Good research considers ethical aspects
An ethical approach to the research process means that researchers protect both the people who participate in the research and the findings that are made. Good research and an ethical approach always go hand in hand. However, the ambition to achieve scientific progress may never overshadow the principle of the dignity of research subjects – protecting human dignity is always of utmost importance.
Central ethics codes
Ethical issues in research have long been discussed. These discussions have been led to collections of rules – ethical codes – that attempt to clarify how researchers should act ethically. These codes from various research fields have helped increase awareness of ethical challenges in research.
Declaration of Helsinki
The most important code is the medical Declaration of Helsinki, a central research ethics guideline adopted by the World Medical Association (WMA) in 1964. Both the rules and concepts of the Declaration of Helsinki are applicable to other fields, which has given it a special status as a guideline for ethics in research in general.
Learn more about the Declaration of Helsinki (wma.net)
The European Code of Conduct for Research Integrity
The European Code of Conduct for Research Integrity was adopted in 2017 by the organisation All European Academies (ALLEA) and aims to guide researchers to good research practice. It addresses several aspects of research work, including responsible data management and openness. The code emphasises that researchers and research-performing organisations should be transparent about how data is handled, made accessible and reused – in line with principles such as FAIR.
Go to the European Code of Conduct for Research Integrity (allea.org)
The Swedish Research Council – good research practice
The Swedish Research Council’s report Good Research Practice provides an overview of the ethical principles and rules that are central to research and guides researchers on how to think ethically throughout the research process.
In Sweden, research is also governed by laws
Ethical codes are collections of ethical rules, but they are not legally binding documents. In Sweden, we also have legislation about research ethics, such as the Ethical Review Act and the Animal Welfare Act.
Read more about ethical review
Read more about animal experiments
Personal data in registry research
When conducting registry-based research, there is legislation that relates to how personal data may be processed, how data are to be protected, and security when processing and using data retrieved from registries. Registry research raises ethical questions about protecting the privacy of individuals, which may mean that registry-based research must undergo an ethical review to be permitted.
Read more on the Swedish Research Council’s service registerforskning.se
Suspected deviation from good research practice or misconduct in research
If you suspect fabrication, falsification or plagiarism of research results, you should report this. This is also true for other deviations in good research practice.
Read more about deviations from good research practice or misconduct in research
