Research Ethics Review

  • Research Ethics Review

    Checklist, Statement and Approval

  • ABOUT THIS FORM 

    (Note: this checklist and statement is adapted from Appendix A of the ESRC Research Ethics Framework and the University of Sussex, School of Social and Cultural Studies Research Ethics Committee) 

    This form is used to clarify and approve the approach to research ethics issues in the design and delivery of any research project and in any application for research funding. It comprises of the following parts: 

    • Project details;
    • A checklist to help identify research ethics issues that will need to be addressed;
    • A statement as to how the principal investigator proposes to minimize any ethical risks that may arise and how monitoring would best be undertaken

    What happens after you click submit?

    Once submitted the form is evaluated and approval (or not) will be communicated to you.

    If your proposal is low or medium risk and subject to a Proposal Review (PRG) or similar process the form will be forwarded to the Grants Office so that they may send the form to the review group members.

    If your proposal is high risk the Research Ethics Committee needs to approve your plan and may contact you after the form has been submitted.

    If your proposal is medium risk and not subject to a PRG the statement and checklist needs to be approved a senior IDS member. A cluster leader is a good example of a senior IDS member, this form will ask who you would like the form forwarded to after submission. We recommend that you speak to this person in advance of entering their name on the form.

    If your proposal is low risk and not subject to a PRG the form will be downloaded and stored with the proposal documents on the R:/Drive.

    You should be aware that the Research Ethics Committee periodically reviews submitted forms and may contact you with additional questions folllowing submission.

    NB. Postgraduate research students are required to make a separate application for ethics approval to the University of Sussex directly; http://www.sussex.ac.uk/staff/research/governance/apply

    More Information

    For further guidance on considering issues of research ethics, please refer to the IDS research ethics pages on the IDS intranet and also to the ESRC Research Ethics Framework.

    The principal investigator (PI) is responsible for exercising appropriate professional judgment in this review. It is also the responsibility of the PI to follow the Institute’s Code of Practice for Research and any relevant academic or professional guidelines in the conduct of the study. Any significant change in the question, design or conduct over the course of the research will necessitate an amendment to the statement and will be subject to the same process of approval as for the original statement. 

    Any researcher who feels their research undertaking raises significant ethical issues or seeks guidance on how to handle ethics in the given context should complete this form and send it to the Research Ethics Committee (to the administrator, m.cruickshank@ids.ac.uk).

  • SECTION A: Project/Proposal Details

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  • SECTION B: Research checklist
    The following checklist acts as a guide to you, to help you think through what might be the possible areas of ethics that may need to be addressed.

  • Does the study involve participants for whom free and informed consent may require special attention (children (under 18s), people with learning disabilities,people in prison)?*
  • Will the study require the co-operation of a gatekeeper for access to the groups or individuals to be recruited (students at school, residents of nursing home or prison)?*
  • Will it be necessary for participants to take part in the study without their knowledge and consent at the time (covert observation of people in non-public places)?*
  • Could the study induce psychological stress or anxiety or cause harm or negative consequences beyond the risks encountered in normal life, for research participants or researchers?*
  • Could the study induce negative social effects (e.g. public discrimination,social unrest) at any stage in its process?*
  • Will financial inducements (other than reasonable expenses and compensation for time) be offered to participants?*
  • Are drugs, placebos or other substances (food substances, vitamins) to be administered to the study participants or will the study involve invasive,intrusive or potentially harmful procedures of any kind?*
  • Will the study involve prolonged or repetitive testing?*
  • Will the study involve recruitment of patients or staff through the UK National Health Service (NHS)?*
  • Will the research involve biological sampling in humans or in animals?*
  • As you have answered yes to one of more of the above questions your proposal is either high or medium risk*
  • As you have answered no to all of the above questions your proposal is likely to be low risk, if you think that it is not please feel free to select either medium or high risk and state why*

  • SECTION C: Statment of Ethics

    Please give a statement in section (c) below as to how you plan to deal with the ethical issues raised by your research and also how you will secure informed consent, anonymity, confidentiality and data protection. Please also include details of how you will monitor the progress of these approaches and measures and any suggested dates for calling on mentoring support from the research ethics committee.

  • SECTION D: Additional Information

  • Is your proposal subject to a PRG? It is a requirement that the completed form be submitted along with the proposal to any Proposal Review process (PRG or similar). Once submitted the Research Ethics Committee will ensure that your PRG sees this form. *

  • Once submitted the form will be sent to the administrator of the Research Ethics Committee. If you have any questions following submission please email m.cruickshank@ids.ac.uk

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