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Introduction to Research Ethics

Session 5, Consequences of Research and Ethical codes

Elin Palm

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Today

• Scientists’ responsibility for the consequences of research

• Ethical codes• Exam• Evaluation…

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Terminology: Morality and ethics

• Morality: An individual’s set of immediate intuitions concerning what is right and what is wrong.

• Ethics: A set of carefully thought-out principles governing or influencing behaviour.

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What is an ethical problem?

• Practical problemsLack of knowledge or resources

• Ethical problems arise in situations in which our actions are likely to affect othersUncertainty about which of several possible

actions (including the possibility of not acting at all) is the right one.

None of the possible actions seems right (ethical dilemma)

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3 kinds of research ethical problems

• Problems concerning ”good scientific practice” and researchers’ relations and responsibilities toward each other

• Problems concerning research subjects (humans or animals)

• Problems concerning the external consequences of scientific research (what will research results be used for..?)

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The researcher in society

Scientists have a responsibility to serve society:

• People who produce knowledge should be responsible for its consequences.

(Resnik 1998 p. 147)

• Science versus knowledge

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Research and industry

Industry is driven by profit…

Possibility of conflict with research ethical principles of openness, honesty, freedom of research, …?

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Science and the public

Researchers have a responsibility to communicate their results to the public.

Tredje uppgiften:  Högskolorna skall också samverka med det omgivande

samhället och informera om sin verksamhet. Högskolelagen (SFS

1996:1392)

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Ethical codes

Ethical codes are specialized and specific codes of ethics, directed at a specific profession or a specific group of people.

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An ethical code: The KTH ethics policya. What is the purpose of the policy?

Why does KTH have such a policy?b. Does the policy fulfill its purpose?c. How useful do you find this policy?

Will it be of help when considering cases of the kind we have discussed in this course?

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What is the purpose of an ethical code?

• Action guidance• To resolve conflicts• To increase awareness of ethical

problems• To create respect for the profession• Send a signal...

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KTH Ethics Policy

• KTH basic values • KTH operations rest on a foundation of ethics

based on human rights, democracy and free, open debate. The conviction that technical/scientific research and education are able to contribute to a better life situation for individual people, sustainable development and the improved functioning of society plays a vital role for all KTH activities. KTH works to implement free exchange of information and for national and international cooperation. Gender equality and repudiation of all forms of discrimination are a self-evident part of the KTH value platform.

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Research at KTH should:

• …aim at maintaining high levels of scientific quality and achieving international recognition.

• …aim at systematically and critically searching for new knowledge. Knowledge that is intended to increase understanding of the world and knowledge that has relevance for social development.

• …whenever suitable for the task at hand, carry out activities in cooperation with the rest of society, including companies working with technical development.

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Research at KTH should:

• …always be carried out in such a manner so as not to expose the integrity of the research or the researcher to risk of any kind. Any connections to commercial or other interests, which may cause a conflict of interest or credibility, must be openly reported. Expert advice, participation in debates, authorship of popular scientific works etc. which is connected to the researcher and teacher roles must be characterised by objectivity and integrity.

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Research at KTH should:

• …be carried out without tolerance for any form of plagiarism, exertion of undue influence or other impropriety. This includes providing proper and correct references and stating any indebtedness to the work and efforts of others.

• …be carried out with the aim of publication in scientific journals and books in both traditional and IT-based publishing forms.

• … be published or reported in such a manner that the efforts of colleagues are recognised to a degree equivalent to their scientific contributions. Co-authorship means joint responsibility for the material published.

• …when other people are involved, be carried out with respect for the individual’s autonomy and personal integrity.

• …when animals are involved, include a thorough animal experiment ethical review.

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• Doctoral studies at KTH should: • … be designed so that students and teachers together work to

ensure the student achieves established educational goals. Both parties must be committed to the attainment of these goals.

• …be led by a supervisor (or a supervisory group) with good levels of competence within the relevant research field and who are sensitive to the interests and views of the doctoral student within the framework of any project goals.

• …be supervised taking into consideration the doctoral student’s relationship of dependence as concerns his/her supervisor.

• …be characterised by mutual respect between the doctoral student and supervisor.

• …lead to the doctoral student developing his/her independence and, after graduation, possessing the capacity to carry out research of good scientific quality.

• … be carried out with zero tolerance of all forms of partiality, plagiarism, prohibited exertion of influence or pressure or other impropriety during teaching and examinations.

• …ensure that the doctoral student, after graduation, is well versed in the ethical problems relevant to his/her own research field.

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THE DECLARATION OF HELSINKI (1)

Ethical Principles for Medical Research Involving Human Subjects

Adopted 1964 by World Medical Association, last amendment 2004

A. Introduction (extracts)4 Medical progress is based on research which ultimately must

rest in part on experimentation involving human subjects.

5 In medical research on human subjects, considerations related to the well-being of the human subject should take precedence over the interests of science and society.

7 In current medical practice and in medical research, most prophylactic, diagnostic and therapeutic procedures involve risks and burdens.

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THE DECLARATION OF HELSINKI (2)B BASIC PRINCIPLES FOR ALL MEDICAL RESEARCH

(extracts)10 It is the duty of the physician in medical research to protect

the life, health, privacy, and dignity of the human subject.

18 Medical research involving human subjects should only be conducted if the importance of the objective outweighs the inherent risks and burdens to the subject. This is especially important when the human subjects are healthy volunteers.

19 Medical research is only justified if there is a reasonable likelihood that the populations in which the research is carried out stand to benefit from the results of the research.

20 The subjects must be volunteers and informed participants in the research project.

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Minimal requirements for ethical deliberation

• Serious consideration of the issue

• Open-minded discussion

• Willingness to give reasons for one's views

• Consistency

• Fairness

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Summing up

• Many of the recommendations and advices in the course book may seem fairly straightforward

• And, there are laws and policys to regulate scientific conduct

• Nevertheless, research ethical problems occur and researchers sometimes behave unethically.

• This course does not provide precise answers, rather it serves to stimulate reflection on ethically problematic matters.

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Research ethics ressources• General resources:• Codex www.codex.vr.se (the Swedish Research Council's gateway

to research ethics guidelines for many areas of science)• Resnik, David B. The ethics of science: an introduction. Routledge,

1998. (A general introduction to research ethics – available at the KTH library).

• Whitbeck, Caroline. Ethics in Engineering Practice and Research. Cambridge University Press. (Available at the KTH library)

• Vad är god forskningssed? Rapport från Vetenskapsrådet, 2005. • (In Swedish. Available at: http://www.du.se/upload/5139/

Vad%20är%20god%20forskningssed%5B2%5D.pdf )

• Issues related to publication• Wager, Elizabeth: How to survive peer review. BMJ Publishing

Group, 2005. (Available as e-book from E-brary via KTH library)

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The exam

Exams will be assessed according to how well they

• describe the ethical problem,• draw in relevant ethical principles,• point out relevant empirical issues,

including how empirical facts may affect the ethical assessment of the case,

• provide a nuanced discussion and solution of the ethical problem.

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The exam

• 1 point per achieved criterion (1/2 points may be given per attempts that go some way but that are not completely satisfactory)

• Maximum 22 points. To pass, 11 points are required.

• Graduate students: Pass/fail• Undergarduate: A-F scale.

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Aims of the course:

After completing this course, students should be able to identify and describe common research ethical problems, and analyze the problems taking relevant empirical factors into account. Moreover, students should be able to suggest possible solutions to the problems and to justify the chosen solution by means of basic research ethical principles.

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Thank you!

• Questions?