Question

The Belmont Report articulated three broad principles on which standards of ethical conduct in research are based. Identify these principles and citing examples, briefly discuss whether measures were taken by researchers in this study, to comply with these ethical principles. (25)

Answer 1

1. Respect for Persons- (A)individuals should be treated as autonomous and individuals with diminished autonomy .

(B)three elements of informed consent: information, comprehension, and voluntariness.

2. Beneficence- The principle of beneficence is behind efforts by researchers to minimize risks to participants and maximize benefits to participants and society.

EXAMPLE- when considering a research design, the principle of beneficence should cause us to ask if there is another way that we could obtain the same knowledge but with lower risks to participants.

3. Justice-

The principle of justice addresses the distribution of the burdens and benefits of research. That is, it should not be the case that one group in society bears the costs of research while another group reaps its benefits. Issues of justice arise most strongly around questions about the selection of participants.

CONCLUSION:-

Applying these three principles to specific ethical situations can be difficult, and the principles sometimes come into conflict. However, even if they do not lead to clear decisions in all cases, keeping these three principles in mind helps clarify the issues.