Research and Professional Ethics

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______form for is Mandated Reporters signed but is a process. The Informed Consent research participants must be Mandated reporters are people informed so that they have an who are required by law to report Informed consent is one of the understanding of the research and suspected child abuse. Although core features required for the any potential risks that are anyone may report suspected ethical conduct of research that associated with the research. abuse, mandated reporters are involves human subjects. Informed Informed consent is essential obligated to report suspected consent is the process that is before a participant joins the abuse and may incur focused on the individual project and is ongoing throughout consequences for not reporting. of the research the research. While obtaining In Kansas, mandated reporters participants, which is a consent the participants are include: fundamental ethical principle. informed of their rights as Informed consent requires that participants, the purpose of the 1. Providers of medical care participants give their voluntary study, the way in which the study and mental health service agreement to participate in the will take place, and the potential providers. research project. This voluntary risks that could be experienced as 2. Teachers, school agreement does not end when the a result of participation, as well as administrators, or other the potential benefits of employees of an educational participation. Subjects in the institution. Foundational ethical study must participate willingly. 3. Licensed child care principles: Vulnerable populations (i.e. providers. prisoners, children, pregnant 4. Emergency medical 1. Respect for persons. women, etc.) have additional services personnel, law special protections. Most research 2. Respect for communities. involving children requires their 3. —the requirement to informed assent as well as the not cause harm and to promote informed consent of the the good of research patients. guardians of the children. The overall goal of the informed 4. . consent process is to provide sufficient information so that a participant can make an informed decision about whether or not to join a study or to continue https://www.hhs.gov/ohrp/ participation. regulations-and-policy/belmont- report/index.html

OTOK is a community-based initiative funded by OJJDP, KS Department of Corrections, and Kansas Advisory Group Page 1 Questions for achieving justice in enforcement officers, juvenile is the keeping research: intake and assessment workers, of another person’s information court services officers, and private. Confidentiality applies ✴ community corrections officers. to information about research Who ought to receive the benefits participants that is collected of research and bear its burdens? over the course of a research project. Researchers are in a ✴ position of responsibility to Where does responsibility reside in protect the personal information a society with historic inequities and that their participants have agreed to disclose for the injustices to account for these research. Safeguarding this imbalances in our current practices? information is a key part of the relationship of trust and respect ✴ that exists between the Who decides what is experienced as researcher and the participant. a benefit or burden? Depending on the type of study, personal identifiers such as names, birthdates, places of residence etc. may or may not have to be collected. In situations Child Welfare Information Gateway. (2019). where these data are collected, https://www.childwelfare.gov researchers may take several steps to ensure the confidentiality of Informed Consent in Human Subjects their participants’ information, Research. (2019). https://oprs.usc.edu/files/ including: 2017/04/Informed-Consent- Booklet-4.4.13.pdf

✴ Keeping records secure Guided Principles of Ethical Research (2019). https://www.nih.gov/health-information/nih- through the use of clinical-research-trials-you/guiding- password protected principles-ethical-research

computer files or locking Research Ethics Reconsidered in the Context up physical files. of Community Engaged Research. (2019). https://www.ccphealth.org/wp-content/ ✴ The removal of uploads/2017/10/ Confidentiality Research_Ethics_Reconsidered_final.pdf personally identifiable information, such as by Research including assigning pseudonyms or children: by not revealing the exact ages or locations ✴ One or both parents or of participants. other guardian must be ✴ provided with the Reporting aggregate information ordinarily findings rather than required for informed information about any consent. individuals ✴ The parents or guardians participants. decide whether to allow the child to participate, and children capable of assent must also express their willingness to participate. ✴ “Assent” means a child’s affirmative agreement to participate in research.

OTOK is a community-based initiative funded by OJJDP, KS Department of Corrections, and Kansas Advisory Group Page 2