Research Ethics
Lakeland College recognizes that college employees and students will engage in research activities.
To be in compliance with legislative and funding agency regulations, the college has established standards and procedures that ensure the integrity and accountability of any research conducted at Lakeland College.
What is research?
Research is any type of inquiry involving staff or students. Including:- Whether they are acting as researchers or participants in the research process,
- whether the research is conducted in person or by some other means (mail, telephone, or computer link),
- or when it involves the review of records not normally available to the public.
Why are research ethics important?
Before we undertake any research, we get an ethical clearance. This ensures we handle the research, the research subject(s), and resulting data with the highest quality standards.
We use third party approval of our research protocols to ensure our research methods are thorough and limit liability. At Lakeland, we use Red Deer College's research ethical standards.
Red Deer College Human Research Ethics Forms
Lakeland has a an agreement with Red Deer College to use its research ethics board. Find the forms you need to start a research project on the RDC research ethics board webpages| What research requires ethics approval? | ||||||
Research involving the following subjects or materials must comply with Lakeland College’s Procedures. This includes research involving:
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| What is human research or minimal risk? | ||||||
Human research (research rnvolving humans) refers to any project that involves the collection of specimens, data, or information from persons through intervention or otherwise. Included are procedures that have a low degree of invasiveness such as, surveys, interviews, naturalistic observations, exercise or psychometric testing, examination of patient records, as well as more invasive procedures, such as blood sampling and administration of a substance. This also includes projects and procedures that may be defined as Minimal Risk.
Minimal Risk means that the risks of harm anticipated in the proposed research are not greater or more likely than those ordinarily encountered in life, including those encountered during the performance of routine physical or psychological examinations or tests |
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| Research Involving human subjects: purpose and guiding pinciples | ||||||
| Lakeland College is committed to ensure that research activities involving human subjects meet all ethical standards and policies. A key purpose is to ensure that the rights of human subjects participating in research projects conducted in the name of the College are respected and that such research is conducted ethically. Tri-Council Policy Statement: Ethical Conduct for Research Involving Humans describes the principles that must guide research involving human subjects. Specifically: Respect for Human Dignity. This cardinal principle of research protects the multiple interests of the person from bodily to psychological to cultural integrity. This principle forms the basis of the ethical obligations in research involving human subjects. Respect for Free and Informed Consent. Individuals are generally presumed to have the capacity and the right to make free and informed decisions. This principle translates in practice into the dialogue, process, rights, duties and requirements for free and informed consent by the research participant. Respect for Vulnerable Persons. Vulnerable persons, including children and institutionalized persons, are entitled to special protection against exploitation, discrimination or abuse. Special procedures may be required to protect these persons. Respect for Privacy and Confidentiality. This standard protects the access, control and dissemination of personal information and materials. This principle is fundamental to the principle of respect for human dignity. Respect for Justice and Inclusiveness. Justice means fairness and equity. The ethics review process must have fair methods, standards and procedures. Justice also balances benefits and potential harms and protects vulnerable segments of the population. Balancing Harms and Benefits. The analysis and balance of harms and benefits are critical to the ethics of research involving human subjects. Foreseeable harms should not outweigh anticipated benefits. The balance must respect human dignity and impose strict ethical obligations on the validity, design, and conduct of research. Minimizing Harm. It is the duty of those conducting research involving human subjects to avoid, prevent, or minimize harm to others. Research participants must be fully aware of any potential for harm at any stage of the research. Maximizing Benefit. This principle imposes a duty to benefit the participants, and to maximize benefit to society as a whole. |
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| How do I get human research ethics approval? | ||||||
Lakeland College currently doesn't have its own Research Ethics Board (REB) to review human research ethics. We have a Memorandum of Understanding with Red Deer College to access their REB.
Submit completed forms to Lakeland College’s Applied Research team for review. If you need help, please contact us before you submit the form to Red Deer College’s REB. For more information, please see our research procedures. |
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| How do I get animal research ethics approval? | ||||||
| Research involving animals is governed by College Procedure 4.58 Care of Animals Under College Control. Research involving animals can't proceed until the research protocol has been approved by the College’s Animal Care Committee. Research protocols will follow Canada Council on Animal Care (CCAC) guidelines. For more information, contact Jolet van Niekerk 780 853 8814 Jolet.vanNiekerk@lakelandcollege.ca |
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| Reference Documents & Downloads | ||||||
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