which ethical principle protects human subjects from harm

#Which ethical principle protects human subjects from harm code#

In addition, due to the growing introduction of new actors in scholarly research, such as data holders and owners, it was also questioned whether responsibility to protect research participants should fall solely on investigators. Our study shows how scholars generally find traditional principles to be a suitable guide to perform ethical data research but, at the same time, they recognized and elaborated on the challenges embedded in their practical application.

#Which ethical principle protects human subjects from harm code#

By conducting 39 semi-structured interviews with academic scholars in both Switzerland and United States, our research aims at exploring the code of ethics and research practices of academic scholars involved in Big Data studies in the fields of psychology and sociology to understand if the principles set by the Belmont Report are still considered relevant in Big Data research.

At the same time, the introduction of Big Data methods, that is having a great impact in behavioral research, is raising complex ethical issues that make protection of research participants an increasingly difficult challenge. Another way of conceiving the principle of justice is that equals ought to be treated equally.Research ethics has traditionally been guided by well-established documents such as the Belmont Report and the Declaration of Helsinki. Who ought to receive the benefits of research and bear its burdens? This is a question of justice, in the sense of “fairness in distribution” or “what is deserved.” An injustice occurs when some benefit to which a person is entitled is denied without good reason or when some burden is imposed unduly. As with all hard cases, the different claims covered by the principle of beneficence may come into conflict and force difficult choices.ģ. Two general rules have been formulated as complementary expressions of beneficent actions in this sense: (1) do not harm and (2) maximize possible benefits and minimize possible harms. Such treatment falls under the principle of beneficence. Persons are treated in an ethical manner not only by respecting their decisions and protecting them from harm, but also by making efforts to secure their well-being. The judgment that any individual lacks autonomy should be periodically reevaluated and will vary in different situations.Ģ. The extent of protection afforded should depend upon the risk of harm and the likelihood of benefit. Some persons are in need of extensive protection. Respect for the immature and the incapacitated may require protecting them as they mature or while they are incapacitated. To respect autonomy is to give weight to autonomous persons' considered opinions and choices while refraining from obstructing their actions unless they are clearly detrimental to others. In most cases of research involving human subjects, respect for persons demands that subjects enter into the research voluntarily and with adequate information. The principle of respect for persons thus divides into two separate moral requirements: the requirement to acknowledge autonomy and the requirement to protect those with diminished autonomy. Respect for persons incorporates at least two ethical convictions: first, that individuals should be treated as autonomous agents, and second, that persons with diminished autonomy are entitled to protection.

Three basic principles, among those generally accepted in our cultural tradition, are particularly relevant to the ethics of research involving human subjects: the principles of respect of persons, beneficence and justice. The expression ' basic ethical principles' refers to those general judgments that serve as a justification for particular ethical prescriptions and evaluations of human actions.