IRB Board & Prevention of Future Problems

As outlined already there are a general set of rules outlining ethical standards and principles that people agree on however there may be a time when a researcher may question themselves and the research they are doing.  They may also be questioned during the research by the subjects or by a person of more authority.  

When this happens and the research runs up against the rights of potential participants in most institutions and organisations there will be a panel of people called the Institutional Review Board (IRB). 

This panel of people will review and possibly grant proposals made with respect to ethical implications and decides whether additional actions need to be taken to assure the safety and rights of participants.  This panel not only potentially protects the subjects of the research but also the Institution, Organisation and researcher from legal proceedings and tarnishing there reputation. 

Primary concerns of the IRB are that risks are minimized for subjects and are reasonable when compared to benefits, participant selection is equitable, privacy and confidentiality are protected, participants are adequately informed of what their participation will entail (e.g., risks and benefits) including written and signed informed consent in most cases.

This shows that the IRB is an extremely board when it comes to Ethics as it can help prevent many future problems.  IRB boards are used exstensively in the research fields of  health and the social sciences, including anthropology, sociology, and psychology.  This includes clinical trials of new drugs which can be the most dangerous type of research on humans. 

At Stanford University this is there stance on Ethics in Research when involving humans and clinical trials..

"All protocols involving both "research" or "clinical investigations" and "human subjects" must be reviewed and approved by the IRB before recruitment and data collection may start."

This shows they take Ethical Research extremely seriously and use an IRB to protect subjects and prevent implications later on.

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William M.K. Trochim, (2006).  Ethics in Research.  Retrieved November 11, 2010, from http://www.socialresearchmethods.net/kb/ethics.php

Stanford University, October 20 (2010), Medical Research, Retrieved November 11, 2010, from http://humansubjects.stanford.edu/research/medical/medical.html