Ethical Conduct for Research Involving Humans Policy

Cambrian College (‘the College’) is committed to ensuring that all research involving humans meets the highest ethical and scientific standards and complies with the Tri-Council Policy Statement: Ethical Conduct for Research Involving Humans (TCPS 2).

This policy seeks to balance the potential benefits of research with the obligation to protect participants from harm.

This policy applies to research involving human participants conducted under the auspices of Cambrian College. It covers any research carried out by College employees, students, or external researchers, and includes any research involving College resources (such as equipment, facilities, or personnel) – regardless of the location, timing, or methodology.

Core principles: as defined by the TCPS 2, the three core principles together express the overarching value of respect for human dignity: Respect for Persons, Concern for Welfare, and Justice.

Human participant: an individual whose data, biological materials, or responses to interventions, stimuli or questions by the researcher, are relevant to answering the research question(s).

Principal investigator: the individual who submits a research ethics application and is responsible for the ethical conduct of the study, and the actions of any member of the research team.

Research: an undertaking intended to extend knowledge through a disciplined inquiry and/or systematic investigation.

Research Ethics Committee (REC): an autonomous entity, accountable to the Board of Governors through the Vice President Academic, responsible for reviewing and monitoring all research involving human participants in accordance with the TCPS 2.

1. All research involving human participants must be reviewed and approved by the College and the Research Ethics Committee (REC) before it begins.

2. The Research Ethics Review Operating Procedure outlines the process and requirements for obtaining approval for research involving human participants.

3. All research must adhere to the standards and principles outlined in the TCPS 2 (or most current version).

4. The REC will evaluate each research proposal based on foreseeable risks, potential benefits, and ethical implications.

5. The Principal Investigator is responsible for ensuring that all members of the research comply with the requirements of the REC and TCPS 2, including but not limited to the procedures for consent, fairness and equity, confidentiality, and conflict of interest.

6. Researchers must endeavour to achieve and maintain an appropriate balance between potential benefits and harms, where harms do not outweigh the anticipated benefits.

7. Researchers must comply with all applicable legal and regulatory requirements regarding participant consent, privacy, and data protection. Researchers must also comply with related College policies, including but not limited to, Responsible Conduct of Research Policy.

8. In cases where research constitutes a governmental activity, standards for protecting participants must align with the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, federal privacy legislation, and other relevant regulations.

9. Researchers are encouraged to maximize the benefits of research by providing access to research findings.

9.1. In order to do so, researchers will have the freedom of inquiry and the right to disseminate the results of that inquiry, freedom to challenge conventional thought and freedom from institutional censorship.

10. Each research project shall integrate the Core Principles of the TCPS 2 in its design and implementation.

11. Appropriate safeguards regarding research information will be in place that respect the privacy of participants and support researchers in fulfilling their confidentiality and data storage obligations.

 

Vice President Academic is responsible for:

• The overall accountability of research involving human participants under the auspices of the College.
• Providing adequate resources and institutional support for the REC to fulfill its mandate as outlined in its Terms of Reference.
• Reporting annually on REC activities to the Board of Governors.

Administrators are responsible for:

• Being familiar with this policy and its associated procedures.
• Maintaining awareness of ongoing research within their areas of responsibility.
• Ensuring that faculty, staff, and students under their supervision comply with College research ethics requirements.
• Promoting a culture of ethical, responsible, and high-quality research.

Research Ethics Committee is responsible for:

• Ensuring that all research involving humans conducted under the auspices of the College is responsible, ethical, and compliant with TCPS 2.
• Conducting independent, competent, and timely reviews of all research involving human participants.
• Protecting the rights, welfare, and privacy of human participants involved in research.
• Assessing the acceptability of a research project through consideration of the foreseeable risks, the potential benefits, and the ethical implications of the project.
• Monitoring approved projects and ensuring ongoing compliance with ethical and regulatory standards.
• Providing guidance and education to researchers and the college community on ethical practices related to research at Cambrian.
• Maintaining documentation of research ethics reviews and decisions.
• Reporting annually to the VPA relevant activities related to the work of the REC.

Principal Investigators are responsible for:

• Complying with this policy and its associated procedures.
• Ensuring that research projects are reviewed and approved by the REC before any recruitment or data collection begins.
• Ensuring all members of the research team adhere to required ethical standards.
• Reporting changes, issues, study completion, and required updates back to the REC.

Researchers are responsible for:

• Complying with the requirements of this policy and associated operating procedures.
• Ensuring completion of the TCPS 2: CORE (Course on Research Ethics) training prior to submitting a research ethics application.
• Adhering to the TCPS 2 when conducting research in involving human participants.