Professor Judith Hanks discusses the hidden world of ethics review in podcast
In episode 125 of the Research Culture Uncovered podcast series Professor Judith Hanks discusses her role in ethics review.
Professor Judith Hanks joined Emily Goodall for the 125th Episode of the Research Culture Uncovered podcast series. As a leading expert in applied linguistics, exploratory practice, and coproduction, Judith is also the chair of a cross-faculty research ethics committee and in this podcast, she discusses her experiences as an ethics reviewer, challenges she has encountered, misconceptions, and ways towards supporting a positive research culture.
She discusses how the variety of research areas which she has worked in can help when working on such a diverse committee, stating that her experiences of working on different projects and in different parts of the world provide her with an insight into different styles and methods of working.
[Having a diverse research area helps] so I can see ways of doing different types of research, and what are the demands and what are the challenges of doing those different kinds of research.
During the podcast, Judith identifies and discusses the challenges and misconceptions surrounding ethics review which she has faced, one of which being the variety of work she faces. As each case is so different, there are no black and white answers, so the challenge comes from fully exploring each individual project to discern what possible consequences can arise and ensuring that a fair and reasonable result is achieved. Judith also discusses how time-pressure introduces another challenge, both for the ethics review board, and for the applicant seeking the approval.
Ethics are endlessly fascinating.
The podcast rounds off with discussing ways to better support a positive research culture, suggesting that ethics should be introduced from the beginning of a project, and how proactively speaking with individuals can help both sides identify potential issues, overcome resistance to ethics training, and show that ethics review is not a hurdle to be overcome, but a benefit which will aid applicants throughout the process overall.
