Ethical Principles

Ethical principles exist both to protect the research participants and to ensure the integrity of the research. There are various codes and regulations which guide ethical research today, including the Declaration of Helsinki, although a number of common principles exist.

The World Medical Association (WMA) developed the Declaration of Helsinki as a statement of ethical principles specifically for medical research involving human subjects. It emphasises the procedures required to ensure subject safety in clinical trials including informed consent and review by research ethics committees.