Introduction to Research

power

conducting research is an act of _____

research

involves the act of creating new knowledge — but isn’t always done in an ethical way

extraction of data and information

when conducting research with individuals or communities, they surrender data and information, and the researchers decides how that data and information are used

the syphilis study at tuskegee 

conducted by the US public health service and tuskegee institute

600 black men (399 with syphilis, 201 without)

participants were misled — told they were receiving free medical care 

penicillin (a cure) was withheld even after 1943

the study continued for 40 years until it was exposed by journalists 

consequences and reckoning of deception

many participants suffered or died; families were affected for generations

public exposure led to outrage and lawsuits

president clinton issued a formal apology

tuskegee reinforced long-standing mistrust of medical and research institutions in black communities

vaccine voyage/balmis expedition

spanish campaign that used orphaned boys to transport the smallpox vaccine across the empire. children were intentionally infected with cowpox to maintain the vaccine in transit — raising ethical concerns about consent and exploitation of vulnerable populations

the belmont reports 

created in response to tuskegee and other abuses and led to institutional review board (IRBs) and ongoing oversight

respect for persons, beneficence, and justice

what are the three core concepts of the belmont report?