communities.

The primary project goals are to develop new training protocols for ethical decision-making in research contexts, compare the effectiveness of different computer-based training procedures, and share the most successful approaches for widespread use. The project team will create text and video-based ethical dilemmas relevant to social science research, incorporating real-time expert feedback to enhance the ethical reasoning skills of trainees.

Graduate students and advanced undergraduates will be recruited to participate in a training efficacy study and will be randomly assigned to one of five experimental conditions, including a control group. The team will evaluate multiple training formats, including innovative approaches drawing on situational judgment tests and critical incident-based methods.

This project will provide empirical evidence on the efficacy of computer-based ethics training in improving complex competencies like ethical reasoning.

This project is jointly funded through the ER2 program by the Directorate for Social, Behavioral and Economic Sciences and the Directorate for STEM Education.

This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.