Doing the Right Thing

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Doing the Right Thing

• A Primer on Research Ethics

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What do these have in common?

• Pencillin
• Heliocentrism
• The transistor
• Brown v Board of Education
• The Gospel of Mary Magdala

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When Scholars Ethics Falter
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And then theres
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Why cut ethical corners?

• Malicious evil
• Carelessness
• Desperation
• Laziness or efficiency
• Competition
• Zeal
• Ignorance
• Norms (real or perceived)
• Ideology

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Starting early.

• Josephson Institute of Ethics survey (02)
• 74 cheated on exam
• 83 lied to teachers

• McCabe survey (03)
• 38 of students plagiarized in past year
• Nearly 50 did not consider this cheating

• Schoenthaler survey, Peterson case (04)
• Nine of 65 criminal-justice students falsified
  data

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How can we do the right thing?

• What are ethics?
• How can we make ethical decisions?
• Role of individual
• Role of collectivities

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Morality and Ethics

• Morality first-order beliefs about good and
  evil and associated practices
• Ethics second-order, explicit reflections on
  moral beliefs and practices

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Highest Ethical Plane
Depths of Depravity
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Highest Ethical Plane
Depths of Depravity
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Unless our ethics students learn to examine
themselves and what they really value, their
command of ethical theories and their ability to
think about ethics from diverse perspectives are
not likely to bring them any closer to being
willing and able to do the right thing. --
Marino (2004)
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Ethical Decision Making

• Clarify values and duties
• Identify relevant facts and stakeholders
• Identify possible actions implications
• Consult ethical resources
• Make a decision

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Ethical Decision Making

• Clarify values and duties
• Identify relevant facts and stakeholders
• Identify possible actions implications
• Consult ethical resources
• Make a decision

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Ethical Dimensions of Research

• Constitutive Values
• Conceive, design, execute, interpret
• Disseminate results

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Research Misconduct (ORI)

• Falsification

• Fabrication

• Plagiarism

• Other Practices that seriously deviate from
  those commonly accepted in the research community

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Other Practices

• Misrepresentation of credentials or role
• Failure to fulfill obligations to colleagues
• Failure to comply with regulations

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Institutional Animal Care Use Committee (IACUC)
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Giant rats trained to sniff out land mines
Roborat Could Help Find Earthquake Victims
The animal research I can't defend Roborats give
serious scientists the chance to draw an ethical
line
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Mission

• Regulatory
• Federal, state and local regulations funding
• College policy
• Ethical
• Facilitate humane, safe work with nonhuman
  vertebrate animals
• Scientific/education justification
• The Three Rs Replace, refine, reduce

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Composition

• At least five members, including
• Chair
• Laboratory animal veterinarian
• Scientist
• Member with advanced ethics training
• One unaffiliated member
• Nonscientist

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Human Subjects Research Committee (HSRC)
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(No Transcript)
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Mission

• Regulatory
• Federal policy, tied to funding
• College policy on all research with humans
• Ethical
• Safeguard rights and welfare of participants
• Scientific/educational justification

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Composition

• Four faculty members
• One unaffiliated member

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Occidental College Biosafety Committee (OCBC)
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Mission

• Regulatory
• Enforce National Institutes of Health (NIH)
  guidelines on proper use of pathogenic organisms
  and recombinant DNA (rDNA)
• Ethical
• Protect individuals from potentially dangerous
  pathogenic organisms and rDNA

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Composition

• At least five members, including
• Chair
• Plant Expert
• Animal Expert
• Two unaffiliated members

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Ethical Dimensions of Research

• Constitutive Values
• Conceive, design, execute, interpret
• Disseminate, apply results
• Contextual Values
• What questions matter?
• How and to whom?
• Who gets to decide and ask?

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The Case of Disenfranchised Groups
Minorities missing out on AIDS trials Study
Blacks, Hispanics lack access to experimental
drugs   MSNBC NEWS SERVICES   May 1 Minorities
account for nearly half of all Americans infected
with HIV but are less likely than whites to be
included in research trials and have access to
experimental medication that could prolong their
lives, a new study shows.
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How Students Can Do The Right Thing

• Participate only in IRB-approved work
• Consider moral aspects of work
• Dangers, pitfalls
• Highest aspirations
• Be an active decision maker