Social contract theory and the ethics of deception in consumer research
运用社会契约理论，探讨消费者实验研究中欺骗参与者的伦理问题，提出七条指导原则，帮助研究者判断何时欺骗行为在道德上可被接受。
Abstract Deception of research participants is a pervasive ethical issue in experimental consumer research. Content analyses find as many as three‐fourths of published human participant studies in our field involved some form of deception, almost all of which employed experimental methodologies. However, researchers have little guidance on the acceptability of the use of deception, notwithstanding the codes of root disciplines. We turn to theories of moral philosophy and use social contract theory specifically to identify conditions under which deception may be justified as morally permissible. Seven guiding principles for research practice are formulated and their implications for consumer researchers are identified, together with practical recommendations for decision making on studies involving deception.