Ethical Approval for Research

Ethical Approval for Research

Some types of research will need ethical approval before it can begin.  Access to further guidance on the University processes for obtaining ethical approval of research can be found in the links below.

For research staff and students seeking further infomation in relation to following the latest advice on Covid-19 and how this may impact on their research practices, please refer to the Research FAQs

 

Do I need ethical approval for my research? (Ethics Checklist)

Guidance has been produced by the University's Ethics Advisory Group to help establish whether formal ethical approval is required for a research proposal. The ethics checklist can be accessed here. The checklist of questions are not exhaustive – they aim to cover most areas of research and disciplines. If you need further clarification on whether your proposed research project needs ethical approval, please contact the relevant research ethics and governance lead for your area:

How to Seek Ethical Approval for your Research

Research staff and students at the University of Aberdeen must assess whether formal ethical approval is required for their proposed research.

There are ethics committees for each broad research area and governance arrangements for researchers whose work requires NHS approval or permissions under Home Office regulations animals (for example under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act Amended 2012).

If your work involves NHS staff, data, patients, tissue, resources or facilities, you may need to apply to the local NHS Research and Development (R&D) department for access permission. Further information on gaining approvals or contacts for further advice are available from the following link: http://www.abdn.ac.uk/medical/researchgovernance/clinicalresearch/

Each of the Schools have an ethical review process in place and researchers, where appropriate, should submit their proposed research to one of the following Boards for ethical review.

  • Research Governance for Medicine, Medical Sciences and Nutrition (Clinical/NHS related studies)

Some areas of research are governed by external legislation and/or external regulatory requirements and where this is the case, specific governance and ethical review arrangements are in place. This applies to (for example) clinical research and research involving the use of animals (under the Animals (Scientific Procedures) Act Amended 2012).

Further Information

Further information on the University’s framework for ethical review is available in the Research Governance Handbook.

Guidance from Professional Associations
Discipline / Topic Association and Guidance Document
Accountancy European Accounting Association
Anthropology

Association of Social Anthropologists of the UK and Commonwealth: Ethical Guidelines for Good Research Practice

Archaeology

Chartered Institute for Archaeologists - Code of Conduct

The Treatment of Human Remains in Archaeology (Historic Environment Scotland)

Biological Anthropology & Osteoarcheaology British Association for Biological Anthropology and Osteoarchaeology
Computing Science

British Computer Society - Code of Conduct

Association for Computing Machinery - Code of Ethics and Professional Conduct

Counselling British Association for Counselling & Psychotherapy - Ethical Guidelines for Research in the Counselling Professions
Criminology British Society of Criminology: Statement of Ethics for Researchers in the Field of Criminology
Economics

Royal Economics Society

European Economic Association

American Economic Association

Education British Educational Research Association: Ethical Guidelines for Educational Research
Engineering Joint Statement of Ethical Principles: Royal Academic of Engineering and the Engineering Council
Geography American Association of Geographers: Statement on Professional Ethics
History Oral History Society of the UK: Ethical Guidelines
Internet /Social Media Research

Association of Internet Researchers: Ethical Guidelines

Association of Internet Researchers: Checklist

Law (socio-legal) Socio-Legal Studies Association: Statement of Principles of Ethical Research
Management Academy of Management: Code of Ethics
Mathematics American Mathematical Society: Policy Statement on Ethical Guidelines
Politics Political Studies Association: Guidelines for Good Professional Conduct (PDF)
Psychology

British Psychological Society: Ethics and Standards

British Psychological Society: Ethics Guidelines for Internet-mediated research (PDF)

Real Estate Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors: Rules of Conduct
Social Research Social Research Association: Ethical Guidelines
Sociology The British Sociological Association: Statement of Ethical Practice (PDF)
Third Sector Research Scotland's Third Sector Research Forum (TSRF) Guide to applying ethical research principles
Visual Research ESRC National Centre for Research Methods Review Paper: Visual Ethics - Ethical Issues in Visual Research (PDF)

 

Arts, Social Sciences and Business

The Policy and Procedure for Ethical Review of Research (Committee for Research Ethics & Governance in Arts, Social Sciences & Business) is available here.

When considering if a research project requires ethical review, researchers should first consult the ethics checklist for further guidance. Researchers should also consult the Committee's good research practice guidance which provides useful information on possible ethical considerations during research activity.

Please note if your proposed research involves human participants, you will need to provide a consent form and participant information sheet to ensure that informed consent can be obtained. Examples are available in the templates section below.

Ethical approval should be sought as early in the research proposal process as possible, and certainly before the research commences.

Note that where an application for ethical review is received, except where a full Committee review is required, a decision will normally be made within 14 to 21 working days (subject to operational requirements and potential delays outwith term-time) for applications that meet the required submission standard. Where questions have been answered incorrectly or documentation is missing e.g. consent forms, participant information sheet, this will extend the review period due to the requirement for resubmission of the corrected application.

Researchers are responsible for obtaining ethical approval for research projects regardless of whether the project is externally funded and whether ethical approval is mandated by the funders.  Colleagues are required to undergo formal ethical review and gain approval for each defined research project, and, on a biennial basis, for ongoing research activity where:

  • Research involves human subjects (or their remains), or where the research involves personal data.
  • There are any issues which they feel might raise any ethical concerns during proposed research activity (for example, potential conflicts of interest; the use of artefacts; environmental impact; financial inducements for subjects). 
  • Research activity might involve the sharing of data or confidential information beyond the initial consent given (including where research relies solely on secondary data).

Ethical Review Process

IMPORTANT NOTICE: As of Wednesday 07 December 2022, the Committee for Research Ethics & Governance in Arts, Social Sciences and Business introduced a NEW ethics approval process for staff and postgraduate research (PGR) students.

As of this date, staff and PGR applicants are required to submit their ethics applications using the Worktribe Ethics process.  Further information and support (including a link to the Worktribe Ethics system) is available herePlease ensure you consult  the Worktribe Ethics FAQs before you commence your application.

Staff and postgraduate research (PGR) students who previously received ethical approval on the Sharepoint ethics system and who require evidence of their previous ethical approval or wish to submit a minor amendment to their approved application should contact dawn.foster@abdn.ac.uk for further assistance. 

All staff and PGR applicants for ethical approval must complete the mandatory Research Ethics & Governance online training course before submitting an application for ethical approval.  For undergraduate (UG) and taught postgraduate (PGT) students, completion of this course will be at the discretion of their Programme/Course Coordinator.  Staff and PGR applicants are also reminded of the mandatory Research Integrity online training course (this is not required for UG and PGT students).

UG and PGT students will continue to apply for ethical approval of research activity by downloading and completing the ethics application form and submitting this to their School ethical review process.

Any queries should be directed to the appropriate School Ethics Officer in the first instance.  The current list of School Ethics Officers is available on the associated Ethics Committee webpage

Useful Templates

These documents should be adapted to reflect the particular conditions of your research project.

NHS Management Permission

If your work involves NHS staff, data, patients, tissue, resources or facilities, or participants who do not have the capacity to consent to participate, then you should contact researchgovernance@abdn.ac.uk in the first instance for advice.

Further information on gaining ethical approval and contacts for further advice are available from the following link: http://www.abdn.ac.uk/medical/researchgovernance/clinicalresearch/

Medicine, Medical Sciences and Nutrition

For more information on SERB, please click on the links below

Background

As part of the requirements for research governance, the University of Aberdeen requires approval from a research ethics committee for all research involving human participants or biological samples. The School of Medicine, Medical Sciences and Nutrition Ethics Review Board (SERB) has been established to ensure that all research carried out by staff and students is reviewed by an appropriate ethics committee.

Some projects will fall under the remit of NHS Research Ethics Committee, Psychology or Rowett. 

SERB accepts projects for review where
  1. The study is 'research'.
    Research is defined by the University as "a process of systematic enquiry leading to new insights which contribute to a body of knowledge, effectively shared". Research is discriminated from audit or service evaluation by whether it is designed to generate knowledge beyond local circumstances that can be applied more generally. For practical purposes, this tends to mean that research studies are those designed to generate knowledge that may be published. Please refer to the ethical review flow chart for further guidance.
  2. The principal investigator is a member of staff within SMMSN.
  3. Please consult the University of Aberdeen Research Governance handbook. You may also find it useful to consult the flow chart above. If you think you don't need ethical approval or need further information, contact the SERB chair.

The local NHS ethics review service is called The North of Scotland Research Ethics Service. For information about NOSRES, meeting dates and closing dates, please visit the North of Scotland Research Ethics Service page on the NHS Grampian website.

Applying to SERB – some general points

Applications to SERB are now being accepted through Worktribe. Access and more information can be found on the Ethics System: Worktribe webpage.

Please refer to this document before starting your application and it is also highly recommended that you consult ethics guidance. All applications must include evidence of Research Ethics and Governance Training - more details are here

Dates for review meetings and application deadlines can be found here.

Key contacts

Resources

The following Participant Information Sheet (PIS) and Consent form are provided for guidance only and there may be reasons why these forms are not applicable to your study. The same applies to the exemplar form for obtaining peer review.

Physical Sciences and Engineering
Staff and PGR Research Projects

IMPORTANT NOTICE:  The Physical Sciences & Engineering Ethics Board introduced a NEW ethics approval process for staff and PGR ethics applications (Worktribe Ethics) as of 19 October 2022.  Please note that any new ethics applications submitted using the previous copsethics email application process WILL NO LONGER BE ACCEPTED.  

Staff and PGR applicants should now log in to Worktribe at https://uoa.worktribe.com (University username and password will be required).  Please read the self-assessment guidance below BEFORE you commence your Worktribe Ethics application, and remember to attach your completed Annex A (checklist) to your Worktribe Ethics application, plus any other required documentation e.g. participant information sheet, consent form, questionnaire, etc.

Further information and support for Worktribe Ethics applicants is available here.   Please ensure you consult the Worktribe Ethics FAQs before you commence your application.

All staff and PGR applicants for ethical approval must complete the mandatory Research Ethics & Governance online training course before submitting an application for ethical approval.  Staff and PGR applicants are also reminded of the mandatory Research Integrity online training course for all researchers.

All staff and PGR research projects should be ethically assessed by the researcher to identify whether there is a need for formal ethical approval, using the self-assessment process detailed below. 

Ethical approval should be sought as early in the research proposal process as possible, and certainly before the research commences. For all research projects, the applicant should complete the self-assessment Ethical Review Checklist (Annex A) as described below to determine whether further ethical review will be required. All applicants must adhere to the University's Research Ethics requirements, and for funded research projects this includes abiding by any further ethics principles specified by the funding body.

The ethical review process has two stages:

1.Self-Assessment
The Principal investigator shall determine by self-assessment if the research is requires formal ethical approval, using the Ethical Review Checklist (Annex A).  If the answer to any of the questions is YES, the project must be reviewed according to this Ethical Review and Approval Policy by submitting an application to Worktribe Ethics at https://uoa.worktribe.com (University username and password will be required)

Please note the following types of research are handled using different processes.

  • Research involving NHS staff, patients, facilities and premises is subject to ethical review by the NHS North of Scotland Research Ethics Service.  This includes research involving individuals when their status as NHS staff or patients is relevant to the research, even when a medical condition is not the subject of the research.  Research involving adults who do not have the capacity to consent may also be subject to these ethical review procedures.  Further guidance is available at researchgovernance@abdn.ac.uk 
  • Research involving animal and biological materials is subject to Home Office regulations. Forms and guidance can be obtained from the School of Biological Sciences. Please also refer to the University's Statement on the Use of Animals in Research (downloadable from the Policy Zone).
  • If collection of genetic resources (organisms, microorganisms, DNA, RNA, proteins, small molecules) from signatories to the Convention on Biodiversity/Nagoya Protocol is involved, then a relevant agreement must be in place before this can begin. This agreement must provide prior informed consent with mutually agreed terms and the must be in keeping with the Convention on Biodiversity/Nagoya Protocol and be obtained via the national focal point of the provider country. A statement to this effect must be included in grant applications that intend to make such collection.  Contact your Research Development Executive for further guidance.

2. Ethical Review and Approval
Once completed, staff applications will be submitted to the triage stage.

PGR applications will be submitted via the Supervisor who will be required to review the application for completeness and to either (i) 'approve' the application for ethical review, or (ii) to return the application to the student for further revision and resubmission.  Once the Supervisor 'approves' the application, PGR applications will then be forwarded to the triage stage.  Triagers will conduct an initial assessment of the application and will ensure the required documentation has been attached.   

Once the triage stage has been completed, the application will either be returned to the applicant if any issues have been identified, or forwarded to the Board members for ethical review.  The application will be forwarded to the appropriate School representative on the Ethics Board for review, and in line with the the risk level applied to the research project, may also be forwarded for ethical review by other Board members from a different discipline.  In the event of a conflict of interest for the reviewer(s), or for a particular specialist piece of research, the application may be forwarded to a delegated alternative.  

A response will normally be provided to the applicant within 14 - 21 days, although very complex proposals may take longer.  The approval period will be extended if the application is returned to the applicant at any stage for revision and resubmission.  The outcome of the ethics review will be communicated to the applicant via the Worktribe Ethics process.

Taught Postgraduate and Undergraduate Research Projects

The University is responsible for all research activities undertaken at the institution.  As a result, the University must also be satisfied that research undertaken by students is also in compliance with these ethics procedures.  Ethical approval should be sought as early in the research proposal process as possible, and before any research activity is undertaken.

ALL taught postgraduate students and Undergraduate Honours students preparing research projects must follow the steps below prior to the commencement of the research project.

1. Self-Assessment
Complete the Ethical Review Checklist (Annex A).  Once completed you should hand it into to your research/dissertation supervisor.  If the answer to any of the questions is YES, the research project needs further ethical review, as described below.  The project cannot begin until approval has been granted. 

Please note the following important exceptions to this process:

  • Research involving NHS staff, patients, facilities and premises is subject to ethical review by the NHS North of Scotland Research Ethics Service.  This includes research involving individuals when their status as NHS staff or patients is relevant to the research, even when a medical condition is not the subject of the research.  Research involving adults who do not have the capacity to consent may also be subject to these ethical review procedures.  Further guidance is available at researchgovernance@abdn.ac.uk 
  • Research involving animal and biological materials is subject to Home Office regulations. Forms and guidance can be obtained from the School of Biological Sciences. Please also refer to the University's Statement on the Use of Animals in Research (downloadable from the Policy Zone).
  • If collection of genetic resources (organisms, microorganisms, DNA, RNA, proteins, small molecules) from signatories to the Convention on Biodiversity/Nagoya Protocol is involved, then a relevant agreement must be in place before this can begin. This agreement must provide prior informed consent with mutually agreed terms and the must be in keeping with the Convention on Biodiversity/Nagoya Protocol and be obtained via the national focal point of the provider country. A statement to this effect must be included in grant applications that intend to make such collection.  Contact your Research Development Executive for further guidance.

2. Ethical Review and Approval
These projects will be ethically reviewed within the School; the precise nature of the review process depends on the discipline. Students should consult their supervisor and/or Course/Programme Co-ordinator for details, or their School Ethics Officer   The current list of School Ethics Officers is available on the associated Ethics Committee webpage (i.e. follow this weblink, then scroll down the webpage and click on the banner 'Committees for Research Ethics and Governance' and click on 'Physical Sciences and Engineering').

Ethics Review Policy & Approval Documents

Please ensure you are using the most up-to-date version by always downloading from below.

Useful Links

Internal

External

Psychology

All experiments conducted in the School of Psychology or by researchers based in the School require ethical agreement in order to protect volunteers' interests and to ensure that the highest possible standards are adhered to.

Further information on the application process for ethical review of research can be obtained here.

Rowett Institute

Staff and students associated with the Rowett Institute can access further guidance on the ethical review process via the Rowett Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs), which are uploaded to the Institute's document management system, Q-Pulse. 

Further information on the ethical review process can be obtained from Mr Gary Cooper, Quality Manager, Rowett Institute.

School of Biological Sciences

Staff and student research projects must be submitted for ethical review where the nature of the proposed research activity requires ethical approval.  For example,

  • projects involving research on animal and biological materials (e.g. ASPA regulated procedures, genetic material subject to the Nagoya Protocol), or
  • projects involving human participants (e.g. interviews, workshops, focus groups)

Ethical approval should be sought as early in the research process as possible, and certainly before the research commences. 

Note: the above list of criteria for ethical review is not exhaustive.  For further advice on whether your proposed research will require ethical approval, or to submit an ethics application, contact the SBS Ethical Review Board .