Dobrowolność w badaniach psychologicznych

A specific problem in the work of a psychologist is caring for the voluntary participation of patients and clients in research. The first part of the article presents and scientifically analyzed the term "voluntary". The concept in opposition to voluntariness is arbitrariness. An arbitrary person is characterized by an optional attitude. Voluntariness, in turn, is an attitude of active participation in one's own life and the surrounding reality. The second part of the article deals with the issue of voluntariness in psychological research. The psychologist must obtain an informed and voluntary decision by the patient regarding his or her participation in the research. The examined person has the right to withdraw from the research at any time. People addicted to alcohol and drugs constitute a specific research group. In the third part of the article, attention was paid to voluntary research of students and children. A special place and significance is played by voluntary activity in research conducted by an academic psychologist on their own students. Voluntariness in children involves not only the cognitive but also the emotional sphere. Therefore, the psychologist must first obtain the child's parents' written consent to participate in the research.