Ethics and Research

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Ethics and Research

• Here we will understand basic principles of
  conducting ethical research.

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The first step in the evolution of ethics is a
sense of solidarity with other human beings.
Albert
Schweitzer
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Discussion Question

• You are conducting a study of spring break
  visitors to a Texas beach. You are interested in
  visitors motivations. Many visitors have been
  consuming large amounts of alcohol and marijuana.
  All of a sudden a fight breaks out involving
  dozens of tourists. The fight results in lots of
  littering, destruction of park property, and the
  hospitalization of five tourists. Park Rangers
  demand that you reveal the identities of those
  people involved in the fighting. Rather than
  risk arrest as a accomplice after the fact, you
  comply. How do you feel about this? What
  ethical components can you identify.

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Nazi Concentration Camps - WWII

• Experimentation

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• Tuskegee Study
• 1972

• The Tuskegee Syphilis Study involved the
  withholding of known effective treatment for
  syphilis from African-American participants who
  were infected. US public health services study
  among 400 poor African-American men in Tuskegee,
  Alabama. The Tuskegee Syphilis Study involved the
  withholding of known effective treatment for
  syphilis from African-American participants who
  were infected.(http//www.tuskegee.edu/Global/Stor
  y.asp?s1207598)

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WHAT IS A HUMAN SUBJECT?
Human subject means a living individual about
whom an investigator (whether professional or
student) conducting research obtains (1) data or
(2) identifiable private information through
intervention or interaction with the individual.
45 CFR 46.102(f)
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Respect for Persons

• Choice, no undue pressure
• Protection of vulnerable populations

The moral test of any society is how it cares for
the people in the dawn of life the children the
twilight of life the elderly and the shadows of
life the sick and disenfranchised.
Hubert H.
Humphrey
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Beneficence

• Maximize benefits
• Minimize risks, harm, discomfort

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Justice

• Equitable selection
• Fair treatment

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Maintenance of Privacy

• Anonymityno way anyone, except principal
  investigator, can match results with the
  individual
• Persons name may be kept on a record and
  identified by a number
• Do not make note of people interacting without
  their approval
• People have the right to be left alone

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Confidentiality

• Anonymity means that records cannot be linked
  with names
• Confidentiality means that anything learned about
  the participant is held in the strictest of
  confidence

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Coercion and Deception

• People should not be forced, for whatever reason,
  into participation
• Students cant be forced to participate in
  experiments
• How much deception is justifiable?

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Informed Consent

• Purpose of research
• Who you are
• What you are doing
• How long participant will be involved
• An offer to withdraw from study
• Potential benefits to society

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Informed Consent (Continued)

• Potential risks
• Assurance of confidence
• How to get copy of results
• How you can be reached
• A place for prospective subject (or parent) to
  sign indicating
• s/he agrees to participate in study
• s/he understands the purpose of the study

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Informed Consent with Children

• Children may lack the maturity to understand
  potential dangers and implications of research
• Must get the approval of children and teens who
  are less than 18 years of age

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Protection from Harm

• Must protect subjects from physical or
  psychological harm
• Sometimes benefits may outweigh potential risks

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Sharing Results and Debriefing

• It is important to share results with the public
  and subjects
• Where deception occurs, you must explain real
  purpose of study with subject