ABSTRACT
This chapter explores some of the complex ethical issues that arise in the conduct of qualitative research and that should be of concern to commissioners, practitioners, and consumers of research. It suggests that the same ethical principles apply to qualitative and biomedical research. The chapter examines the United States (US) ethical regulatory system, which has a good deal in common with those operating in other countries. The National Institutes of Health (NIH) first published a statement of Policies for the Protection of Human Subjects in 1966, which introduced Institutional Review Boards (IRBs). The chapter further discusses principles of the Belmont Report: Ethical Principles and Guidelines for the Protection of Human Subjects of Research that lay three clear duties on researchers: beneficence, respect for persons, and justice. It finally examines some of the conflicts that have arisen between regulators and qualitative researchers and their relationship to ethical debates within qualitative research.
