Don du sang,transfusion et anonymat

Anonymity is one of the four ethical pillars of transfusion, according with a voluntary, non-remunerated donation in a non-profit organization. This requirement of anonymity is rooted in the very principle of the donation, without which the donation would create a debt for the recipient. Its scope is actually wider than the other principles because it goes beyond the realm of donation to assert itself as an immutable principle of the act of transfusion, with no identification link between a donor and his recipient. This article will study, in a French context, the different basements and issues of anonymity as well as the associated means to match this principle with safety and liability obligations.     

Rule‐breaking in an anonymous situation: When people decide to deviate from existing rules

The present study examined how soon people would make a decision to break existing rules in an anonymous situation, with particular attention paid to the degree of anonymity. A total of 100 participants were randomly assigned to either a self‐reward condition or an other‐reward condition, in both of which they were asked to flip a coin twice in each of the four coin‐flip trials to win the assigned reward. As predicted, the results showed that only participants in the self‐reward condition broke the assignment rules for obtaining the reward, and they only did so in the very last coin‐flip trial. In sum, the present findings suggest that people do not break existing rules for material gain as soon as they become anonymized, but some may do so at the very last moment.     

To be an honest person or not to be a cheater: Replicating the effect of messages relating to the self on unethical behaviour

Previous research has found that negative‐valence appeals relating to the self (Don't be a cheater) are more effective at reducing unethical behaviour than appeals relating to behaviour (Don't cheat). We aimed to replicate these findings and examine whether positive‐valence appeals relating to the self (Be an honest person) and to behaviour (Answer honestly) could have a similar effect. We ran five experiments with Israeli and U.S. samples, using social interaction and anonymous settings, and different methodologies: Die roll, coin‐flip and number choice. A meta‐analysis of the five experiments revealed a small effect of the self‐appeals relative to the behaviour‐appeals. These findings provide additional support for the theoretical explanation offered in terms of the role of the self in regulating unethical behaviour. However, the effect sizes found in our experiments were smaller than the ones previously reported. We discuss the merit in using self‐appeals to reduce unethical behaviour, the possible advantage of positive‐valence self‐appeals, and the possible moderating role of the setting in which the behaviour takes place: Social interaction versus anonymous settings.     

Confidentiality Revisited

This article challenges the importance and necessity of confidentiality, which are often taken for granted, and questions whether the default promise of confidentiality to all participants, particularly in educational research, could in fact be an unnecessary concern. This article begins by reviewing the difference in the way confidentiality is handled in different fields and the applicability of some underlying assumptions. This is followed by an explanation of why confidentiality is investigated in the sense of anonymity in this article. Then the article draws on an empirical study where original researchers and their original participants were interviewed about their views on anonymity. Lastly, the contradiction between the promises of confidentiality and the recognition of a participant’s contribution is highlighted. The article concludes with a call for more empirical observation and investigation into the importance of confidentiality.

The Identified Donor Effect: Disclosure of the Donor’s Name Shapes the Recipient’s Behavior

Previous research on charitable donations has examined the costs and benefits of anonymity from the perspectives of donors and charities. However, it is unclear how anonymity affects the recipients of a donation. This research examines how donor name disclosure affects recipients’ behaviors. The findings demonstrate that recipients of donations from named individuals (vs. recipients of anonymous donations) tend to regulate their behaviors to be more in line with the general goal of the donation. This occurs because name disclosure increases the salience of the donor’s identity in the mind of the recipient, which in turn leads to an increased feeling of obligation. Six lab and online studies (including two preregistered studies) and one field study assess this effect. The implications of these findings for charities, individual donors, and public policymakers are discussed.     

La fabrique parlementaire du discours bioéthique : analyse d’une arène de discussions

Each revision of the law on bioethics triggers a political and social debate in public space and communication. This article examines the analysis of this arena of discourse during the second revision of the bioethics law in 2011, in order to observe what representational systems are involved by the members of the French parliament to think about and discuss on these socially important issues. More specifically, we focus on what may have led parliamentarians to decide in 2011 to maintain the anonymity of gamete donation, whereas this issue had been at the heart of intense public controversy since the mid-2000s.