Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Be sensitive to ethical issues and even how to handle grey areas of ethics
What Are Ethics? 4
You must accept the responsibility to behave ethically toward those who will be affected by
your research
First, ethics refers to well-founded standards of right and wrong that prescribe what
humans ought to do:
those standards that impose the reasonable obligations to refrain from rape, stealing, murder, assault, slander, and
fraud.
those that enjoin virtues of honesty, compassion, and loyalty. standards relating to rights, such as the right to life,
the right to freedom from injury, and the right to privacy.
www.scu.edu/ethics.com
Ethics As A Study of Standards
Secondly, ethics refers to the study and development of one's ethical
standards.
it is necessary to constantly examine one's standards to ensure that they are reasonable and
well-founded.
the continuous effort of studying our own moral beliefs and our moral conduct, and
striving to ensure that we, and the institutions we help to shape, live up to standards that are
reasonable and solidly-based.
www.scu.edu/ethics.com
WHAT IS HUMAN RESEARCH?
Human Research is Research conducted with people
Medical Research involving human beings have created a lot of potential pitfalls
that led to tragedies in the last century.
TUSKEGEE SYPHILIS STUDY - ALABAMA
The study was stopped in 1973 by the U.S. Department of Health, Education, and Welfare only after its existence was
publicized and it became a political embarrassment.
In 1997, under mounting pressure, President Clinton apologized to the study subjects and their families.
Cont
• The study initially involved 600 Black men – 399 with syphilis, 201 who
did not have the disease.
• Researchers told the men they were being treated for “bad blood,” a local
term used to describe several ailments, including syphilis.
• In exchange for taking part in the study, the men received free medical
exams, free meals, and burial insurance.
By 1943, penicillin was the treatment of choice for syphilis and
becoming widely available, but the participants in the study were not offered
treatment.
Minimize harm
Maximizing benefit
National Commission for the Protection of Human Subjects of Biomedical and Behavioral
Research in 1974.
4. Justice
AUTONOMY (RESPECT FOR HUMAN DIGNITY)
It also means that people have that right to ask question, to refuse to give
information, and to withdraw from the study
AUTONOMY (RESPECT FOR HUMAN DIGNITY)
Full Disclosure means that the research has fully described the Nature of
the study, the person’s right to refuse Participation, the researcher’s
responsibilities, And likely risks and benefits
BENEFICENCE
Beneficence imposes a duty on researchers to minimize harm and to maximize
beneficence. This principle covers multiple dimensions
Researchers have an obligation to avoid, prevent, or minimize harm in studies with humans.
Harm and discomfort can take many forms:- can be physical (eg.,injury),emotional
(eg.,stress) social (eg.,loss of social port)of financial (eg., loss of wages).
Ethical researchers must use strategies to minimize all types of harm and discomfort , even
ones that are temporary.
BENEFICENCE
The right to protection from exploitation
Some provide incentives to respondents as a sigh of their token for their time/efforts
Most people participate in research because they believe it is for a greater good, and not
because of incentives
But any incentive given as a sign of gratitude after the information is collected can be
justified
Sensitive and Confidential Information
Seeking sensitive and confidential information can be a dicey issue in social science
research
Some private, government and voluntary organizations have information they don’t want
to make public and will fight to keep it that way
Asking for this information may either embarrass your respondents or even put them in
trouble
Not asking for it might compromise the research because the information might be key to
your research
Questions on sexual behavior, drug use, age, income, marital status are considered personal and some people
don’t want to talk about them
These questions can and should be asked on condition that you can provide and assure them confidentiality
The Question of Confidentiality
Sharing information about a respondent for any other reason other than research is unethical
But sometimes, you need to identify your respondents to put the study in context. So say:
‘according to some respondents……..’
‘one of the interviewees said……….’
‘a respondent claimed that……….’
If the IRB works with studies that include vulnerable populations, the
IRB should have members who are familiar with these groups.
RESPONSIBILITIES OF IRB
Risks to study participants are minimized
Adequate provisions for monitoring data collection to ensure safety of the study
participants
Research Participants;
Anyone that is directly or indirectly involved in the research is a participant
Anyone that is likely to be affected by the research finding is a participant
The researcher;
Anyone who collects information for the specific purpose of understanding, consolidating
of propagating of professional knowledge is a researcher
This include academic researchers
Funding bodies;
Organizations and institutions that fund research are also stakeholders
Businesses, pharmaceutical organizations, governments, NGOs, all provide funding for
Stakeholder Interest and Research Ethics
Each of these stakeholders have a vested interest, aims, motivations, and
objectives that could directly affect the research
Its important to make sure the research is not affected by the self-interest of
any stakeholder
The research should also be carried out in a way that does not harm any of the
stakeholders