# Research Ethics

> Conduct research ethically — informed consent, privacy, minimization of harm, and honest reporting — across user, market, and academic contexts. Use when designing studies with human participants, handling sensitive data, or reviewing research for ethical risk.

- Skill: `itsual/research-ethics` (Agent Skill)
- Install (CLI): `npx skillmds@latest add itsual/research-ethics`
- Raw SKILL.md: https://api.skillmd.com/api/skills/itsual/research-ethics/raw
- Safety review: pending
- Works with: Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex
- Category: Research & Search
- Author: itsual (https://skillmd.com/u/itsual)
- Updated: 2026-09-22
- Page: https://skillmd.com/skills/itsual/research-ethics

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# Research Ethics

## Overview

Ethical research respects people as ends, not only as data sources. Consent, privacy, and truthful reporting are non-negotiable foundations of credible work.

## When to Use

- Any study involving human participants
- Research with vulnerable populations or sensitive topics
- Data retention and sharing decisions
- Publication and stakeholder reporting

## Core Practices

- Obtain informed consent appropriate to the method and risk
- Minimize data collected to what the questions require
- Anonymize or pseudonymize in analysis and reporting where appropriate
- Allow withdrawal without penalty
- Avoid deceptive designs unless strictly justified and debriefed
- Report methods and limitations honestly

## Principles

- Legal compliance is necessary but not sufficient for ethics
- Power imbalances (researcher vs participant) require care
- “Public” data can still raise ethical issues in reuse
- Fabrication, selective omission, and p-hacking destroy trust

## Verification

- [ ] Consent and data-handling plans are explicit
- [ ] Risk to participants has been considered and mitigated
- [ ] Reporting does not misrepresent uncertainty or methods