7.3.4 Discussing the role of ethics committees and guidelines

• Ethics committees are independent groups that review and approve research proposals to ensure they adhere to ethical guidelines and principles
• One of the key roles of ethics committees is to protect the rights and wellbeing of research participants
• Ethics committees provide an additional layer of oversight and accountability compared to individual researcher ethics.


  True
• Ethics committees help ensure sociological research upholds high ethical standards
• What is one of the key functions of ethics committees in sociological research?

  Protect participant wellbeing
• Ethics committees enforce ethical guidelines, whereas individual researchers interpret those guidelines
• Ethics committees assess risks and benefits, while individual researchers assess their own study
• Ethics committees are essential for maintaining research integrity and protecting participants.


  True
• Match the key ethical guideline with its description:

  Informed Consent ↔️ Participants are fully informed about the research

  Confidentiality ↔️ Protecting participant privacy

  Anonymity ↔️ Data cannot be linked to participants
• One key ethical guideline is avoiding physical, psychological, or social harm
• Ethics committees minimize potential harm to research participants.


  True
• Ethics committees provide oversight and accountability beyond individual researcher ethics
• What is the primary goal of ethics committees regarding research participants?

  Protect rights and wellbeing
• Ethics committees balance the potential risks to participants against the study's potential benefits.


  True
• Ethics committees enforce guidelines like informed consent, confidentiality, anonymity, and avoiding harm
• What type of review do ethics committees offer compared to individual researcher ethics?

  Independent review
• Ethics committees help ensure sociological research minimizes potential harm to participants.


  True
• What are ethics committees defined as in the study material?

  Independent groups
• Match the ethical principle with its description:

  Confidentiality ↔️ Protecting participant privacy

  Informed Consent ↔️ Ensuring participant autonomy

  Avoiding Harm ↔️ Minimizing potential harm
• Ethics committees assess the risks and benefits of research proposals.


  True
• Ethics committees approve research proposals to ensure they adhere to ethical guidelines
• What is one key function of ethics committees in sociological research?

  Protecting participant rights
• Arrange the key ethical guidelines in the order they appear in the study material:

  1️⃣ Informed Consent

  2️⃣ Confidentiality

  3️⃣ Anonymity

  4️⃣ Avoiding Harm
• Confidentiality involves keeping participants' responses anonymous.

  False
• What is one benefit of ethics committees over individual researcher ethics in sociological research?

  Enforcement of ethical standards
• Ethics committees promote higher ethical standards in research by providing oversight and accountability
• What type of review do ethics committees offer for research proposals?

  Independent review
• Ethics committees enforce ethical guidelines more strictly than individual researchers.

  True