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ABSTRACT

In 1979 the Belmont Report warned about threat of “undue influence” on the ability of potential research participants to provide voluntary informed consent. The authors defined undue influence as, “an offer of an excessive, unwarranted, inappropriate or improper reward or other overture in order to obtain compliance.” The attention levied on undue influence has had profound and lasting effects on the way that individuals are recruited and compensated for their participation in research. In this paper I will describe the theoretical foundations of undue influence and argue that the concept is fundamentally flawed. Furthermore, I will provide a defense of why ethics review committees (ERCs) and institutional review boards (IRBs) should not consider undue influence in their assessment of research proposals. Lastly, I will argue that a focus on undue influence by ERCs and IRBs raises the real prospect of exploitation and discrimination of potentially vulnerable groups.

Forthcoming events

mRNA vaccines and paediatric RSV

Monday, 11 November 2024, 1pm to 2pm @ BDI/OxPop Building LG seminar room

Festival of Global Health - Human Forever

Wednesday, 13 November 2024, 4pm to 8pm @ Curzon Oxford, Westgate Shopping Centre, Oxford OX1 1NZ

Fake vaccines: The problem - and finding solutions

Monday, 18 November 2024, 1pm to 2pm @ BDI/OxPop Building LG seminar rooms

The potential of vaccination to prevent congenital CMV

Monday, 25 November 2024, 1pm to 2pm @ BDI/OxPop Building LG seminar rooms

Cross-species MAIT cell immune responses

Monday, 02 December 2024, 1pm to 2pm @ BDI/OxPop Building LG seminar rooms

The ecology and evolution of microbial communities

Monday, 13 January 2025, 1pm to 2pm @ BDI/OxPop Building LG seminar rooms