National Institutes of Health, NIEHS, Research Triangle Park, North Carolina, USA.
University of Southampton Centre for Biological Sciences, Southampton, UK.
J Med Ethics. 2018 Aug;44(8):555-559. doi: 10.1136/medethics-2017-104452. Epub 2018 Mar 13.
In this article, we explore the ethical issues related to the reporting of suspected abuse or neglect in research involving children. Ethical dilemmas related to reporting child maltreatment are often complex because the rights of children and their adult caregivers may conflict and determinations of abuse or neglect are socially constructed judgments that depend on particular circumstances. We argue that when reporting is legally mandated, investigators must follow the law and report their suspicions to Child Protective Services. When reporting is not legally mandated, investigators still have an ethical obligation to report to help prevent additional maltreatment and allow children to obtain access to services needed to recover from abuse or neglect. We also argue that investigators should include plans and procedures in the research protocol for making reports and training research staff in recognising evidence of child abuse or neglect. Although investigators should report evidence of abuse or neglect that is discovered incidentally, they have no mandate to actively search for such evidence when it is not related to the study's objectives. Investigators should also inform parents and children about their obligations to report suspected abuse or neglect.
本文探讨了与儿童参与的研究中涉嫌虐待或忽视的报告相关的伦理问题。与报告儿童虐待有关的伦理困境往往很复杂，因为儿童及其成年照顾者的权利可能会发生冲突，而虐待或忽视的认定则是取决于特定情况的社会建构判断。我们认为，当报告受到法律强制要求时，调查人员必须遵守法律，并向儿童保护服务机构报告他们的怀疑。当报告不受法律强制要求时，调查人员仍有道德义务报告，以帮助防止进一步的虐待，并使儿童能够获得从虐待或忽视中恢复所需的服务。我们还认为，调查人员应在研究方案中包含报告计划和程序，并培训研究人员识别儿童虐待或忽视的证据。尽管调查人员应该报告偶然发现的虐待或忽视证据，但当这些证据与研究目标无关时，他们没有权力主动寻找此类证据。调查人员还应告知父母和儿童他们报告疑似虐待或忽视的义务。
