Role and Procedural Guidelines
Research Ethics Committee (REC)
School of Economics and Social Sciences (SESS)
Institute of Business Administration (IBA) - Karachi
Document Prepared by REC Members
Dr. Amir Jahan Khan (Chair)
Dr. Abdul Haque Chang
Dr. Lubna Naz
Dr. Ayesha Zia
Contents
1. Overview .............................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................. 2
2. Scope of Work ................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 2
3. Governance ....................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 3
4. Composition ..................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 3
5. Framework and Procedure for Ethics Review ........................................................................................................................................................................................ 3
a. Guidelines for applicants ...................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 3
b. Application Procedure ........................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 5
1. Overview
The Research Ethics Committee aims to serve and guide researchers at the School of Economics & Social Sciences (SESS)1, IBA on how to fulfill ethical obligations. Following the research ethics framework in research designs will ensure that research practices are aligned with ethical standards and professional conduct while developing informed processes of consent, data collection, analysis, reporting, and protection all populations, irrespective of literacy level, and/or physical or cognitive capacity, participant's right to privacy and confidentiality.
Ethical standards facilitate values that are a prerequisite for effective collaborative work such as equity, trust, and mutual respect. In addition, adherence to standards and policies on issues integral to research ethics such as conflict of interest and misconduct help ensure that researchers are accountable. The REC will also serve as a custodian of documents pertaining to joint and collaborative research.
Developing a framework for ethical standards in research will help gain support and funding as confidence in the quality and integrity of the research increases.
2. Scope of Work
The Research Ethics Committees (REC) at SESS-IBA is mandated to provide rigorous, relevant, and timely review of research applications from students, faculty, and staff of the school. The REC independently conducts a review of research ethics of applications, and subsequent matters.
In cases of research collaborations between two or more researchers; the researchers are required to arrive at their potential contributions towards the project and indicate it in the order of authorship in documentation required by the REC. REC will act as a custodian of such information.
3. Governance
The REC is an autonomous body. However, it reports to the Dean, School of Economics and Social Sciences and Director-CBER.
4. Composition
REC is a four-member body, comprising two faculty members each from the departments of Economics and Social Sciences, SESS-IBA. The membership of the committee is for four years. After which, REC will invite interest applications from faculty for the reconstitution of the committee. The chairmanship of the committee is rotational; each member will be chair of the committee for a year during the REC’s four-year tenure
5. Framework and Procedure for Ethics Review
This section explains the research ethics application process. It also provides details of the documents that applicants are required to submit while applying for an ethics review, from REC-SESS IBA, Karachi
a. Guidelines for applicants
The following guidelines are aimed to support researchers applying for ethics approval, especially conducting research involving human subjects and/or primary data, to understand a) what REC is looking for to approve research as ethical, b) what to include in their applications and c) what matters need to be taken care for prior to application submission.
The supporting documentation required by the REC may vary depending on the research area and the intended research. There are, however, few basic concerns that the REC will expect applicants address in the submitted application. These are as follows:
(i) REC will expect that the application establishes an intention to respect the autonomy of participants involved in the research by:
- Providing participants with appropriate information to make an informed choice to take part in research (informed consent).
- Make certain that participants are know that they are free to renounce participation at any time and are not required to give reasons for their decision to withdraw.
- Protecting of collected data with meticulous care and appropriate handling procedures; and sensitivity towards participants need for confidentiality and anonymization.
- Research requiring a withholding of information from research participants should be explained and justified for ethics approval.
(ii) REC will expect applications to show the beneficial effects of the project. Benefit may vary across research but may include benefits to the society, science, scholarship, and/or the participant etc. The potential benefits of research should be presented realistically through:
- Ensuring quality and integrity in research design, review, and conduct for useful result.
- Ensuring transparency of research aim and appropriateness of methodology used to achieve it.
- Ensuring that research is efficiently and appropriately dispersed.
(iii) REC will expect that applicants for ethics approval to have extensively evaluated potential for harm and its severity that may come to research participants or others as part of the said research. REC is mindful that certain harms, such as distress, embarrassment, or anxiety, can be subjective and difficult to predict or quantify; however, REC expects that applicants will avoid risk of harm and minimize it in cases where benefits of the research outweigh the risk. The applicants are be expected to exhibit the plan of risk minimization and plan of mitigation from the potential of harm. Any application indicative of high risk will be carefully considered by the REC before approval.
(iv) For research integrity and transparency, REC will expect applicants to declare any actual or potential conflicts of interest that affect research at any time (before and after ethics approval).
(v) Before applying for ethics approval, applicants must ensure if they need a research permit or human subject approval from any other organization. In case they do, applicants must share these documents with the REC.
b. Application Procedure
(i) Applicants are required to:
- login to the IBA link: Click here
- Choose between ‘apply for a new research ethics review’ or ‘apply for the renewal of ethics review’. 2
- provide all necessary information.
- fill in the appended forms.
- Additional information/ supporting documents should be attached as separate files.
(ii) Applicants will receive an electronic confirmation once they complete the forms.
(iii) During the review, the committee can ask for clarification or support documents.
(iv) The approval of ethics application may take four to eight weeks.
(v) Reapplication is required for an extension in research.
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1 This service is open to faculty at other schools at the IBA - Karachi.
2 Since this is the first year of ethics approval, only new approvals are being issued.