Institutional Review Boards review methods proposed for research to ensure they are ethical.
Southeast Missouri State University IRBCharge: To maintain familiarity with federal guidelines concerning the use of human participants in research; to review and recommend appropriate changes in institutional policies and procedures concerning the use of human participants in research; to review and make recommendations concerning proposed use of human participants in research at the institution; to ensure appropriate steps are taken to protect the rights and welfare of human participants in research; to maintain awareness of federal guidelines, policies and federal compliance.
Video: How IRBs Protect Human Research ParticipantsThis video describes what an institutional review board (IRB) is and how IRBs serve to protect people who participate in research. Produced by US Department of Health and Human Services
Institutional Review Boards Frequently Asked QuestionsThe following is a compilation of answers to questions asked of FDA regarding the protection of human subjects of research. For ease of reference, the numbers assigned to the questions are consecutive throughout this section.
Research Ethics
Research Ethics by Gary ComstockEducation in the responsible conduct of research typically takes the form of online instructions about rules, regulations, and policies. Research Ethics takes a novel approach and emphasizes the art of philosophical decision-making. Part A introduces egoism and explains that it is in the individual's own interest to avoid misconduct, fabrication of data, plagiarism and bias. Part B explains contractualism and covers issues of authorship, peer review and responsible use of statistics. Part C introduces moral rights as the basis of informed consent, the use of humans in research, mentoring, intellectual property and conflicts of interests. Part D uses two-level utilitarianism to explore the possibilities and limits of the experimental use of animals, duties to the environment and future generations, and the social responsibilities of researchers. This book brings a fresh perspective to research ethics and will engage the moral imaginations of graduate students in all disciplines.
University Responsibility for the Adjudication of Research Misconduct: The Science Bubble by Stefan FranzenThis book offers a scientific whistleblower's perspective on current implementation of federal research misconduct regulations. It provides a narrative of general interest that relates current cases of research ethics to philosophical, historical and sociological accounts of fraud in scientific research. The evidence presented suggests that the problems of falsification and fabrication remain as great as ever, but hidden because the current system puts universities in charge of investigations and permits them to use confidentiality regulations to hide the outcomes of investigations. The book documents the significant conflict of interest that arises because federal regulation gives universities the responsibility to conduct investigations of their own faculty with severely limited oversight. The book is intended for young research scientists or anyone who wishes to understand the challenges faced by scientists in the workplace today. The central thread in the book is an exclusive account of an experienced research scientist who was the first to expose the facts that led to the longest running research misconduct investigation in the history of the National Science Foundation.