Ethics and ethical research Definitions, values and principles

Definition of ethics Ethics is a system of moral principles by which human actions and proposals may be judged good or bad, right or wrong. (Macquarie Dictionary 3rd edn) In research, ethics and compliance can be defined as conducting your research in a responsible manner, complying with the requirements of legislation, policies and procedures, codes and guidelines. (www.unisa.edu.au/res/ethics)

Values and principles of ethical conduct Ethical human research is characterised by Research merit and integrity Justice Beneficence Respect for human beings The National Statement on ethical conduct in human research is organised around these values.

The order of values Human research requires ethical reflection that is informed by these four values. The order in which they are considered reflects the order in which ethical considerations commonly arise in human research. National Statement on ethical conduct in human research (page 11).

1 Research merit and integrity It is crucial that: the proposed research has merit researchers who are to carry out the research have integrity. If these criteria are not met, the involvement of human participants in the research cannot be ethically justifiable.

2 Justice Justice involves a regard for the human sameness that each person shares with every other. This justice includes distributive and procedural justice. Distributive justice distributes benefits and burdens of participation in research fairly. Procedural justice: selects, recruits, excludes or includes participants fairly ensures that the benefits of research are achieved through just means, distributed fairly, and involve no unjust burdens.

3 Beneficence Researchers exercise beneficence by: assessing and taking account of the risks of harm and the potential benefits of research to participants and the wider community being sensitive to the welfare and interests of people involved in their research reflecting on the social and cultural implications of their work.

4 Respect for human beings This is the common thread in all discussions about ethical values: Each human being has value in themselves, which must inform all interactions between people. The value of human autonomy is recognised – the capacity to determine one’s own life and make one’s own decisions. Protection is provided for those with diminished or no autonomy.

What does this mean for your research? The design, review and conduct of research must reflect each of these four values. The breakdown of these values is further expanded into guidelines on pages 12–13 of the National Statement.