Good Research Practice

Research ethics is not static, neither as a discipline nor as a practice. When the scientific landscape changes, sometimes the debate about research ethics shifts as well. New principles may be added, and old ones may need to be reinterpreted or applied differently.

Ethical considerations in research are largely a matter of finding a reasonable balance between various interests that are all legitimate. The quest for knowledge is one such interest. Individual privacy interests as well as protection against various forms of harm or risk of harm are other legitimate interests. Issues like the handling of integrity-sensitive material raise questions about the interests of the researcher, the study participants and other researchers, but also about what a researcher is able to promise participants and who owns research material.

This book addresses relevant legislation and ethical requirements and recommendations against the background of questions that may arise in research work. The aim is to provide an orientation among the issues and problems, stimulate thought and contribute to the debate on responsibility and challenges. The book primarily addresses researchers, not least the younger generation, to help them make well-reasoned research ethical decisions.