Week 2 Flashcards
What is Ethics
- Moral Philosophy
- The way we conduct ourselves
- Supports concept of right and wrong
- Uses thinking & reasoning and critical thinking for right and wrong
- Justified by Universal Principles
What is NOT Ethics
- Gut feelings or intuition
- Professional Code of Conduct
- Public Opinion or concensus
- Dogma, Doctrine or religeon
- Laws
Overview of Ethics History - Early
- Prehistoric - Hunter gatherers needed to co-operate to have collective societies
- Mythology - Hesiod’s Theogony, Do what the Gods want, but the Gods are fickle and change their minds
- Pre-Socratic “Texts” - Parmenides says change is impossible, so nothing actually matters
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Socrates & Plato - The Form Virtue; Virtue = Knowledge = Happiness
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Overview of Ethics History - Later
Aristotle - Purpose of llie is the pursuit of Eudaimonia (overall happiness,fulfilment & highest potential)
Post-Classical World - Developments in ethics connected with uptake of Christianity and Scripture
Late Nineteenth Century - Ethics associated with rise in professions like law & medicine. Executions, voluntary euthanasia are bound up by “do no harm” Hippocratic Oath
Social Research
Embeded in the totality of scholarly practice
Ethics requires the demonstration of:
* Moral Deliberation, Choice, Accountantability
The Doctors Trial
- Doctors who performed medical experiments in WW2
- They said the experiments were the same as before the war and they were not against the law
- Now Ethics is part of the Nuremburg Code 1948
Nuremburg Code
- Voluntary Informed Consent - Consent is Essential
- Abscense of Coersion - Must be voluntary
- Properly formulated experimentation
- Beneficence
Code not law, but started the path to ethical laws and guidelines we use today
Ethical Codes in Research
- Helsinki Declaration 1964
- About medical research with human subjects
Nuremburg also informed other codes of ethics
Helsinki Declaration - Six Principles
- Protection from harm
- Respect for individual dignity
- Right to self-determination
- Right to privacy
- Right to confidentiality
- Honesty & Integrity of researchers
Australian Ethical Guidelines
- National Statement on Ethical Conduct in Human Research 2007 - Australia
- Includes guidelines for Medical Research
Intended for: - Any research involving humans
- Any Ethical Review Body that reviews research
- Those involved with Research Governance
- Reseach participants
What constitutes Human Research
Withor about ppl, their data or tissue including:
* Surveys, interviews or focus groups
* psychological, physiologica or medical testing
* Observation by researchers
* Accessing personal documents or data
* Collection of body parts, organs, tissue or fluids and exhaled breath
* Personal information from existing publications
Two Key Themes in Human Research
- Risk and Benefit
- Consent
Two Key Themes in Human Research
Risk & Benefit
- Upon commencement of study we are responsible to assess any “Risk of Harm”
- Anyone involved must understand this risk compared to the Benefit of the study
Two Key Themes in Human Research
Consent
- People must be given the cope to make their own decisions
- This is known as the “Requirement for Consent”
National Statement 3 Levels of Risk -
- Harm
- Discomfort
- Inconveniencee
National Statement 3 Levels of Risk - Harm
Physical, psychological, economic, devaluation, legal or social
National Statement 3 Levels of Risk - Discomfort (low risk)
Minor side effects of medication, anxiety, induced reactions
National Statement 3 Levels of Risk - Inconvenience (negligible risk)
- Filling in survey, length of time
- Use of existing data is exempt from this code
- Research involving certain groups or methodologies mus be reviewed by full HREC
HREC Review
- Regardless of level of risk research involving certain groups must be reviewed by HREC
- Human Research Ethics Committee
NHREC
- National Human Research Ethics Committees
- Review research proposals involving human participants to ensure that they are ethically acceptable.
Groups at Particular Vulnerability in Research Context
- Pregnant women and child
- Dependent on medical without capacity for consent
- Cognitive impairment, intellecutal disability or mental ilness
- People involved in illegal activities
- ATSI Peoples
How can Researchers Manage Risk
- Clearly and overtly identify the risks involved
- Assess the severity and add suport options
- Judge the benefits of study
- Minimise risk and establish meaning
- Monitor Research - Supervisor & HREC
Assessment of Risk to Researchers
- Identify potential to compromise the safety of the researcher
- Not explicitly addressed in Codes of Ethics but still important
- Most institutions do include a Researcher Risk Assessment as part of their ethical process
Consent In Research
- Gaining consent is a requirement with these conditions
1. Consent should be voluntary - Free from coersion
2. Should be based on Sufficient Information
3. Give adequate understanding of the Reseach being conducted
4. Be in plain language that is easily understood
5. Access to contact details of the researcher
6. Access to a complaints process
4 Ethical Snakes
These reasons make Qual Research different from Quant
1. Potential for Harm
2. Informed Consent
3. Managing Dual Relationships
4. Issues of Representation
4 Ethical Snakes - Potential for Harm
Four pertinent issues with Potential for Harm
1. Limits to Confidentiality
2. Participant Distress
3. Researcher Trauma
4. Researcher Safety
4 Snakes - Limits to Confidentiality
- Qual researchers can’t provide complete confidentiality
- Must Provide RPIS (Research Participant Information Sheet)
- How will identity be proteceted - Pseudonym, remove identifiying information, keep recording safe
- Take care with data
- Mandatory Reporting disclosure