Recently, I
discovered a real life case study on this website http://www.mcri.edu.au/media/62295/cases_q___c.pdf.
The title of the article is called "Opt-out consent and the role of
parental consent in a study in a child care centre." It is considered case number four in the
article. The experiment was designed to
study the spread of germs within the center.
Researchers spread DNA fragments of a plant virus on the surface of the
toys, doorknobs and other surfaces within the classroom. The purpose was to indicate where exactly the
spread of germs would be found in the classroom. Although, the researchers did consider the
health risks, they originally found none that was anticipated.
Later on,
there arrived a parent whose complaint led to one of the centers closing
down. The parent said there consent for
the experiment was never provided, because they were unaware of the research
experiment. A letter did go home with
each child in their belongs. Written on
the letter were the details of the experiment and everything that the parents
needed to know about the experiment. However,
the problem occurred simply because, anyone who has ever worked in child care
or anyone who has children knows that the parents do not check their child's
bag daily. Although, the parent claims
to have never received the letter, it was in the child's bag and they just did
not know to check. Whose fault is
that?
Therefore,
when the researchers approached the parents to gain consent for the final
portion of the experiment, which is the permission to swab the child's hands to
see if the solution was present , the parent became uncooperative. and said they were never aware of the experiment
was even taking place. Due to this
circumstance all parents were provided the opportunity to opt-out of the
experiment and not complete it to the end.
Surprisingly, none of them choose these option.
Here are
some pointers to ponder for researchers in the future:
Did the researchers in this experiment try hard enough to
gain parental consent?
Was the consent of the child needed in this experiment as
well?
Was the opt-out option an acceptable solution for this
matter?
What would have been the circumstances if the child would
have put the solution into their mouth and became sick?
Was the research experiment worth it in the end?
Please share your thoughts.
Thanks!
I can identify with the fact that parents do not check folders daily!!!!! When something important needs to be shared with parents I do a few things:
ReplyDelete- give the paper/information directly to the parent
-mail the paper/information to the house
-mail the paper/inforamtion via certified mail
-call the parents
In this case I feel that there should have been more done to gain permission of the parents. No matter what the "level" of research is, it is important to make sure parents are aware of it.
Great Post! I like your questions!
ReplyDeleteI agree with you that the researcher need to provide more information to parents when sending out the consent and ensure parents understand the procedures of the research. Following the code of ethics, researchers also need to assure children are safe throughout the experiment. If they cannot assure children's safety, they should think of other alternative way to obtain data without harming children.
Hello Tymeshia,
ReplyDeleteI agree with you as well as the others that have posted comments. Definitely more could have been done to obtain consent from the parents for the research. Without this vital information, the research is null and void. Maybe they could have chosen a day when many of the parents would be present to get permission, like back to school night or after parent/teacher conferences. Hopefully in the future they will rethink their research methods.