Why do social psychologists sometimes choose to deceive participants about the true purpose of an ...

Answer: Social psychologists sometimes deceive experimental participants in order to avoid the problem of demand characteristics, or cues in the study that make participants aware of how the experimenter wants them to behave. By distracting participants from the actual purpose of the study, researchers are better able to produce natural reactions in participants. Debriefing is a post-experimental procedure in which the experimenter discusses procedures, hypotheses, and participant reactions with the participant. Its primary purpose is to alleviate any problems or concerns that the participant might have as a result of participation in the study. Debriefing should be performed for any experiment, but it is particularly important when deception is involved. Debriefing may also include a discussion of the costs and benefits of the research.