THE ETHICAL CONTEXT OF RESEARCH

Overview
It is undeniable that doing research is important especially in finding solutions
to the problems. But a researcher should be guided with moral principles in
conducting and reporting research. Research ethics have become a central issue
in educational research and no research can be conducted without due regard to
ethics. Regulatory frameworks and regulatory bodies have been established to
manage and approve research ethics protocols. Hence, data gathering for an
educational research project can only begin once ethical clearance has been
sought, approved and a certificate of ethical clearance has been issued. For most
research conducted in higher education, ethical clearance applications are
managed and processed through dedicated structures within the institution.

This chapter contains the comprehensive description of the following:

✓ Meaning and importance of research ethics
✓ Ethical principles of research

Objectives: At the end of this chapter, the students will be able to:
1. Explain the ethics in conducting and writing research.
2. Examine the code of ethics in doing research.
3. Appreciate the importance of ethics in research.

Meaning, Importance and Ethical Principles of Research

Pre-discussion
What does ethical consideration in research mean in practice? How can people
who participate in research projects be protected? This chapter will help you
understand the meaning and importance of research ethics. You will also be guided
with the guidelines of the research ethics.

What to expect?
At the end of the lesson, the students will be able to:
1. Define the meaning of research ethics
2. Explain the importance of research ethics.
3. Enumerate the guidelines and principles of research ethics.

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Lesson Outline

Research Ethics
Ethics is defined by most people as a rule for distinguishing between right and
wrong such as the Golden Rule, Do unto others as you would have them do unto
you"), a code of professional conduct like the Hippocratic Oath, "First of all, do no
harm". One may also define ethics as a method, procedure, or perspective for
deciding how to act and for analyzing complex problems and issues.
The Oxford Dictionary defines ethics as: ‘moral principles that govern a person’s
behavior or the conducting of an activity [… or] the branch of knowledge that deals
with moral principles. This definition focuses on moral principles and guidelines for
human behavior. However, such definitions tell us very little about ethics related to
the daily activities of researchers. In fact, the work of some researchers proceeds
unnoticed, and it is only with hindsight that they become aware of decisions made
that could have done harm in some way. Therefore, ethics in research should focus
on creating awareness among researchers about how their daily decisions could
potentially harm human beings and the environment.

Importance of Research Ethics

There are several reasons why it is important to adhere to ethical norms in
research.
1. Norms promote the aims of research, such as knowledge, truth, and avoidance
of error. For example, prohibitions against fabricating, falsifying, or misrepresenting
research data promote the truth and minimize error.

2. Since research often involves a great deal of cooperation and coordination

among many different people in different disciplines and institutions, ethical
standards promote the values that are essential to collaborative work, such as trust,
accountability, mutual respect, and fairness. For example, many ethical norms in
research, such as guidelines for authorship, copyright and patenting policies, data
sharing policies, and confidentiality rules in peer review, are designed to protect
intellectual property interests while encouraging collaboration. Most researchers
want to receive credit for their contributions and do not want to have their ideas
stolen or disclosed prematurely.

3. Many of the ethical norms help to ensure that researchers can be held
accountable to the public. For instance, government policies on research
misconduct, conflicts of interest, the human subjects protections, and animal care

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and use are necessary in order to make sure that researchers who are funded by
public money can be held accountable to the public.

4. Ethical norms in research also help to build public support for research. People
are more likely to fund a research project if they can trust the quality and integrity
of research.

5. Many of the norms of research promote a variety of other important moral and
social values, such as social responsibility, human rights, animal welfare,
compliance with the law, and public health and safety. Ethical lapses in research
can significantly harm human and animal subjects, students, and the public. For
example, a researcher who fabricates data in a clinical trial may harm or even kill
patients, and a researcher who fails to abide by regulations and guidelines relating
to radiation or biological safety may jeopardize his health and safety or the health
and safety of staff and students.

Ethical Guidelines of Research

Many different disciplines, institutions, and professions have standards for
behavior that suit their particular aims and goals. These standards also help
members of the discipline to coordinate their actions or activities and to establish
the public's trust of the discipline. For instance, ethical standards govern conduct in
medicine, law, engineering, and business. Ethical norms also serve the aims or
goals of research and apply to people who conduct scientific research or other
scholarly or creative activities. There is even a specialized discipline, research
ethics, which studies these norms.
The Nuremberg Code is one of the most influential documents in the history of
clinical research. Created more than 70 years ago following the notorious World
War II experiments, this written document established ten (10) ethical principles for
protecting human subjects. The Nuremberg Code aimed to protect human subjects
from enduring the kind of cruelty and exploitation the prisoners endured at
concentration camps. The 10 elements of the code are:
1. Voluntary consent is essential.
2. The results of any experiment must be for the greater good of society.
3. Human experiments should be based on previous animal experimentation. 4.
Experiments should be conducted by avoiding physical/mental suffering and
injury.
5. No experiments should be conducted if it is believed to cause death/disability.
6. The risks should never exceed the benefits.

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 7. Adequate facilities should be used to protect subjects.
8. Experiments should be conducted only by qualified scientists.
9. Subjects should be able to end their participation at any time.
10. The scientist in charge must be prepared to terminate the experiment
when injury, disability, or death is likely to occur.

The Nuremberg Code is one of several foundational documents that influenced

the principles of Good Clinical Practice, which is an attitude of excellence in
research that provides a standard design, implementation, conduct and analysis.
More than a single document, it is a compilation of many thoughts, ideas and lesson
learned throughout the history of clinical research worldwide. Several documents
further expanded upon the principles outlined in the Nuremberg Code, including the
declaration of Helsinki, the Belmont Report and the Common Rule.

Ethical Principles of Research

In one of the private Universities in the Philippines, Ateneo de Manila University,
Code of Ethics in research was established in 2007. It sets forth general principles
of ethical conduct to guide the researchers, which is in consonance with the
school’s values and mission. Below is some of the excerpts of the code of ethics.

I. The Principle of Integrity and Honesty

A. Competence in the conduct of research

1. Conduct all research activities in accordance with the accepted standards of
discipline.
2. Refrain from accepting or undertaking research assignments requiring
competencies not possessed by the researcher unless collaborating with or being
supervised by a more knowledgeable scholar.
3. Avoid claiming or implying a degree of research competency possessed by the
researcher in proposals, job applications or resumes.

B. Accuracy of research data and reports

1. Ensure the accuracy of all gathered data.
2. Ensure that only the correct data, information, and research results shall be
reported in journals, conferences, and reports to clients in case of commissioned
research.
3. Take reasonable steps to rectify significant errors found in the published data,
via the issuance of erratum, retraction, or correction of the data.

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4. Avoid misleading statements or declarations and vague assertions that could be
subject to misinterpretation.
5. Avoid making exaggerated claims that are not warranted by the results of the
research inquiry.

C. Acknowledgment of sources of data/information or other contribution to the

research
1. Not to plagiarize; that is, to present portions of another’s report or data as your
own, even if the other work or data source is cited occasionally.
2. Cite clearly all sources of information and data that were used which are not the
results of our own research.
3. Give proper acknowledgment and credit to resource/funding sources of
research.
4. Grant and limit authorship to those who made a significant contribution to the
research endeavor.

D. Openness and responsibility in the conduct and presentation of research

1. Keep detailed and complete records of research undertaking.
2. Be transparent in the use and disbursement of the research resources.
3. Declare promptly any conflict of interest in the research engagement and
presentation of research results.
4. Ensure that research results are accessible to the public once the research is
concluded or as soon as is reasonable.
5. Respect the confidentiality of sources by not using or releasing data and
information revealed to the researchers as confidence.

II. The Principle of Justice and Fairness

A. Extension of due regard and collegiality towards fellow researchers

1. Render respect to peers, colleagues, students, and research participants.
2. Provide assistance to other researchers, especially if you are uniquely qualified
to do so by your expertise.
3. Respect the confidentiality and proprietary rights of your peers, colleagues, and
students whose material is reviewed for publication, presentation, or funding by
a grant.
4. Take diligent care of equipment, material resources, and results.

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B. Credit of others’ contribution, resources, and materials utilized in research
1. Grant authorship in accordance with the significance of collaborators’
contribution in the research. (Any researcher who contributes substantially to a
research project or paper needs to get credit. This holds true even if the researcher
is a student. This is usually done by naming him/her as an author on the final paper.
It is best to have this discussion before writing the research paper. That way,
everyone involved can have their say. A person should not be included as an author
because of his/her position in the institute. For example, the head of a department
should only be included as one of the authors of the paper, if he/she did substantial
work for the paper.)
2. Appropriately attribute and credit to others their accomplishments and research
results which may have utilized in your own research.
3. Acknowledge the material contribution of others in your research undertaking.
4. Utilize, distribute, or share material resources and equipment in accordance
with the conditions set by the source or benefactor.

C. Recognition of intellectual property rights (i.e., copyright, patents) 1.

Discuss among stakeholders (i.e., the author or inventor, the University, the funding
source or benefactor) the fair distribution of legal ownership of the research and/or
its products.
2. Distribute fairly the legal ownership of the research and/or its products among
the stakeholders.

III. The Principle of Safety and Beneficence

A. Responsible dissemination of scientific knowledge to the public

1. Call the attention of the public and the authorities to any hazard you observed
that threatens human and environmental safety
2. Inform the community of scientific knowledge pertaining to human practices,
attitudes, events, and other phenomena that present unequivocal and significant
risk or benefit to human welfare.
3. Avoid making misleading or exaggerated statements, or publicizing equivocal
research findings as fact.

B. Safe and responsible conduct of research

1. Observe safety practices in all your research activities.
2. Avoid deliberate violation or circumvention of regulations governing research.

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3. Refrain from causing harm, stress or pain to any animal in any experiment that
does not contribute any substantial benefit to human society that has not been
discovered already. For experiments on animals which cannot be avoided, it is
our duty to treat them humanely, minimize the pain and to undertake curative
measures thereafter.
4. Ensure that laboratory wastes are properly disposed or treated, and your
research activities do not result in environmental degradation.
5. Point out to your clients potential dangers or threats to their interest.

C. Promotion of the interests of the community

1. To the extent that is applicable or possible, conduct research that serves the
needs and promotes the best interests of the community or persons who will be
affected by the research.
2. To the extent that is applicable or possible, seek the involvement of the
community in the determination of their best interests and how to address them in
the research.

IV. The Principle of Respect for Human Rights and Dignity

A. Extension of equal treatment and respect towards research participants and

consumers
1. Respect cultural, individual, and role differences among research participants
and consumers, including those based on age, sex, gender identity, sexual
orientation, nationality, ethnicity, disability, language, or socio-economic status.
2. Eliminate from your research practices and reports any biases that are based
on the aforementioned factors.

B. Humane and respectful treatment of human participants in research* 1.

Desist from subjecting persons to any experiment or research procedure that is
known beforehand to cause harm, stress, or pain with no overwhelming benefit.
2. Take immediate and appropriate steps to alleviate any physical or psychological
harm that may have been inflicted on a participant because of your research
procedures.
3. Use deception only when justified by the study’s significant prospective
scientific, educational, or applied value and where effective non-deceptive
alternative procedures are not feasible. In these cases, the participant should be
informed of the true nature of the study as soon as is feasible and is permitted to
withdraw his or her data.

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4. Provide participants with the opportunity to obtain information about the design,
procedures, results and conclusions of the research.

C. Guarding participants’ confidentiality and autonomy rights

1. Protect your participants’ right to privacy and confidentiality.
2. Ensure that informed consent is obtained from all human participants of your
experiments or studies. That is, participants are free to decide on their
involvement only after we have provided them with information that is relevant to
that decision.
3. Maintain the autonomy of participants, especially students and subordinates, by
refraining from offering inducements that may serve to coerce them into
participating.
4. Safeguard the rights and welfare of persons and communities whose status and
vulnerabilities may impair autonomous decision-making.

Summary
Research ethics serves as a guide for the researchers in conducting research
that would limit the harm caused to human beings and their environment. Research
ethics is important because it promotes authenticity of facts, it promotes
collaboration, ensures the researcher’s public accountability, build public support
for research, and promotes variety of important moral and social values.
Ethical guidelines of research were established especially in the health
research, which started with the Nuremberg Code with emphasis on protecting
human subjects. It was further expanded by several documents such as the
declaration of Helsinki, the Belmont Report and the Common Rule.
In the Philippines, various universities and other institutions established Code
of Ethics such as Ateneo de Manila University guiding their researchers that
includes the Principle of Integrity and Honesty, Principle of Justice and Fairness,
Principle of Safety and Beneficence, Principle of Respect for Human Right and
Dignity.

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References

Code of Ethics. Ateneo de Manila University. Retrieved September 18, 2020, from
https://www.ateneo.edu/code-ethics-research.

Jarmusik, N. (2019). The Nuremberg Code and Its Impact on Clinical Research.
Retrieved September 18, 2020, from https://www.imarc research.com/ blog/bid
/359393/ nuremberg-code-1947.

National Ethics Committee. Retrieved September 19, 2020, from

http://nec.pchrd.dost.gov.ph/.

Research Ethics and Misconduct: What Researchers Need to Know. (2019).

Retrieved July 17, 2020, from https://www.enago.com/academy/principles -of-ethical-
research/.

Shamoo, A., & Resnik, D. (2015). Responsible Conduct of Research, 3rd ed. New
York: Oxford University Press.

Shawa, L.B. (2017). Ethics in Educational Research. Retrieved September 18, 2020,
from https://www.researchgate.net/publi cation/312069857_Ethics_in
_educational_research.

Shuttleworth, M. (2008). “Definitions of Research”. Retrieved August 14, 2020, from

Explorable.Explorable.com.

The Science and Ethics of Human in Research. Grades 7-12. Northwest Association
for Biomedical Research. Retrieved: September 21,
2020.https://nwabr.org/sites/default/files/NWABR_Humans_in_Research6.13.p
df.

Williamson, K. & Johanson, G. (2018). Research Methods Information, Systems and

Contexts. Chandos Publishing.

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