There are many reasons why animals are used in testing, whether this is for scientific or psychological research. It can be argued that humans and animals have sufficient amounts of their physiology and evolutionary past in common that conclusions from animal research can be applied to humans.
Since 1822 there have been legal constraints on the use of animals in experiments. Of course laws are getting more stringent all the time, especially in the UK. In the UK the Animal (Scientific Procedures) Act (1986) must be adhered to. Laboratories must have an institutional licence (institutions are inspected very regularly), each research project must have a project licence, and all researchers must have a personal licence.
Licences are only granted under the following circumstances:
When the potential results are important enough to justify
When minimum numbers of animals will be used
When any discomfort/suffering will be kept to the absolute minimum (it is important to remember that a lot of testing doesn’t actually involve any suffering!)
In psychological research there are also ethical constraints on research using non-human animals. The British Psychological Society (BPS) have guidelines in place which psychologists must adhere to. While it is acknowledged that there are sometimes alternatives to animal testing (and that new methods are being developed all the time), in some cases, despite the ethical and moral issues involved with animal testing, there is no feasible alternative.
The scientific arguments for animal testing are obvious. Animal research has been the major contributor to our knowledge of basic learning processes and motivational systems. Animal testing has also contributed to our understanding of drug abuse and physical dependence. However, most importantly, animal testing has been used for developing medications and vaccinations for numerous medical conditions. Animal testing has particularly been used in the development of psychiatric medication, and is currently being used to develop treatments for Alzheimer’s research which just can’t be carried out on humans. Of course it can be argued that any animal testing is wrong (after all the animal does not give consent, or have a say in the matter). However, at the end of the day I am sure I’m not alone in thinking that I’d rather see some rats being tested on, than my mother with Alzheimer’s.
It can be argued that since research must conform to the laws, that animals are protected. Thankfully unnecessary animal testing for cosmetic purposes has decreased dramatically, and it’s probably hard to find anyone who would agree with making an animal suffer for the sake of a mascara. However, until alternatives to animal testing have been developed, animals so still need to be tested upon in certain cases. After all, most of us will have benefited from the advances in medical technology which have occurred in part as a result of animal testing.
I am not saying that animal testing is right, in fact I have also written an article against animal testing. However, it really is a complicated subject, and a simple “Yes it’s right”, or “No it’s wrong” is just not possible!