Home
Journey
Parts
- Part 01: Plan Your Study
- Part 02: Find the Literature
- Part 03: Build Your Foundation
- Part 04: Design Your Study
- Part 05: Protect Your Research
- Part 06: Collect Your Data
- Part 07: Analyze Your Data
- Part 08: Write Your Paper
- Part 09: Choose Your Journal
- Part 10: Navigate Peer Review
- Part 11: Share Your Research
- Part 12: Measure Your Impact
Supplements
- Supplement A: Troubleshoot Research
- Supplement B: Understand Research Terms
- Supplement C: Use Research Tools
- Supplement D: Use AI Responsibly
- Supplement E: Fund Your Research
Testimonials

Part 05 · Protect

Doing Research Without Compromising Ethics

Understand research ethics and integrity, protect participants and research data, address informed consent and conflicts of interest, and meet the ethical responsibilities that apply from study planning through publication.

Why This Stage Matters

Every research decision carries an ethical responsibility.

Scientific value does not excuse research that places participants at unnecessary risk or compromises the integrity of the research record. Ethical responsibilities begin while a study is being planned and continue through recruitment, data collection, analysis, reporting, publication, and the handling of research materials.

Researchers must consider how participants are recruited, what informed consent actually requires, how privacy and confidentiality will be protected, and whether some individuals require additional safeguards. Conflicts of interest, data practices, selective reporting, misconduct, and research fraud also raise responsibilities that extend beyond formal ethics approval.

Ethical research therefore depends on judgment as well as compliance. Rules and institutional procedures provide essential safeguards, but researchers must also consider the consequences of their decisions and ensure that scientific aims are pursued without compromising participants, collaborators, data, or the credibility of the research itself.

Start Here

Start with the first question in this stage.

If you're working through this part from the beginning, this is the first guide in the sequence.

What Makes Research Ethical in the First Place?

Ethical research requires more than approval, consent, or compliance with rules. It requires researchers to justify what they study, how they study it, whom they involve, and how they protect people throughout the research process.

Start the Guide →

Part 05 · 34 Sections · 530 Guides

Protect participants and the research record

Understand the ethical and integrity issues researchers need to consider before, during, and after a study.

what makes research ethical What Makes Research Ethical in the First Place?

research ethics vs research integrity Research Ethics vs. Research Integrity: What’s the Difference?

principles of research ethics What Are the Core Principles of Research Ethics, and How Do They Apply in Practice?

research ethics principles Respect for Persons, Beneficence, Nonmaleficence, and Justice: How Do These Principles Fit Together?

does good scientific research mean ethical research Does Good Scientific Research Automatically Mean Ethical Research?

can ethical research be poorly designed Can a Study Be Ethical but Still Be Poorly Designed?

can methodologically sound research be unethical Can a Study Be Methodologically Sound but Ethically Unacceptable?

poor research design ethics Why Can Poorly Designed Research Be an Ethical Problem Rather Than Just a Scientific One?

scientific and social value in research ethics Does Research Have to Produce Social or Scientific Value to Be Ethical?

unethical research without physical harm Can Research Be Unethical Even When Nobody Is Physically Harmed?

research ethics vs legal compliance Is Following the Law Enough to Make Research Ethical?

is ethics approval enough Is Following an Ethics Committee’s Approval Enough to Make Research Ethical?

legally permitted but ethically questionable research Can Something Be Legally Permitted but Ethically Questionable in Research?

ethical research institutional rules Can Something Be Ethically Defensible but Prohibited by Institutional Rules?

research ethics across disciplines Do Different Disciplines Have Different Standards for Ethical Research?

research ethics across countries Do Ethical Standards Change Depending on the Country or Setting of the Research?

who is responsible for research ethics Who Is Responsible for Research Ethics: the Researcher, Supervisor, Institution, Sponsor, or Ethics Committee?

ethics approval researcher responsibility Does Ethics Approval Transfer Ethical Responsibility Away From the Researcher?

conflicting research ethics principles What Should You Do When Ethical Principles Point Toward Different Decisions?

no clearly ethical option in research What Should You Do When There Is No Clearly “Ethical” Option?

when should research not be conducted Can the Most Ethical Research Decision Be Not to Conduct the Study at All?

do I need ethics approval for my research Do I Need Ethics Approval for My Research? A Practical Guide for Researchers

ethics committee vs IRB vs REC Ethics Committee vs. IRB vs. REC: Are They the Same Thing?

what does an IRB review What Is an Institutional Review Board Actually Reviewing When It Reviews Your Study?

research exempt from ethics review What Types of Research May Be Exempt From Ethics Review?

exempt vs expedited vs full ethics review Exempt vs. Expedited vs. Full Ethics Review: What’s the Difference?

who decides if research is exempt from ethics review Who Decides Whether Your Research Is Exempt From Ethics Review?

can researchers decide they do not need ethics approval Can Researchers Decide for Themselves That Their Study Does Not Need Ethics Approval?

does research using existing data need ethics approval Does Research Using Existing Data Need Ethics Approval?

does publicly available data research need ethics approval Does Research Using Publicly Available Data Need Ethics Approval?

does an anonymous survey need ethics review Does an Anonymous Survey Still Need Ethics Review?

does non-interventional research need ethics review Does Research With No Physical Intervention Still Need Ethics Review?

do interviews and focus groups need ethics approval Do Interviews, Focus Groups, and Observational Studies Need Ethics Approval?

do student research projects need ethics approval Do Student Research Projects Need Ethics Approval?

classroom research ethics approval publication Does Classroom Research Need Ethics Approval if You Later Decide to Publish It?

quality improvement audit program evaluation ethics approval Does Quality Improvement, Audit, or Program Evaluation Need Research Ethics Approval?

when evaluation becomes research What Happens When a Project Starts as Evaluation but Later Becomes Research?

do pilot studies need ethics approval Do Pilot and Feasibility Studies Need Ethics Approval?

ethics approval before research funding Does a Study Need Ethics Approval Before Funding Is Awarded?

can you recruit participants before ethics approval Can You Start Recruiting Participants While Ethics Approval Is Still Pending?

can you collect data before ethics approval Can You Start Collecting Data While Ethics Approval Is Still Pending?

accidentally collected data before ethics approval What Happens If You Accidentally Collect Research Data Before Ethics Approval?

can you get ethics approval retrospectively Can You Get Ethics Approval Retrospectively?

ethics approval required after data collection What Should You Do if You Discover After Data Collection That Ethics Approval Was Required?

can data collected without ethics approval be published Can Data Collected Without Required Ethics Approval Ever Be Used or Published?

research ethics application How Do You Prepare a Research Ethics Application That Clearly Explains What Your Study Will Actually Do?

ethics committee approval requirements What Information Does an Ethics Committee Usually Need Before It Can Approve a Study?

methodological detail in ethics application How Much Methodological Detail Belongs in an Ethics Application?

ethics committee research design Why Does the Ethics Committee Need to Understand Your Research Design?

research risks ethics application How Should You Explain Risks Without Exaggerating or Minimizing Them?

research benefits ethics application How Should You Explain the Potential Benefits of a Study Without Promising Too Much?

research ethics application supporting documents What Supporting Documents Usually Need to Accompany an Ethics Application?

recruitment materials ethics approval Do Recruitment Materials Need Ethics Approval?

research instruments ethics approval Do Surveys, Interview Guides, and Other Research Instruments Need Ethics Approval?

social media recruitment ethics approval Do Social Media Recruitment Posts Need Ethics Approval Before You Publish Them?

consent form ethics approval Does Every Version of a Participant Information Sheet and Consent Form Need Approval?

ethics committee methodological changes What Should You Do When the Ethics Committee Requests Changes You Think Are Methodologically Harmful?

disagree with ethics committee Can You Disagree With an Ethics Committee’s Requested Change?

appeal ethics committee decision Can You Appeal an Ethics Committee’s Decision?

ethics review delay What Should You Do When Ethics Review Is Delaying a Time-Sensitive Study?

respond to ethics committee comments How Should You Respond to Ethics Committee Comments or Conditions?

conditional ethics approval What Does “Conditional Approval” Mean, and Can You Start the Study Yet?

start research after ethics approval What Should You Check Before Treating an Ethics Approval Letter as Permission to Begin?

how long ethics approval lasts How Long Does Ethics Approval Last, and What Happens When It Expires?

ethics approval expired during study What Happens if Ethics Approval Expires While the Study Is Still Running?

ethics approval requirements Does Ethics Approval Mean You Can Conduct the Study Exactly as You Want From That Point On?

ethics amendment When Does a Change to an Approved Study Require an Ethics Amendment?

minor research changes ethics review Which Research Changes Are Minor Enough Not to Require a New Ethics Review?

recruitment method ethics amendment Do You Need an Amendment to Change Recruitment Methods?

sample size ethics amendment Do You Need an Amendment to Change the Sample Size?

research site ethics amendment Do You Need an Amendment to Add or Remove a Research Site?

research instrument ethics amendment Do You Need an Amendment to Change a Survey, Interview Guide, or Research Instrument?

data analysis plan ethics amendment Do You Need an Amendment to Change the Data Analysis Plan?

protocol deviation vs amendment What Is a Protocol Deviation, and How Is It Different From a Protocol Amendment?

protocol violation vs deviation What Is a Protocol Violation, and Is It the Same as a Protocol Deviation?

report protocol deviation ethics committee When Must a Protocol Deviation Be Reported to the Ethics Committee?

wrong approved document version research What Should You Do When You Realize You Used the Wrong Approved Document Version?

ineligible participant enrolled research What Should You Do if a Participant Was Enrolled Who Did Not Meet the Approved Eligibility Criteria?

protocol drift research What Should You Do When the Actual Study Starts Drifting Away From the Approved Protocol?

ethics committee suspend approval Can an Ethics Committee Suspend or Withdraw Approval After a Study Has Started?

pause research study ethical reasons When Should Researchers Voluntarily Pause a Study for Ethical Reasons?

stop or redesign research study ethics When Should You Stop or Redesign a Study Because the Ethical Conditions Under Which It Was Approved No Longer Hold?

research governance What Is Research Governance, and How Is It Different From Research Ethics?

ethics approval vs institutional approval Ethics Approval vs. Institutional Approval: What’s the Difference?

ethics approval not enough to start research Why Can Ethics Approval Alone Be Insufficient to Start a Study?

site authorization in research What Is Site Authorization or Institutional Permission?

permission to recruit research participants from an organization Do You Need Permission From an Organization Before Recruiting Its Members?

research gatekeeper What Is a Research Gatekeeper, and How Much Authority Should a Gatekeeper Have?

organizational permission vs individual consent Can a School, Hospital, Company, or Community Leader Give Permission on Behalf of Individual Participants?

research project accountability Who Is Ultimately Accountable for a Research Project?

principal investigator responsibilities What Is the Role of the Principal Investigator in Research Governance?

research institution responsibilities What Responsibilities Belong to the Research Institution?

research sponsor responsibilities What Responsibilities Belong to a Research Sponsor?

research sponsor vs funder What Is a Research Sponsor, and Is It the Same as a Funder?

multiple institutions research responsibility Can More Than One Institution Be Responsible for the Same Research Project?

research outside own institution responsibility Who Is Responsible When Research Is Conducted Outside the Researcher’s Own Institution?

multisite research approval Do Multisite Studies Need Approval From Every Participating Institution?

conflicting institutional research requirements What Should You Do When Two Institutions Give You Conflicting Research Requirements?

conflicting research requirements What Happens When Institutional, Funder, Legal, and Ethics Requirements Conflict?

final authority in research governance Who Has the Final Say When Several Organizations Share Responsibility for a Study?

informed consent in research What Does Informed Consent Actually Mean in Research?

how to write an informed consent form How to Write an Informed Consent Form Participants Can Actually Understand

information required for informed consent What Information Must Participants Know Before They Can Meaningfully Consent?

informed consent vs documented consent What Makes Consent Informed Rather Than Merely Documented?

signed consent form informed consent Does Signing a Consent Form Automatically Mean Consent Was Truly Informed?

informed consent without signature Can a Participant Give Valid Consent Without Signing Anything?

written vs verbal vs electronic consent Written vs. Verbal vs. Electronic Consent: When Is Each Appropriate?

implied consent survey research Can Consent Be Implied by Completing a Survey?

how much information in consent form How Much Information Is Too Much Information in a Consent Form?

overly long consent form Can an Overly Long Consent Form Make Consent Less Informed Rather Than More Informed?

simplify participant information How Simple Should Participant Information Be Without Leaving Out Important Information?

assess informed consent understanding How Do You Know Whether Participants Actually Understood What They Consented To?

test participant understanding informed consent Should Researchers Test Participant Understanding Before Accepting Consent?

partial consent in research Can Participants Consent to Some Parts of a Study but Refuse Others?

conditional consent research participation Can Participation Be Conditional on Agreeing to Every Part of the Research?

waiver of informed consent When Can Researchers Waive Informed Consent?

who can waive informed consent Who Can Authorize a Waiver of Informed Consent?

research without informed consent Is It Ever Ethical to Include Someone in Research Without Their Knowledge?

consent to participate vs consent to publish Does Consent to Participate Automatically Include Consent to Publish the Results?

consent to participate vs data sharing Does Consent to Participate Automatically Include Consent to Share the Data?

informed consent ongoing process Is Informed Consent a One-Time Event or an Ongoing Process?

ongoing consent in research What Does Ongoing Consent Mean in Practice?

reconsent research participants When Should Researchers Ask Participants to Consent Again?

reconsent participants after study changes Do You Need to Reconsent Participants When the Study Changes?

when original research consent is no longer adequate How Much Can a Study Change Before the Original Consent Is No Longer Adequate?

reconsent participants new risks Do Participants Need to Be Reconsented When New Risks Are Discovered?

reconsent for new uses of research data Do Participants Need to Be Reconsented When New Uses for Their Data Are Proposed?

participant forgets research consent What Should You Do When a Participant Appears to Have Forgotten What They Agreed To?

research participant uncomfortable continuing What Should You Do When a Participant No Longer Seems Comfortable Participating but Has Not Explicitly Withdrawn?

research participant loses capacity to consent Can Researchers Continue Collecting Data From Someone Who Has Lost the Capacity to Consent?

fluctuating decision-making capacity research What Happens When a Participant’s Decision-Making Capacity Fluctuates During a Long Study?

change mind after research consent Can Someone Change Their Mind After Giving Consent?

partial withdrawal from research study Can a Participant Withdraw From Only Part of a Study?

withdraw permission to use research data Can Participants Withdraw Permission to Use Their Data After They Stop Participating?

research data after participant withdrawal What Should Happen to a Participant’s Data After Withdrawal?

withdraw anonymized research data Can Participants Withdraw Data That Have Already Been Anonymized?

withdraw research data after analysis begins Can Participants Withdraw Their Data After Analysis Has Begun?

withdraw research data after publication Can Participants Withdraw Their Data After the Research Has Been Published?

informed consent limited literacy How Do You Obtain Informed Consent When Participants Have Limited Literacy?

informed consent unable to read Can Someone Give Valid Consent if They Cannot Read the Consent Form?

informed consent different languages How Do You Obtain Informed Consent Across Different Languages?

professional translation consent form Does a Consent Form Need Professional Translation?

informed consent unfamiliar with research Is Translating a Consent Form Enough if the Concept of Research Itself Is Unfamiliar to Participants?

family member interpreter informed consent Can Family Members Act as Interpreters During Informed Consent?

professional interpreter informed consent When Should a Professional Interpreter Be Used During Consent?

translating research concepts What Should You Do When There Is No Direct Translation for an Important Research Concept?

culture voluntary informed consent How Do Cultural Expectations Affect Whether Consent Is Truly Voluntary?

community approval informed consent Can Community or Family Approval Be Required in Addition to Individual Consent?

community approval individual consent Can Community Approval Ever Replace Individual Consent?

capacity to give informed consent How Do You Decide Whether a Participant Has the Capacity to Give Informed Consent?

mental health condition informed consent capacity Does Having a Cognitive or Mental Health Condition Automatically Mean Someone Cannot Consent?

consent on behalf of research participant Can Someone Else Consent on Behalf of a Research Participant?

legally authorized representative research What Is a Legally Authorized Representative, and When Can One Give Permission for Research?

participant representative disagreement research What Should Researchers Do When a Participant and Their Representative Disagree About Participation?

assent vs consent in research Assent vs. Consent: What’s the Difference?

child assent and parental permission When Do Children or Adolescents Need Both Assent and Parental Permission?

age of assent in research At What Age Can a Child Meaningfully Assent to Research?

child assent form Does a Child Have to Sign an Assent Form?

how to explain research to children How Should Research Be Explained Differently to Children of Different Ages?

parent refuses research permission What Happens When a Child Wants to Participate but the Parent Says No?

child refuses research participation What Happens When a Parent Gives Permission but the Child Says No?

child refusal parental permission research Can a Child’s Refusal Override Parental Permission?

nonverbal dissent in child research What Should You Do When a Child Does Not Say No but Clearly Appears Unwilling to Participate?

waiver of parental permission in research When Can Parental Permission Be Waived in Research With Minors?

parental permission sensitive adolescent research How Should Researchers Handle Sensitive Studies Where Requiring Parental Permission Could Put Adolescents at Risk?

child turns 18 during research study What Happens When a Child Participant Reaches the Age of Legal Consent During a Longitudinal Study?

adult consent after childhood research enrollment Do Researchers Need to Obtain Adult Consent From Participants Who Were Originally Enrolled as Children?

children inclusion in research How Should Researchers Balance Protecting Children With Avoiding Their Unnecessary Exclusion From Research?

voluntary research participation What Makes Research Participation Truly Voluntary?

ethical research participant recruitment How Should Researchers Recruit Participants Without Pressuring Them?

persuasion undue influence coercion research Persuasion vs. Undue Influence vs. Coercion: Where Is the Ethical Boundary?

persuasive research invitation Can an Invitation to Participate Be Too Persuasive?

information before research participation How Much Can You Tell Potential Participants Before They Decide Whether to Join?

recruiting students for research Can Researchers Recruit Their Own Students?

employees as research participants Can Researchers Recruit Their Own Employees or Subordinates?

recruiting patients for research Can Clinicians Recruit Their Own Patients for Research?

clients as research participants Can Researchers Recruit Their Own Clients or Service Users?

recruit friends family research participants Can Researchers Ask Friends, Family Members, or Colleagues to Participate?

authority relationships research recruitment Is It Ethical for Supervisors or Teachers to Recruit People Over Whom They Have Authority?

perceived coercion in research Can Someone Feel Coerced Even When the Researcher Never Explicitly Pressures Them?

power differences in research participation How Do Power Differences Affect Whether Participation Is Truly Voluntary?

gatekeeper pressure research participation Can Gatekeepers Create Pressure to Participate Even When Researchers Do Not?

mandatory research participation Can an Organization Require Employees or Students to Participate in Research?

participants believe research is mandatory What Should Researchers Do When Potential Participants Believe Participation Is Mandatory?

eligible but not selected for research study Can Researchers Tell Someone They Were Eligible but Not Selected for a Study?

research recruitment failing What Should You Do When Recruitment Is Failing but the Approved Recruitment Plan Cannot Simply Be Changed?

pay research participants Can Researchers Pay People to Participate in Research?

research participant payment Payment, Compensation, Reimbursement, and Incentives: What’s the Difference?

participant payment compensation What Is Participant Payment Actually Supposed to Compensate For?

how much to pay research participants How Much Participant Payment Is Too Much?

undue influence in research When Does an Incentive Become Undue Influence?

research payment coercion Does a Large Payment Automatically Make Participation Coercive?

research participant payment Should Participant Payments Reflect Time, Inconvenience, Risk, or All Three?

payment for research risk Should Participants Be Paid More for Riskier Research?

different participant payment amounts Is It Ethical to Pay Different Participants Different Amounts for the Same Study?

participant payment after withdrawal Should Participants Still Be Paid if They Withdraw Before Completing the Study?

prorated participant payment Can Payment Be Prorated Based on How Much of the Study a Participant Completes?

withhold research participant payment Can Researchers Withhold Payment From Participants Who Do Not Follow Study Instructions?

refuse payment careless survey responses Can Researchers Refuse Payment When Survey Responses Appear Careless or Unusable?

research prize draw incentive Can Prize Draws or Lotteries Be Used as Research Incentives?

course credit research participation Is Course Credit an Ethical Incentive for Student Participants?

alternative to research participation for course credit What Alternative Must Be Offered When Research Participation Is Rewarded With Course Credit?

noncash research incentives Can Gifts, Food, Transportation, or Other Noncash Benefits Create Undue Influence?

participant payment informed consent Should Participant Payment Be Mentioned Before or After the Risks of the Study Are Explained?

vulnerable research participants Research With Vulnerable Participants: What Extra Protections Are Needed?

vulnerability in research ethics What Does “Vulnerable” Actually Mean in Research Ethics?

situational vulnerability in research Is Vulnerability a Characteristic of a Person or a Situation?

vulnerable groups in research Does Belonging to a Vulnerable Group Automatically Make Someone Vulnerable in Every Study?

vulnerability and informed consent Does Vulnerability Automatically Mean Someone Cannot Give Informed Consent?

research design and participant vulnerability Can Researchers Create Vulnerability Through the Way a Study Is Designed?

financial need and undue influence in research Can Financial Need Make a Participant Vulnerable to Undue Influence?

dependency and research vulnerability Can Dependence on Healthcare, Employment, Education, or Services Create Research Vulnerability?

social stigma and research risk Can Social Stigma or Legal Status Make Participation Unusually Risky?

research with impaired decision-making capacity Can Researchers Include Participants With Impaired Decision-Making Capacity?

research with children ethics What Extra Protections Are Needed When Research Involves Children?

research with older adults ethics What Ethical Issues Arise When Research Involves Older Adults?

research with patients ethics What Ethical Issues Arise When Research Involves Patients or People Receiving Care?

research with prisoners ethics What Ethical Issues Arise When Research Involves Prisoners or Other Institutionalized Populations?

economically disadvantaged research participants What Ethical Issues Arise When Research Involves Economically Disadvantaged Participants?

research ethics with refugees and migrants What Ethical Issues Arise When Research Involves Refugees, Migrants, or People With Precarious Legal Status?

excluding vulnerable participants from research Can Excluding Vulnerable Participants From Research Also Be Unethical?

unfair exclusion from research When Does Protecting a Population Become Unfairly Excluding Them From Research?

justice in research participant selection What Does Justice Mean in Research Participant Selection?

research burdens and benefits Who Should Bear the Burdens of Research, and Who Should Receive Its Benefits?

recruiting easy-to-access participants ethics Is It Ethical to Recruit Participants Mainly Because They Are Easy to Access?

convenience sampling ethical problems Can Convenience Sampling Create an Ethical Problem as Well as a Methodological One?

research in disadvantaged communities ethics Is It Ethical to Conduct Research in a Disadvantaged Community When the Results Are Mainly Intended to Benefit Someone Else?

exploitation in research ethics What Is Exploitation in Research, and How Can It Occur Without Obvious Harm?

extractive community research When Does Research With a Community Become Extractive?

community benefits from research Should Communities That Provide Research Participants Receive Something in Return?

participant access to research results and interventions Does Fair Research Require Participants to Have Access to the Intervention or Knowledge Produced by the Study?

post-trial access What Is Post-Trial Access, and When Do Researchers Owe Participants Continued Access to an Intervention?

excluding pregnant people from research Is It Ethical to Exclude Pregnant People From Research Simply to Avoid Additional Risk?

research exclusion for convenience Is It Ethical to Exclude Older Adults, Disabled People, or Non-English Speakers for Convenience?

ethical research exclusion criteria When Are Exclusion Criteria Ethically Justified Rather Than Merely Convenient?

systematic exclusion from research samples Can a Study Be Unethical Because Its Sample Systematically Excludes the People Most Affected by the Research Question?

researcher obligations after data collection What Do Researchers Owe Communities After Data Collection Is Finished?

research risk What Counts as Research Risk, and How Do You Know Whether It Is Acceptable?

types of research risk Physical, Psychological, Social, Legal, Economic, and Reputational Risks: What Should Researchers Consider?

research risk vs burden Risk vs. Burden vs. Inconvenience: What’s the Difference?

minimal risk research What Does “Minimal Risk” Actually Mean?

minimal risk baseline Minimal Compared With What? How Is the Baseline for Research Risk Determined?

research risk-benefit assessment How Do You Conduct a Risk-Benefit Assessment for Research?

eliminating research risk Does Every Research Risk Need to Be Eliminated?

acceptable research risk How Much Risk Is Acceptable When the Research Could Produce Important Knowledge?

direct benefit research participants Does a Study Need to Benefit the Participants Directly?

research without personal benefit Can Research Be Ethical When Participants Receive No Personal Benefit?

societal benefits research risk Can Potential Benefits to Society Justify Substantial Risks to Individual Participants?

compensation research risk Can Compensation Make an Otherwise Unacceptable Risk Ethical?

unlikely serious research harms How Should Researchers Think About Very Unlikely but Very Serious Harms?

cumulative research burden How Should Researchers Evaluate Cumulative Burden When Each Individual Procedure Seems Minor?

new research risk during study What Should You Do When a Risk Becomes Apparent Only After the Study Has Started?

new information risk-benefit balance When Does New Information Change the Original Risk-Benefit Balance?

pause research study safety When Should Researchers Pause a Study Because the Risk-Benefit Balance Has Changed?

stop research study participant harm When Should Researchers Stop a Study Because Participants May Be Harmed?

adverse event in research What Is an Adverse Event in Research?

serious adverse event What Is a Serious Adverse Event in Research, and How Is It Different From an Adverse Event?

adverse event causality reporting Does an Adverse Event Have to Be Caused by the Research to Be Reportable?

unanticipated problem in research What Is an Unanticipated Problem, and How Is It Different From an Adverse Event?

adverse event reporting requirements When Does an Adverse Event in Research Need to Be Reported?

adverse event relatedness assessment Who Decides Whether an Adverse Event Is Related to the Research?

participant distress in research What Should Researchers Do When Participation Causes Unexpected Distress?

when to stop research interview participant distress When Should a Research Interview or Survey Be Stopped Because a Participant Is Distressed?

research interview participant visible distress Should a Research Interview Continue if the Participant Wants to Proceed Despite Visible Distress?

participant support for sensitive research What Support Should Researchers Have Ready Before Asking Participants About Traumatic or Sensitive Experiences?

participant illness or injury during research What Should You Do if a Participant Becomes Ill or Injured During Research?

responsibility for research-related injury Who Is Responsible When a Participant Experiences Research-Related Injury or Harm?

research injury compensation and treatment Should Participants Be Told Whether Compensation or Treatment Is Available for Research-Related Harm?

participant safety study changes When Does a Participant-Safety Problem Require Changes to the Entire Study?

serious participant safety incident research What Should Researchers Do After a Serious Participant-Safety Incident?

privacy confidentiality anonymity data protection research Privacy, Confidentiality, Anonymity, and Data Protection: What’s the Difference?

anonymous vs confidential research Anonymous vs. Confidential Research: Why Aren’t They the Same Thing?

can research data be truly anonymous Can Research Data Ever Be Truly Anonymous?

de-identification vs anonymization vs pseudonymization De-Identification vs. Anonymization vs. Pseudonymization: What’s the Difference?

identifiable research information What Counts as Identifiable Research Information?

identification without names research data Can Someone Be Identified Without Their Name Appearing in the Dataset?

direct and indirect identifiers research data What Are Direct and Indirect Identifiers in Research Data?

re-identification risk research data What Is Re-Identification Risk, and Why Does It Increase When Datasets Are Combined?

research data anonymous identifiable others Can Research Data Be Anonymous to the Researcher but Identifiable to Someone Else?

collecting identifying information participants How Much Identifying Information Should Researchers Collect From Participants?

participant contact information research data Should Participant Contact Information Be Stored With Research Responses?

access identifiable research information Who Should Have Access to Identifiable Research Information?

separate identifiers research data When Should Participant Identifiers Be Separated From Research Data?

remove participant identifiers research data When Should Participant Identifiers Be Permanently Removed From Research Data?

complete confidentiality research Can Researchers Promise Participants Complete Confidentiality?

breaking participant confidentiality research When Can Researchers Break Participant Confidentiality?

limits of confidentiality research participants What Should Researchers Tell Participants About the Limits of Confidentiality?

confidentiality researchers know participants Can Researchers Protect Confidentiality When They Know Participants Personally?

small sample participant identification Can a Small Research Sample Make Participants Identifiable Even When Names Are Removed?

demographic details participant identification When Can Demographic Details Accidentally Identify a Research Participant?

identifiable research materials How Should Researchers Handle Audio, Video, Photographs, and Other Identifiable Research Materials?

identifiable audio recording research Is an Audio Recording Identifiable Even When the Participant Never Says Their Name?

identifiable research data Can Voice, Face, Location, or Other Characteristics Make Research Data Identifiable?

retain research recordings after transcription Should Identifiable Recordings Be Kept After Transcription Is Complete?

participant photographs research Can Researchers Use Participant Photographs in Publications or Presentations?

consent to show research recordings Does Consent to Be Recorded Include Consent for the Recording to Be Shown to Others?

quote research participants anonymously Can You Quote a Participant Without Revealing Who They Are?

anonymous quote identify participant Can an “Anonymous” Quote Still Identify a Participant?

alter qualitative quotes protect identity Should Researchers Alter Details in Qualitative Quotes to Protect Identity?

anonymising qualitative data What Should You Do When Removing Identifying Details Changes the Meaning of Qualitative Data?

combined details identify research participants Can Several Harmless Details Become Identifying When They Appear Together?

confidentiality when participants know each other How Do You Protect Confidentiality When Participants Know Each Other?

focus group confidentiality Can Researchers Guarantee Confidentiality in a Focus Group?

focus group confidentiality limits What Should Participants in a Focus Group Be Told About the Limits of Confidentiality?

participant breaches research confidentiality What Should You Do When Another Participant, Rather Than the Researcher, Reveals Confidential Research Information?

research ethics vs data protection Research Ethics vs. Data Protection Compliance: What’s the Difference?

personal data collection in research What Personal Data Do Researchers Actually Need to Collect?

data minimization in research What Is Data Minimization, and Why Does It Matter in Research?

research consent vs data processing consent Consent to Participate vs. Permission to Process Personal Data: Are They the Same Thing?

responsibility for protecting research data Who Is Responsible for Protecting Personal Research Data?

data controller custodian steward research Who Is the Data Controller, Data Custodian, or Data Steward in a Research Project?

research data cloud storage Can Research Data Be Stored in Commercial Cloud Services?

participant data on personal devices Can Researchers Store Participant Data on Personal Computers or Devices?

research data USB drives Can Research Data Be Stored on USB Drives or Portable Media?

sending research data by email Can Research Data Be Sent by Email?

personal email accounts research data Can Researchers Use Personal Email Accounts for Research Data?

research data transfer between institutions What Should You Consider Before Transferring Research Data Between Institutions?

international research data transfer What Should You Consider Before Transferring Research Data Across Countries?

collaborator access participant data Can a Collaborator Receive Participant Data Simply Because They Are a Member of the Research Team?

research data sharing agreement When Is a Data-Sharing or Data-Transfer Agreement Needed?

research data accidentally disclosed or lost What Happens When Research Data Are Accidentally Disclosed or Lost?

research data breach What Is a Research Data Breach, and What Should You Do When One Happens?

reporting research data breach Who Must Be Told When a Research Data Breach Occurs?

data breach pause research study Can a Data Breach Become Serious Enough to Require Pausing the Study?

deception in research ethics Can Researchers Deceive Participants? When Is Deception in Research Ethical?

deception vs incomplete disclosure Deception vs. Incomplete Disclosure: What’s the Difference?

withholding study purpose deception Is Withholding the Full Purpose of a Study Always Deception?

withholding full study purpose When Is It Justifiable Not to Tell Participants the Full Purpose of a Study?

withholding information participant behavior Can Researchers Withhold Information Simply Because Knowing It Might Change Participant Behavior?

scientific necessity research deception What Makes Deception Scientifically Necessary Rather Than Merely Convenient?

deception vs nondeceptive research Can Deception Be Ethical When a Nondeceptive Study Could Answer the Same Question?

placebos research deception Are Placebos a Form of Deception?

false feedback research participants Can Researchers Give Participants False Feedback About Their Performance or Behavior?

risk deceptive research How Much Risk Can a Deceptive Study Ethically Involve?

research debriefing requirements What Is Debriefing After Deception or Incomplete Disclosure, and When Is It Required?

what should a research debrief explain What Should a Good Research Debrief Actually Explain?

research debriefing timing How Soon After Participation Should Debriefing Occur?

delayed research debriefing Can Debriefing Be Delayed Until the Entire Study Is Finished?

withdraw data after research deception Can Participants Withdraw Their Data After Learning They Were Deceived?

debriefing harm research deception What Happens When Debriefing Could Cause More Harm Than the Original Deception?

research without debriefing Can Researchers Ever Decide Not to Debrief Participants?

covert observation research deception Is Covert Observation a Form of Deception?

observation without consent in research Can Researchers Observe People Without Their Consent?

public vs private behavior in research Public vs. Private Behavior: Where Is the Ethical Boundary for Observation?

research in public places without consent Does Being in a Public Place Mean Someone Can Be Studied Without Consent?

recording people in public for research Can Researchers Record People in Public Without Telling Them?

observing children and vulnerable people in research Does the Ethical Boundary Change When Observation Involves Children or Vulnerable People?

covert observation research ethics When Is Covert Observation Ethically Defensible?

online data research without consent Can Researchers Use Websites, Forums, and Social Media Posts Without Consent?

public social media research data Does a Public Social Media Post Automatically Count as Public Research Data?

publicly accessible vs ethically public data Publicly Accessible vs. Ethically Public: Why Aren’t They Always the Same Thing?

internet users research participants Are Internet Users Human Research Participants or Data Sources?

permission to quote social media posts in research Do Researchers Need Permission to Quote Social Media Posts?

online quotes author identification Can Quoting an Online Post Make the Author Identifiable Even Without Naming Them?

paraphrase online posts to reduce searchability Should Researchers Paraphrase Online Posts to Reduce Searchability?

online community research ethics What Ethical Issues Arise When Research Involves Online Communities?

researcher identification online observation Should Researchers Identify Themselves When Observing Online Groups?

private online community research data What Should Researchers Consider Before Using Data From Closed or Private Online Communities?

private online group research permission Does Joining a Private Online Group Give a Researcher Permission to Study It?

deleted online content research How Should Researchers Handle Deleted Posts or Content That Was Public When It Was Collected?

web scraping research ethics Does Web Scraping Create Ethical Responsibilities Even When the Data Are Public and Scraping Is Technically Possible?

large-scale data collection research ethics Can Large-Scale Data Collection Become Ethically Problematic Even When No Individual Data Item Is Sensitive?

secondary data research consent Does Secondary Data Research Need New Consent?

reuse research data for different research question Can Data Collected for One Study Be Used to Answer a Different Research Question?

secondary research original consent purpose How Far Can Secondary Research Move From the Purpose Participants Originally Consented To?

broad consent in research What Is Broad Consent, and How Broad Can Consent Really Be?

consent to future research uses Can Participants Meaningfully Consent to Research Uses That Have Not Yet Been Imagined?

archived research data ethics What Ethical Responsibilities Come With Using Archived Research Data?

original consent does not cover new study What Should You Do When the Original Consent Does Not Clearly Cover Your New Study?

de-identification secondary data ethics Does De-Identification Automatically Make Secondary Use Ethically Acceptable?

data linkage without participant consent Can Researchers Link Different Datasets Without Recontacting Participants?

data linkage privacy risks Does Data Linkage Create New Privacy Risks Even When Each Dataset Was Safe on Its Own?

identifiable data linkage access Who Should Be Allowed to Perform Linkage Using Identifiable Data?

research records without consent Can Researchers Use Administrative, Clinical, Educational, or Government Records Without Individual Consent?

secondary use of biological samples ethics What Ethical Issues Arise When Using Biological Samples Collected for Another Purpose?

stored biological samples future research Can Stored Biological Samples Be Used for Research the Donor Never Anticipated?

who owns stored biological samples Who Owns Stored Biological Samples and the Information Derived From Them?

withdraw biological samples after analysis Can Participants Withdraw Biological Samples After Analyses Have Already Been Performed?

withdrawal from biobank What Happens When a Participant Withdraws From a Biobank or Long-Term Data Repository?

indefinite storage of research data and biological samples Can Research Data or Biological Samples Be Kept Indefinitely for Future Research?

incidental findings in research What Is an Incidental Finding, and When Does a Researcher Have a Responsibility to Act?

incidental vs secondary findings Incidental vs. Secondary Findings: What’s the Difference?

should researchers search for secondary findings Should Researchers Actively Look for Findings That Are Outside the Research Question?

disclosing unexpected findings to research participants Should Researchers Tell Participants About Unexpected Findings?

when to return incidental findings What Makes an Incidental Finding Important Enough to Return to a Participant?

clinically actionable incidental findings Does an Incidental Finding Need to Be Clinically Actionable Before It Should Be Returned?

uncertain incidental findings What if an Incidental Finding Is Potentially Important but Highly Uncertain?

research findings affecting participant health or safety What if a Research Finding Might Affect a Participant’s Health or Safety?

participant choice incidental findings Should Participants Be Allowed to Choose Whether They Want to Receive Incidental Findings?

right not to know research findings Can Participants Choose Not to Know Potentially Important Information Discovered During Research?

who should communicate incidental findings Who Should Explain an Incidental Finding to the Participant?

who pays for confirmatory testing incidental findings Who Pays for Confirmatory Testing or Follow-Up After an Incidental Finding?

participant discloses abuse research What Should Researchers Do When a Participant Discloses Possible Abuse?

participant discloses suicide risk research What Should Researchers Do When a Participant Discloses Self-Harm or Suicide Risk?

research participant risk of harm to others What Should Researchers Do When a Participant Appears to Pose a Serious Risk to Someone Else?

researchers discover illegal activity What Should Researchers Do When They Discover Possible Illegal Activity?

research confidentiality duty to report When Does Confidentiality Give Way to a Duty to Act or Report?

plan for incidental findings before data collection Should Researchers Plan for Incidental Findings and Unexpected Disclosures Before Data Collection Begins?

research ethics approval in another country Does Ethics Approval From One Country Apply When Research Is Conducted in Another?

international research ethics review When Does International Research Need Ethics Review in More Than One Country?

research ethics requirements between countries What Should You Do When Ethics Requirements Differ Between Countries?

ethical standards in international research Which Ethical Standard Should Apply When the Host Country Allows Something the Researcher’s Home Institution Does Not?

cross-cultural research ethics Can Researchers Apply Their Own Country’s Ethical Assumptions Unchanged in Another Cultural Setting?

cultural differences in informed consent How Should Cultural Differences Affect Informed Consent Without Weakening Participant Rights?

community consent in research What Is Community Consent, and When Does Research Need More Than Individual Consent?

community representation in research Who Has the Authority to Speak for a Community in Research?

community approval individual refusal research What Should You Do When Community Leaders Approve a Study but Individuals Do Not Want to Participate?

community leaders object to research What Should You Do When Individual Participants Want to Participate but Community Leaders Object?

community heterogeneity in research How Do Researchers Avoid Treating “the Community” as if Everyone in It Has the Same Interests?

community engagement before research What Does Respectful Community Engagement Actually Require Before Research Begins?

tokenism in community engagement When Does Community Engagement Become Tokenism?

exploitative international research collaboration What Makes International Research Collaboration Exploitative?

equitable research partnership What Does an Equitable Research Partnership Between High-Resource and Low-Resource Settings Look Like?

international research data and sample control Who Should Control Data and Samples Collected Through International Research?

return research findings to communities Should Research Findings Be Returned to the Communities Where the Data Were Collected?

researcher responsibilities after research ends What Do Researchers Owe a Community After an International Research Project Ends?

researcher safety in research ethics Does Research Ethics Protect Researchers as Well as Participants?

risks to researchers during fieldwork What Risks Can Researchers Face During Fieldwork, Interviews, Observation, or Data Collection?

researcher safety responsibility Who Is Responsible for Assessing and Managing Researcher Safety?

researchers working alone with participants Should Researchers Work Alone With Participants in Private or Potentially Unsafe Settings?

aggressive research participant What Should a Researcher Do if a Participant Becomes Aggressive, Threatening, or Unsafe?

end research interview if unsafe Can Researchers End an Interview or Field Visit Because They Feel Unsafe?

vicarious trauma in researchers What Is Vicarious Trauma, and Can Research Harm the Researcher?

researcher exposure to traumatic material How Should Research Teams Prepare for Repeated Exposure to Traumatic Participant Stories or Materials?

supervisor responsibility for student researcher safety What Ethical Responsibilities Do Supervisors Have for Student Researcher Safety?

professional boundaries with research participants How Do Researchers Maintain Professional Boundaries With Participants?

researchers becoming friends with participants Can Researchers Become Friends With Participants During or After a Study?

researchers accepting gifts from participants Should Researchers Accept Gifts From Participants or Communities?

research participant asks researcher for help What Should Researchers Do When Participants Ask for Personal Advice, Money, Services, or Help Outside the Study?

researcher witnesses serious problem What Should Researchers Do When They Witness a Serious Problem That Has Nothing to Do With the Research?

researcher duty to help participants When Does Being a Researcher Create a Duty to Help Rather Than Merely Observe?

research integrity What Is Research Integrity, and What Does Responsible Research Conduct Actually Require?

research misconduct What Counts as Research Misconduct? Fabrication, Falsification, and Plagiarism Explained

research misconduct vs questionable research practice Research Misconduct vs. Questionable Research Practice: What’s the Difference?

honest error vs research misconduct Honest Error vs. Research Misconduct: Where Is the Line?

does research misconduct have to be intentional Does Research Misconduct Have to Be Intentional?

recklessness in research misconduct Can Recklessness Count as Research Misconduct Even Without an Intent to Deceive?

negligent research integrity Can Negligent Research Be an Integrity Problem Even When It Is Not Formal Misconduct?

poor research practice vs research misconduct Is Poor Research Practice Automatically Research Misconduct?

research integrity responsibility research team Who Is Responsible for Research Integrity in a Research Team?

responsibility for research misconduct by team member Can a Researcher Be Responsible for Misconduct Committed by Someone Else on the Team?

supervisor responsibilities research integrity What Responsibilities Do Supervisors Have for the Integrity of Their Students’ Research?

cleared of research misconduct but unreliable research Can a Researcher Be Cleared of Misconduct but Still Have Produced Unreliable Research?

serious error in research What Should You Do if You Discover a Serious Error in Your Own Research?

correcting honest research mistakes When Does Correcting an Honest Mistake Become an Integrity Obligation?

questionable research request from collaborator What Should You Do if a Collaborator Asks You to Do Something Methodologically or Ethically Questionable?

everyone does it research integrity What Should You Do if a Senior Researcher Tells You “Everyone Does It”?

fabrication vs falsification in research Fabrication vs. Falsification: What’s the Difference?

fabricating research data What Counts as Fabricating Research Data?

filling in missing data from memory Can Filling In a Missing Value From Memory Count as Fabrication?

reconstructing research records from memory Is It Misconduct to Reconstruct Missing Research Records From Memory?

removing bad data falsification Is Removing “Bad” Data Ever Falsification?

data cleaning vs data manipulation When Does Data Cleaning Become Data Manipulation?

participant exclusion falsification When Does Excluding Participants Become Falsification Rather Than a Defensible Analytical Decision?

changing analysis after seeing results Can Changing an Analysis After Seeing the Results Become Falsification?

changing coding after seeing results Is Changing a Coding Decision After Seeing the Outcome Necessarily Misconduct?

correcting research data errors Can Researchers Correct Genuine Data Errors Without Being Accused of Manipulation?

document research data corrections How Should Legitimate Corrections to Research Data Be Documented?

image manipulation in research What Counts as Image Manipulation in Research?

research image adjustment falsification When Does Adjusting Brightness, Contrast, or Cropping a Research Image Become Falsification?

combining images from different experiments Can Combining Images From Different Experiments Create a Misleading Research Figure?

selective presentation of research evidence Is Selectively Showing Images, Cases, Quotes, or Examples a Form of Falsification?

misleading research figures Can a Technically Accurate Figure Still Misrepresent the Underlying Data?

preserve research data and images What Should Researchers Preserve to Demonstrate That Their Data and Images Are Authentic?

plagiarism in research What Counts as Plagiarism in Research?

paraphrasing citation Does Paraphrasing Mean You Don’t Need to Cite the Source?

similar wording plagiarism How Similar Can Your Wording Be Before It Becomes Plagiarism?

idea plagiarism Can You Plagiarize an Idea Even When You Do Not Copy the Words?

plagiarize research method Can You Plagiarize a Research Method?

plagiarism of figures and tables Can You Plagiarize a Figure, Table, Framework, or Conceptual Model?

accidental plagiarism Is Accidental Plagiarism Still Plagiarism?

uncited borrowed material research draft What Should You Do if You Discover Uncited Borrowed Material in Your Own Draft?

self-plagiarism vs text recycling Self-Plagiarism vs. Text Recycling: Are They the Same Thing?

reuse text from previous paper Can You Reuse Text From Your Own Previous Paper?

reuse methods section Can You Reuse Your Own Methods Section?

reuse own figure table citation permission When Does Reusing a Figure or Table From Your Own Work Require Citation or Permission?

duplicate publication vs secondary publication Duplicate Publication vs. Legitimate Secondary Publication: What’s the Difference?

publish research in multiple languages Can the Same Findings Be Published in More Than One Language?

one dataset multiple papers When Does One Dataset Become Too Many Papers?

salami slicing research What Is Salami Slicing, and Why Can Dividing One Study Into Too Many Papers Be a Problem?

same participants multiple papers Can Two Papers Use the Same Participants Without Being Duplicate Publications?

thesis journal article overlap How Much Overlap Between a Thesis and a Journal Article Is Acceptable?

publish conference paper as journal article Can You Publish Material That Previously Appeared in a Conference Paper, Report, or Preprint?

p-hacking HARKing selective reporting P-Hacking, HARKing, and Selective Reporting: Research Practices You Need to Avoid

p-hacking examples What Does P-Hacking Actually Look Like in Real Research?

multiple analyses p-hacking Is Trying Several Analyses Until One Works Always P-Hacking?

analytical flexibility questionable research practice When Does Analytical Flexibility Become a Questionable Research Practice?

outcome switching What Is Outcome Switching, and Why Is It a Problem?

change primary outcome after data collection Can You Change Your Primary Outcome After Data Collection Begins?

selective outcome reporting What Is Selective Outcome Reporting?

report results that do not support hypothesis Do Researchers Have to Report Results That Do Not Support Their Hypothesis?

omit nonsignificant analysis paper Is It Acceptable to Leave a Nonsignificant Analysis Out of a Paper?

subgroup analysis cherry-picking When Does Subgroup Analysis Become Cherry-Picking?

stop data collection statistical significance Can You Stop Collecting Data When the Result Becomes Statistically Significant?

optional stopping What Is Optional Stopping, and Why Can It Inflate False Positives?

HARKing post hoc hypotheses Is HARKing Always Wrong, or Can Post Hoc Hypotheses Be Reported Responsibly?

report exploratory findings How Should Exploratory Findings Be Reported Without Pretending They Were Predicted?

citation cherry-picking What Is Citation Cherry-Picking, and Can a Literature Review Misrepresent the Evidence?

selective reporting abstract results Is It Selective Reporting to Emphasize the Most Interesting Result in the Abstract?

research storytelling misrepresentation When Does “Telling a Clear Story” Become Misrepresentation?

simplify complex research findings Can Researchers Simplify a Complicated Set of Findings Without Becoming Misleading?

complete vs selected research results What Should You Do When the Complete Results Tell a Less Impressive Story Than the Selected Results?

conflict of interest in research Conflicts of Interest in Research: What Should You Declare and When?

financial vs nonfinancial conflicts of interest Financial vs. Nonfinancial Conflicts of Interest: What’s the Difference?

conflict of interest research trustworthiness Does Having a Conflict of Interest Mean the Research Cannot Be Trusted?

conflict of interest vs bias Conflict of Interest vs. Bias: Why Aren’t They the Same Thing?

career advancement conflict of interest research Can Career Advancement Be a Conflict of Interest?

personal beliefs research conflict of interest Can Personal Beliefs Create a Research Conflict of Interest?

professional relationships conflict of interest research Can Professional Rivalries or Relationships Create Conflicts of Interest?

institutional conflict of interest research Can Institutional Interests Create Conflicts of Interest for Researchers?

conflict of commitment research What Is a Conflict of Commitment?

research funding conflict of interest When Does Funding Create a Conflict of Interest?

industry funding research trustworthiness Does Industry Funding Automatically Make Research Less Trustworthy?

funder influence research question Can a Funder Influence the Research Question?

funder influence research methods analysis Can a Funder Influence the Methods or Analysis?

funder review manuscript before publication Can a Funder Review a Manuscript Before Publication?

sponsor delay research publication Should Researchers Accept a Contract That Lets a Sponsor Delay Publication?

sponsor prevent research publication Should Researchers Accept a Contract That Lets a Sponsor Prevent Publication?

data control sponsor funded research Who Should Control the Data in Sponsor-Funded Research?

sponsor disagrees research results What Should You Do When a Sponsor Disagrees With the Results?

manage vs eliminate conflict of interest When Should a Conflict of Interest Be Managed Rather Than Eliminated?

conflict of interest management plan What Does an Effective Conflict-of-Interest Management Plan Actually Do?

undeclared conflict of interest research What Happens if You Discover an Undeclared Conflict After the Research Is Complete?

research records What Research Records Should You Keep, and Why Does Research Integrity Depend on Them?

adequate research record What Counts as an Adequate Research Record?

research data vs research records What Is the Difference Between Research Data and Research Records?

research decision records Should Researchers Keep Records of Decisions That Never Appear in the Final Paper?

research documentation How Much Documentation Is Enough to Defend What You Actually Did?

research records ownership Who Owns Laboratory Notebooks, Field Notes, and Research Records?

changing research records Can Research Records Be Changed After They Have Been Created?

When You're Ready to Move On

Once the study is approved, the evidence has to be collected carefully.

The next stage focuses on gathering, organizing, documenting, and protecting the data your study depends on.

Next · Part 06

Collecting Data You Can Actually Use

Plan systematic research data collection, develop appropriate instruments, manage and protect your data, and document how information was collected so it remains accurate, interpretable, organized, and ready for analysis.

Continue to Part 06 →