Chapter 3 - Ethics

Question 1

Why go through the ethics review process?

Answer 1

• University requirement for professional accrediation
• Sign when submit article for publication
• Principles are consistently applied
• Take the perspective of the participant – would they want to do this? Is there a risk to this? What do they need to know?

Question 2

3 Ethical Codes/Principles in TCPS (and Belmont Report)

Answer 2

• Concern for Welfare (Beneficience)
• Respect for Persons (Autonomy)
• Justice (Justice)

Question 3

Concern for Welfare

Answer 3

• Risk-benefit analysis
• What are the potential gains vs. The potential costs of participating in this study?
• What counts as minimal risk?
• Is the participants’ experience far different and riskier than their everyday experiences?

Question 4

Minimal Risk

Answer 4

• Takes into account 2 factors: Topic you’re studying and Metholody by which you’re studying it
• We want to minimize 4 things:
  1) Physical risk (Is this person likely to be physically harmed?)
  2) Psychological/emotional harm (Is this person likely to feel stressed, anxious, uncomfortable, etc.?)
  3) Social risk (What is the impact on society if we don’t go through with this research?)
  4) Privacy and confidentiality (Concerns about anonymity of participant data, identity, etc.)

Question 5

Respect for Persons

Answer 5

• Must respect autonomy of participants and allow them to freely choose whether or not to participate -> must give informed consent
• Potential problem: demand characteristics
• Potential solution: deception

Question 6

Deception (2 kinds, how to deal with it)

Answer 6

• Sins of commission: lying -> leading participants to believe things about the experiment of themselves that are not true
• Sins of omission: leaving out some details -> would the details make participants not want to participate
• you can deal with deception through very thorough debriefing (explaining true purpose of research, apologize, explain why deception was necessary, etc.)

Question 7

Justice

Answer 7

• Fairness and sound rationale in participant recruitment
• One participant should not bear all the risks of research
• Especially to protect disempowered and socially vulnerable populations
• Ex. Tuskegee Syphilis Experiment -> socially vulnerable pop. Targeted; Experimental Eskimos

Question 8

Research with indigenous populations

Answer 8

• Indigenous populations often bear disproportionate costs of research
• Exploitation by researchers by taking advantage of indigenous people being disadvantaged (Seeking “glory” for caring about the disadvantage; researchers give little, take a lot; indigenous collaborators give a lot, get little back -> No reciprocity)
• Special process for ethical clearance for research
• Must give clear explanation of why this population must be studied vs. Another population

Question 9

Animal Research: benefits

Answer 9

• Allows researchers to control genetic makeup of “participants” being studied
• Allows researchers to more easily study physiological, neurological, and genetic foundations of behaviour

Question 10

3 R’s of Animal Research

Answer 10

• Replacement: Can only do studies with animals if alternatives don’t exist (ex. With humans, with computers, etc.)
• Refinement: Minimise or elminate animal distress by modifying experimental procedures (Similar to “Concern for Welfare” principle in human ethics)
• Reduction: Adopt experimental designs that require the fewest animal subjects possible

Question 11

Arguments of animal rights groups

Answer 11

• Animals are just as likely as humans to experience suffering -> Animal research is allowed only if human subjects are also allowed to be used
• Animals have inherent value and rights equal to those of humans -> Animals should not bear burden of research to benefit other species (similar to the “Justice” principle in human ethics)

Question 12

Research exempt from REB review

Answer 12

• research that legally uses only publicly available information, studies that observe participants only and don’t involve interactions with them, uses pre-collected anonymous data
• ex. program evaluation, evaluating a teaching method (unless you’re going to publish it), archival research

Question 13

assent

Answer 13

when you’re asking minors to participate in your study and their parents or guardians must sign the consent forms on their behalf

Question 14

alternatives to deception

Answer 14

• role-playing (presenting situation and asking how participant would hypothetically respond)
• simulation studies (participants put in simulated situation)
• honest studies (no deception)

Question 15

professional ethics

Answer 15

avoiding plagiarism by citing the work you use in reports; not committing academic fraud by altering or creating data in your studies, etc.