Why Science Matters: Research Ethics

One of the most important aspects of research is ethics. It is not always the most exciting topic to talk about. However, the conversation is crucial to understanding not only why science matters, but also why ethical science matters most. Looking deeper than the occasional studies being retracted for falsifying data, there were more important instances throughout history where unethical science had been performed and the outcomes were tragic and horrifying. Before we discuss the measures instituted to keep research ethical, it is important to address these periods in our history when research was performed without ethical considerations. This will highlight the importance of understanding why ethical science matters so much.

Major historical events that stand out as foremost lapses in ethical experimentation include the Tuskegee syphilis study by the US Public Health Service that started in 1932 and ran for the following 40 years and the human experimentation that took place in the 1940s by the Nazis in Germany, during the Holocaust/World War II. The Tuskegee syphilis study was designed to record the natural history of syphilis in Black men. Informed consent was not obtained. Despite penicillin being widely available for treatment of syphilis in 1943, the men enrolled in the study were not offered any treatment and their disease course was just observed. In 1972, the study was deemed “ethically unjustified” and stopped. The observational study continued almost 30 years after a treatment was available for syphilis without offering it to the study subjects. In the 1940s, medical experiments were conducted on concentration camp inmates that resulted in torture and death by Nazi doctors. In a trial at Nuremberg, after the Holocaust/World War II, Nazi doctors who conducted the experiments were accused of the murder and torturing of inmates. Sixteen of 23 of these doctors were found guilty and 7 were sentenced to death. From these experiences in Germany, the Nuremberg Code rose out of the tragedies of the Holocaust/World War II to become a guide for human rights and biomedical ethics.

The Nuremberg Code was created as a result of the horrific events in Germany to make sure that the abhorrent research and experimentation was not repeated. The guidelines stress the importance of protecting research subjects and making sure that proposed research is justified and expected to yield results that will benefit society. The Nuremberg code has become a central standard of biomedical ethics and research. Whenever research is performed at an institution, there are now organized panels to review the research to make sure that the proposed projects are designed in a way that helps society in some way and protects the research subjects themselves. These committees or panels, often called Institutional Review Boards, are involved in approval or rejection of proposed research projects before they are even started and follow research projects to make sure that they adhere to guidelines and research ethics. This ensures that the research tragedies of the past are not repeated in the present or the future.

The concept of research ethics is an important one for an additional reason. We perform scientific research to further scientific knowledge and benefit society. However, we must make sure that research is performed in a way that others will trust not only the scientific research validity, but also the moral standards and reverence for human life towards all involved in the research. Much damage was done to the trust in healthcare by the Tuskegee study. It eroded the trust in healthcare in a way that translates to current day non-acceptance of proper medical care and advice. Parts of society still feel like healthcare and medicine is capable of performing unethical research or medical treatment like the Tuskegee study. It is difficult to convince those who witnessed the unethical treatment of a group of people that the medical system will not repeat its improper medical care to them or other groups in our society. The only way to convince others of the benefits of research and allay fears of malicious intent is to ensure that research is performed with the highest standards of scientific rigor in its methods and its ethics. If this is not done, there is no reason for anyone to believe or trust the results of research and, subsequently, benefit from research. Scientific discoveries are only as good as those who are willing to accept them. This is why not only science matters, but also why ethical science matters most.

What other ways can the scientific community build trust in scientific research?