Ethics and authenticity in conducting research are issues of great importance in the academic world. Fraud is one of the unethical practices that compromise the legitimacy and quality of research, besides undermining the academic enterprise. Institutional Review Board (IRB) is created to curb these research malpractices. This paper discusses the roles of the IRB, its importance and role in averting research fraud, and the reasons for concerns over research fraud.
The IRB is a committee created to safeguard the welfare and rights of individuals chosen to take part in research activities conducted under the affiliated institution’s guidance and provisions (Mutch, 2013). The roles of the IRB are to review all the funded and non-funded research that involve human subjects and approve or disapprove, supervise, demand changes in the research the falls under its authority. This is done in conformity to the institutional provisions and the relevant federal laws. The roles of the IRB are vital as they ensure that the rights and privacy and welfare of human participants are protected in the entire research process (John, Loewenstein, " Prelec, 2012).
The IRB is also charged with the responsibility of ensuring that no fraud is conducted in the research process. In undertaking this role, the IRB monitors the operations of the research and reviews all the research works deposited before it. The board investigates all the research fraud cases and uses legal provisions to hold those found culpable accountable (Mutch, 2013).
Research fraud refers to a deliberate move by a researcher or researcher to fabricate, falsify, and plagiarize data and information in the research process. Fraudulent research practices may include deliberate omission or addition of information on research, or fake analysis of the findings (Ritchie, Lewis, Nicholls, " Ormston, 2013). These practices deviate from the requirements of academic research. Institutions should be wary of research fraud as it undermines the academic enterprise. Also, research fraud defies the legal provisions guiding and depicts unprofessionalism.
To sum up, IRB plays critical roles in protecting the rights of human participants in the research process and curbing fraud in research. These roles ensure the academic enterprise is respected and trusted by the community.
References
John, L. K., Loewenstein, G., " Prelec, D. (2012). Measuring the prevalence of questionable research practices with incentives for truth telling. Psychological science, 23(5), 524-532.
Mutch, C. (2013). Doing educational research. Nzcer Press.
Ritchie, J., Lewis, J., Nicholls, C. M., " Ormston, R. (Eds.). (2013). Qualitative research practice: A guide for social science students and researchers. Sage.
