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Ethical Research Practices
Ethical Research Practices
At times in America's history there have been horrific examples of scientific research that inflicted great harm on people in the name of pursing knowledge "for the greater good." From allowing participants to abuse one another, to withholding lifesaving medical treatments, there are dark chapters in the story of scientific inquiry in which human dignity took a backseat to blind scientific ambition. By observing a few basic principles, we can make sure that people who agree to contribute their time, thoughts, or experiences to a study are protected from harm.
Key Terms
Key Terms
Confidentiality: the agreement between a researcher and subject regarding how the researcher will protect the subject's personal information and privacy.
Informed Consent: process/documentation through which a researcher obtains the participant's consent to be a part of the study; the researcher must inform the participant of potential harms and benefits of the study.
Privacy: the right to control access to ourselves and our own personal information.
Research Ethics: guidelines on how research should be conducted that focus on protecting participants from harm.
Subject: any person included within a research study (i.e., an interviewee).
CITI Training
CITI Training
CITI Training is a tool Grand Valley State University uses to teach students, faculty, and staff responsible research conduct. By the end of the training, participants should be able to:
Explain the key roles of a researcher.
Identify ways to protect subjects before, during, and after data collection.
Identify the key challenges a researcher could encounter in meeting their responsibilities.
Apply a range of strategies to respond and adapt to the ethical challenges one may face when conducting research.
To better understand informed consent, confidentiality, and research ethics, complete the CITI training module, "Social Behavioral Educational Researchers," through the GVSU Office of Sponsored Projects. The module includes lesson materials and quizzes to test your knowledge.
Select "Begin CITI Training" below to get started.
CITI Training_NON GVSU Login Instructions.pdfInformed Consent Example
Informed Consent Example
Informed Consent Template.docxEthical Research in the Community
When you are conducting research in your community, unless you are working with an institution that receives government funding (e.g., a public school, health center, or university), you will not need the same type of institutional approval described in the training. But to protect your subjects and help develop trust it is still critical to consider the dimensions of consent and confidentiality.
For quantitative survey research, the key concerns are that people voluntarily participate and that their responses are kept confidential. Here is an example of an informed consent document from Grand Valley State University that researchers can modify to fit their own research. You'll see it includes details on what will happen, potential risks and benefits, and how information is kept confidential.
To help ensure people's right to privacy is maintained and their information kept confidential we want to check that:
Names or identifying information cannot be connected to responses
Data is de-identified and stored securely (e.g., in an encrypted file)
Summary
Summary
Researchers have many responsibilities and must always work to protect the privacy of their subjects. By following a few simple principles, we can preserve the human dignity of people included in our study and build or maintain a reputation of trust in the community.
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