Research Ethics Committee
Research Ethics Committee
The task of the ALK Research Ethics Committee (KEB ALK) is to issue opinions on whether research plans involving humans as research participants, conducted as part of the research activity of Kozminski University or affiliated with it, comply with the applicable ethical standard. Detailed information on the responsibilities of KEB ALK, the procedure for submitting applications, and the way they are processed can be found in Resolution No. 12 – 2023/2024 of the Senate of Kozminski University of 25 January 2024. If you have any questions or concerns, please contact the Committee: [email protected]
PRINCIPLES
In accordance with the resolutions of the European Commission, the General Assembly of the Polish Academy of Sciences, the American Psychological Association, and the General Assembly of the Polish Psychological Association, the global standard defined by these organizations is concern for the well-being and safety of people (and animals) involved in scientific research.
Practical information on how to translate this principle into research practice is concisely described in the document entitled “Ethics in Social Science and Humanities”, promoted by the European Commission. A summary of the most important information is presented below.
DOCUMENTS
The European Code of Conduct for Research Integrity (2023), developed by the European Science Foundation (ESF) and All European Academies (ALLEA), originally adopted in 2010 and revised in 2017. - https://allea.org/code-of-conduct/
Ethics in Social Sciences and Humanities (2021), developed by the European Commission (Directorate-General for Research & Innovation) - https://ec.europa.eu/info/funding-tenders/opportunities/docs/2021-2027/horizon/guidance/ethics-in-social-science-and-humanities_he_en.pdf
Code of Ethics for Researchers (2020), developed on the basis of The European Code of Conduct for Research Integrity – annex to Resolution No. 2/2020 of the General Assembly of the Polish Academy of Sciences of 25 June 2020 (in particular: Preamble – items 2 and 3; Section 2 – item 7; Section 3.2 – items 3 and 4). - Code of Ethics for Researchers
Ethical Principles of Psychologists and Code of Conduct (2017), adopted by the American Psychological Association (in particular: General Principles – Principle E; Sections 3.04(a), 3.10(a), 3.10(d), 4.01, 4.03, 4.04, 6.01, 6.02; Section 8: Research and Publication). - https://www.apa.org/ethics/code
Code of Ethics of the Psychologist (2018), adopted by the General Assembly of Delegates of the Polish Psychological Association on 2 December 2018 (in particular: Articles 3, 4.1, 4.2, 7.2, 10.1, 10.2, 11.1, 11.3(a), 11.3(c–g)). - https://psych.org.pl/dla-psychologow/kodeks-etyczny
Declaration of Helsinki for Clinical Research, adopted by the World Medical Association: https://www.wma.net/policies-post/wma-declaration-of-helsinki-ethical-principles-for-medical-research-involving-human-subjects/
Publications on research involving children and adolescents:
Lisek-Michalska, J. (2012). Ethical aspects of focus group research involving children and adolescents. Folia Sociologica, 42, 33–61.
Bunio-Mroczek, P. (2021). Child-focused research, research involving children, children as researchers. Ethical and methodological aspects of research conducted within the framework of the new sociology of childhood. Przegląd Socjologii Jakościowej, 17(4), 6–26.DOI: https://doi.org/10.18778/1733-8069.17.4.01
Collection of Good Practices in Research Involving Children: http://childhoods.uw.edu.pl/wp-content/uploads/sites/22/2016/04/kodeks_dobrych_praktyk_IZBnD.pdf
ETHICAL PRINCIPLES
In the document “Ethics in Social Science and Humanities” (p. 6), issued by the European Commission, the main ethical principles to be observed when planning research involving human participants are listed (compliance with them is a necessary condition for receiving research funding from the European Commission):
1. Respect for human dignity and integrity.
2. Ensuring honesty and transparency towards research participants.
3. Respect for individual autonomy and obtaining voluntary, informed consent to participate in research.
4. Protection of vulnerable persons.
5. Ensuring privacy and confidentiality.
6. Promoting justice and social inclusion.
7. Minimising harm to participants and maximising benefits for science.
8. Sharing research results with disadvantaged populations, especially when research is conducted in developing countries.
9. Respecting and protecting the environment and future generations.
Main message:
Research is conducted for the benefit of humanity and in order to advance scientific knowledge.
Academic freedom (within the limits of ethical principles) in conducting research and selecting research methods must be respected.
Respect for individual rights and care for participants’ well-being are paramount; their well-being must not deteriorate as a result of participation in research.
The rights of research participants derive from internationally recognised human rights instruments, such as the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, the European Convention on Human Rights, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
Ensuring the safety and the physical, social, and psychological well-being of research participants is a fundamental obligation of researchers, regardless of whether the study has been approved by a research ethics committee. Obtaining ethical approval does not release researchers from this responsibility.
No one is obliged to participate in research.
WHEN IS IT RECOMMENDED TO CONSULT A RESEARCH ETHICS COMMITTEE?
It is particularly recommended to apply for the opinion of the relevant research ethics committee when the risk of violating any of the above principles is greater than minimal (“Ethics in Social Science and Humanities”, pp. 12, 19–20):
1. The study involves vulnerable / defenseless persons. This group is considered to include: children, persons with refugee and migration experience, persons providing sexual services, persons with cognitive impairments, dissidents, persons after trauma and at risk of re-traumatization (e.g. persons from conflict-affected areas, victims of crime and/or violence), persons remaining in a relationship of dependence with the person conducting the study or the research team (e.g. students during classes with the person conducting the study).
In the case of research involving children and adolescents it is necessary to: precisely justify the necessity of the participation of children and adolescents in the study, respect the rights of the child resulting from the Convention on the Rights of the Child (UN, 1989), Art. 12: the child has the right to freely express his or her own views in all matters concerning him or her, obtain the consent of parents / guardians for participation in the study (consent form – has legal force) and the child’s consent (assent form – does not have legal force, but is necessary for ethical reasons), ensure the physical and emotional safety of the child (support of specialists during the study).
2. The study concerns sensitive topics that may cause stress, anxiety, and a sense of humiliation in participants. Sensitive topics include: sexual behavior, illegal behavior, political behavior, experiencing violence, abuse or exploitation, mental health, personal or family life, gender and ethnic status.
3. In the informed consent form for participation in the study it is necessary to mask the real purpose of the study in order to avoid the influence of this information on its results; full information should be provided to participants after the completion of the study (so-called post-study information form, debriefing form).
4. The study uses threatening data collection methods, which include: administering substances, performing vigorous physical exercises, inducing participants to disclose content that they would not communicate in their everyday functioning.
5. The study uses observation of participants’ behavior without their awareness.
6. The safety of the person conducting the study is at risk.
7. The study plans to collect data on the Internet and/or analyze data obtained from social media, in particular when they include the image of participants and there is a risk of identification.
8. Any study in which biological material is collected or medical imaging methods are used.
9. The study uses profiling, automated decision-making, data mining, big-data analytics, and artificial intelligence, which may pose a threat to the rights and freedoms of the persons concerned.
Bibliography
Singh, R. (2019). Applied Profiling: Uses, reliability and ethics. In: Profiling Humans from their Voice. Springer, Singapore.https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-13-8403-5_10
Mökander, J., Morley, J., Taddeo, M. et al. (2021). Ethics-based auditing of Automated Decision-Making Systems: Nature, Scope, and Limitations. Science and Engineering Ethics 27, 44.https://doi.org/10.1007/s11948-021-00319-4
https://pure.tue.nl/ws/portalfiles/portal/1901768/612259.pdf
van Wel, L., & Royakkers, L. M. M. (2004). Ethical issues in web data mining. Ethics and Information Technology, 6(2), 129–140. https://doi.org/10.1023/B:ETIN.0000047476.05912.3d
https://online.tamiu.edu/programs/business/ms-information-science/ethics-of-data-mining/
Lacroix, P. (2019). Big Data privacy and ethical challenges. In: Househ, M., Kushniruk, A., Borycki, E. (eds) Big Data, Big Challenges: A Healthcare Perspective. Lecture Notes in Bioengineering. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-06109-8_9
https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-3-030-06109-8_9#citeas
RECOMMENDED ACTIONS
according to the document entitled “Ethics in Social Science and Humanities,” in the situations indicated above, obtaining the approval of the relevant research ethics committee requires (pp. 7–13):
1. Presenting the actual purpose of the study in cases where it was masked in the informed consent form, after the study is completed (so-called post-study information form, debriefing).
2. Presenting the content of the informed consent form, emphasizing the voluntary nature of participation and the possibility to withdraw from the study at any time without giving a reason; the consent form also applies to hidden observations, in which case participants complete it after the study; in the event of refusal to sign the form after the study, data obtained from that person must be removed from the database; in research involving children and adolescents (under 18 years of age), two versions of the consent form must be presented: one signed by the minor and one signed by the parents/guardians. A detailed list of the desired information in the informed consent form is presented on pp. 13–14 of the document.
3. Respecting the privacy of participants – collecting data anonymously; if it is necessary to collect personal data, the reason, location, storage period, and data controller must be indicated.
4. Ensuring precise information is provided to participants when recording the study: the informed consent form must specify whether the recording will be audio/video and include a consent point for recording.
5. Presenting how data obtained from social media will be used (how it will be anonymized, and whether there is a way to obtain consent for the use of information).
6.Presenting information on how participants will be recruited.
7. Ensuring the presence in the research team of specialists who can minimize harm to particularly vulnerable participants.
8. Attaching the consent form and research tools (if unpublished) to each application for the opinion of the relevant ethics committee. The consent form should be signed with the participant’s full name. In the case of online data collection, proceeding to the “next” step in a survey may be considered equivalent to giving consent to participate based on the information provided.
The task of the ALK Research Ethics Committee (KEB ALK) is to issue opinions on whether research plans involving humans as research participants comply with the ethical standard described in the acts referenced in Resolution No. 12 – 2023/2024 of the Senate of Kozminski University of 25 January 2024. The members of KEB ALK represent different scientific disciplines, which enables the Committee to issue opinions on a wide range of research plans. KEB ALK issues opinions regarding the implementation of research plans conducted as part of ALK’s research activity or affiliated with ALK. Opinions are formulated solely on the basis of applications submitted by the Authors of the research. Submitting an application is voluntary; however, an opinion from an appropriate (university) ethics committee is increasingly required by scientific journals, institutions funding research projects, and individuals reviewing academic achievements. Applications are processed in a dialogue-based mode with the Author(s) of the study. KEB ALK may request that the application be supplemented if the information provided is not sufficient to issue an opinion.
Applications should be submitted by the fifth day of a given month (in the period from 1 October to 5 June) using the form:
From 1 October to 15 July, the Committee meets once a month, between the 5th and the 15th day of the month. For applications submitted between 15 June and 30 September, the time limit for handling the matter runs from 1 October.
The Committee’s opinion should be issued within 30 days from the date a complete application is received.
The Committee’s opinion is communicated to the applicant by the Chair of the Committee via official email.
Applications should be submitted by the fifth day of a given month (in the period from 1 October to 5 June) using the form:
From 1 October to 15 July, the Committee meets once a month, between the 5th and the 15th day of the month. For applications submitted between 15 June and 30 September, the time limit for handling the matter runs from 1 October.
The Committee’s opinion should be issued within 30 days from the date a complete application is received, i.e., an application containing all required documents and information.
The Committee’s opinion is communicated to the applicant by the Chair of the Committee via official email.
- Dr. Sabina Kołodziej – Chair (Psychology)
- Dr. Mateusz Woiński – Vice-Chair (Law)
- Prof. ALK Dr. habil. Anna Baczyńska (Psychology, Management)
- Prof. ALK Dr. habil. Helena Chmielewska-Szlajfer (Sociology, Management)
- Prof. ALK Dr. habil. Justyna Salamońska (Sociology)
- Prof. ALK Dr. Krzysztof Przybyszewski (Psychology, Political Science)
- Dr. Katarzyna Idzikowska (Psychology, Economics)
- Dr. Agata Stasik (Sociology, Management)
- Dr. Olha Zadorozhna (Economics)
Contact: [email protected]