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Ethical aspects: Social and behavioural sciences

Social and behavioural research involving human participants

Research in the social and behavioural sciences is diverse in its nature and execution and differs greatly from biomedical research, leading to limited applicability of the Medical Research Involving Human Participants Act (WMO). The diversity not only concerns the broad spectrum that constitutes the social and behavioural sciences, but also the wide range of research methods applied, from surveys to participant observation, and from minimal physical interventions to ethnography.
Therefore, The National Ethics Council for Social and Behavioural Sciences has compiled the Code of Ethics for the Social and Behavioural Sciences; an independent code of conduct for ethical review of research involving human participants, taking this diversity into account. This Code provides guidelines and intends to support researchers and ethical review boards in their ethical reflection.

Apply or explain
By default, the values, principles and procedures as formulated in the code are considered. However, in particular situations it may be necessary for researchers to depart from the code if this is more justifiable on ethical grounds. Adherence to the code is not without obligation, however, and in all cases researchers are expected to be able to clearly explain their considerations and to account for their choices.


Is the Medical Research Involving Human Participants Act (WMO) applicable to your research? If so, review the information on the tab health sciences.

Contents

The Code provides information and guidelines about the following sections:

A.  Definitions
B.  General procedures
C.  Scientific relevance, necessity and validity
D.  Informed consent
E.  Exceptions: when is withholding information, deception, passive consent, or no consent
      acceptable?
F.  Compensation
G.  Data protection and privacy
H.  Ethics review committee
I.   Complaints procedure
J.  Generalized validity, multi-center research, and research at external institutions or locations

Principles

The Code of Ethics is based on the following principles:

  • Researchers respect the dignity of humans and their environment by avoiding exploitation, treating participants and their communities with respect and care, and protecting those with diminished autonomy.
  • Researchers strive towards a minimization of harm, and a just distribution of benefits and burden, with respect for the potentially conflicting interests of diverse (groups of) participants, communities, and society.
  • Researchers adopt an ethical attitude in which they are mindful of the meaning, implications and consequences of the research for anyone affected by it.
  • Researchers demonstrate the ethical attitude by:
    - active reflection on the ethical issues that may arise during, or as a consequence of, their
      research
    - initiating a proper assessment of the potential drawbacks of the research for individuals,
      communities and society
    - monitoring for any developments that may impact upon ethical aspects of the research
  • Researchers are able to account for, and communicate on their ethical reflection vis-à-vis different stakeholders, such as the participants and their communities, the own organization, scientific peers, students, funding agencies, and society.
  • Researchers conduct research that is scientifically valid, and that will plausibly lead to relevant insights in the field of the social and behavioural sciences.

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