1. Ethics and Social Research
Chapter 3

2. Introduction Ethical principles in research
The set of values, standards, and principles used to determine appropriate and acceptable conduct at all stages of the research process

3. Introduction Stop and Think
Do you know of any research projects in the social sciences, medicine, or biology where researchers did something that was ethically questionable?
What was it about the study that raised questions for you?

4. Introduction Historical perspectives on research ethics
American Psychological Association (APA)
American Sociological Association (ASA)

5. Introduction Historical perspectives on research ethics
Total disregard for the human dignity perpetrated during World War II by researchers in concentration camps controlled by Nazi Germany
Air pressure
Cold water
Treatment of wounds
Exposure to chemical-warfare agents
Essential to have voluntary consent of human subjects 5

6. Introduction Nuremberg Code Historical perspectives on research ethics
Principles about research on human beings

7. Introduction Historical perspectives on research ethics
Atomic Energy Commission
Conducted research on the effects of radiation on human subjects, including medical research on using radioisotopes to diagnose or cure disease
Semi-comatose cancer patients were injected with plutonium to determine how much uranium was needed to produce kidney damage

8. Introduction Historical perspectives on research ethics
The Tuskegee Syphilis Study
Conducted by the United States Public Health Service to study the effect of untreated syphilis to determine the natural history of the disease
Project began in 1932 and lasted 40 years
Sample began with 399 poor black men with late-stage syphilis. In the end, the study included a total of 600 men.
Offered free medical care in exchange for their medical data. None were told that they had syphilis.
More than 400 were not offered the standard treatment for syphilis. They were also not provided penicillin when it became available as a cure.
Many of the men died of the disease and some unknowingly transmitted the disease to their wives and children.

9. Introduction Historical perspectives on research ethics
Institutional review board (IRB)
The committee at a college, university, or research center responsible for evaluating the ethics of proposed research
Levels of IRB review 9

10. Quiz – Question 1
What is the primary factor to consider in determining the needed level of IRB review?

11. Introduction Focal research
“Ethical Concerns and Researcher Responsibilities in Studying Women with HIV/AIDS”
Process of conducting research
Ethical practices
Using informed consent procedures
Respondent’s privacy and confidentiality
Preserving the integrity of the respondent’s narratives

12. Principles for Doing Ethical Research
Ethics
A set of moral and social standards that includes both prohibitions against and prescriptions for specific kinds of behavior in research

13. Principles for Doing Ethical Research
Principles regarding participants in research
Protect study participants from harm
The principle that participants in studies are not harmed, physically, psychologically, emotionally, legally, socially, or financially as a result of their participation in a study
Milgram experiment

14. Principles for Doing Ethical Research
Principles regarding participants in research
Voluntary participation and informed consent
The principle that study participants choose to participate of their own free will
Informed consent
A statement that describes the study and the researcher and formally requests participation

15. Principles for Doing Ethical Research
Stop and Think
Who should give informed consent in a study involving students under 18?
The students?
Their parents?
Both?

16. Principles for Doing Ethical Research
Principles regarding participants in research
Voluntary participation and informed consent
Passive consent
When no response is considered an affirmative consent to participate in research; also called “opt out informed consent

17. Principles for Doing Ethical Research
Principles regarding participants in research
Voluntary participation and informed consent
Are participants really volunteers?
Have you ever been asked by an instructor while your were his or her student to participate in a study they were conducting?
Were you ever asked while in a class to complete a questionnaire or participate in an interview?
Did you feel an pressure or did you feel you could decline easily?
Are students in these situations truly volunteers? 17

18. Principles for Doing Ethical Research
Principles regarding participants in research
Voluntary participation and informed consent
Is it ethical to observe people in public, without there knowledge?
Study college students by letting them assume you are one of them
Gather data by attending an AA meeting

19. Principles for Doing Ethical Research
Principles regarding participants in research
Anonymity and confidentiality
Anonymity
When no one, including the researcher, knows the identities of research participants

20. Principles for Doing Ethical Research
Principles regarding participants in research
Anonymity and confidentiality
Confidentiality (privacy)
When no third party knows the identities of the research participants
Keeping the information disclosed by study participants, including their identities, from all other parties

21. Principles for Doing Ethical Research
Principles regarding participants in research
Anonymity and confidentiality
Tearoom Trade - Humphreys

22. Quiz – Question 2
What two principles did Humphrey’s violate?

23. Principles for Doing Ethical Research
Ethical issues concerning colleagues and the general public
Honest reporting
The ethical responsibility to produce and report accurate data

24. Principles for Doing Ethical Research
Ethical dilemmas during and after data collection
Who owns the data?
Whose interpretation counts?
Who has veto power?
What are the researcher’s obligations after the data are collected?
Can the data be used against the participants?
Will the data be used on their behalf?
Do researchers have an obligation to protect the communities and the social groups they study or just to guard the rights of individuals?

25. Principles for Doing Ethical Research
Ethical dilemmas during and after data collection
Conflicts between ethical principles
Research by Ptacek (1988)
Research by Yassour-Borochowitz (2004)

26. Conflicts Between Ethical Concerns and Legal Matters
Research by Calvey (2008)
Research by Leo (1995)
Research by Scarce (1995)

27. Conflicts Between Ethical Principles and Research Interests
Research by Jackall (1998)
Research by Frankenberg (1993)
Research by Rollins (1985)
Research by Lauder (2003)
Research by Ward and Henderson (2003)

28. Ethics and Publishing Results
Research by Ellis and colleagues (2008)

29. Making Decisions to Maximize Benefit and Minimize Risk
Think about the consequences of doing a given study as opposed to not doing the study
Consider all options and methods to find a research strategy that balances being ethical, being practical, with the likelihood of obtaining good quality data

30. Summary Protect research participants from harm Get informed consent
Be sure the study participants have not been pressured into volunteering
Collect data anonymously or keep data confidential
Submit the research proposal to a review board
Provide accurate research findings
Consider responsibilities to research colleagues and the general public
Maximize benefits and minimize risks

31. Quiz – Question 3
Of the following ways to do research, which is likely to involve the most serious ethical concerns?
In person interviews
Mail in questionnaires
Observation in a public place
Analyzing data from a secondary source
Content analysis