Research Safegaurds
Openness in Research
- You are encouraged facilitate access to interested persons to the underlying data, processes, and research findings, when and/or if appropriate to do so.
- This openness should be balanced with the need for safeguarding of data that should not be shared, such as confidential info, proprietary content, etc. (Additional guidance on this is provided in Module 5.)
Data Management
- Keep good records of research activities, such as data collection, research design, and communication between project participants.
- Optimize the potential for data sharing by utilizing strong metadata and persistent identifiers.
Further Learning: Data Management Planning in the College Context
If you would like to do a deeper dive into this topic, there is a module called Data Management Planning in the College Context in Fanshawelearns.
This and other resources can be found in the CRI Research Playlist.
If you are not a college employee (e.g. student who has been hired by CRI), you may not be able to access this content. Contact CRI for assistance.
Protection of Project Participants
- Treat all potential participants with respect from the time you request their possible participation (even if they decline to be involved) to the end of the project and beyond.
- Inform participants of the intended outcomes of the project, potential risks, and their ability to withdraw at any time.
- Seek permission to share research findings and deposit datasets which are anonymous and/or de-identified.
- Research Ethics Board (REB) approval may be a condition of funding.
Resource: Informed Consent Guidelines
Confidentiality
- Ensure that confidential and/or sensitive information is safeguarded.
- Put in place protection measures to ensure the privacy of research participants.
- Do not share any proprietary information that has the potential to be commercialized.
- It is common for partner-based research contracts to include Non-Disclosure Agreements
Resource: Sample Non-Disclosure Agreement
Further Learning: Tri-Council Course on Ethics
The Tri-Council Policy Statement: Ethical Conduct for Research Involving Humans is a free online course which provides guidance that applies to all research involving human participants, including their data and/or biological materials. Completion of the TCPS 2 CORE may be a condition of funding. TCPS 2 CORE consists of nine modules and a knowledge consolidation exercise:
- Module A1 – Introduction
- Module A2 – Scope of TCPS 2
- Module A3 – Risks and Benefits
- Module A4 – Consent
- Module A5 – Fairness and Equity
- Module A6 – Privacy and Confidentiality
- Module A7 – Conflicts of Interest
- Module A8 – Research Ethics Board Review
- Module A9 – Research Involving Indigenous Peoples
- Knowledge Consolidation Exercise
A Non Disclosure Agreement is a contract that creates a confidential relationship between two parties and details sensitive information that may not be shared outside of this relationship.
