Abstract
Objective. To assess the knowledge, awareness, and attitudes of dental faculty regarding research ethics and research ethics committees (RECs). Design. Through convenience sampling, we distributed a survey to academics at dental faculties at two universities in the Middle East. We used descriptive, chi-square, and logistic regression statistics to analyze the data. Results. Our response rate was 62.5%. A large majority (>90%) held positive attitudes towards RECs; however, almost half (44.0%) thought that RECs would delay research. Less than half (36.8%) had received prior training in research ethics, and the average score they achieved on the questions on research ethics was only 40.2%. Most (>90%), however, were favorable towards research ethics education. Finally, some faculty held attitudes regarding certain research ethics practices that were not optimal. Conclusions. We conclude that among the dental faculties participating in our study, there is broad-based acceptance of RECs and training in research ethics, while there are knowledge gaps in research ethics. We recommend further studies to determine the generalizability of our findings to other institutions.
Highlights
Medical research has increased greatly in many developing countries during the recent decade, motivated by the need to improve health in these countries [1]
Our results will help institutional officials understand better how well research ethics committees (RECs) are accepted in their institutions and help them develop relevant educational programs in research ethics directed towards dental faculty
Potential participants received a cover letter attached to the survey tool that included the following elements of informed consent: the purpose of the research study, potential benefits and risks, and that participation was voluntary and refusal to participate would not be associated with any academic penalty
Summary
Awareness, and attitudes of dental faculty regarding research ethics and research ethics committees (RECs). We distributed a survey to academics at dental faculties at two universities in the Middle East. A large majority (>90%) held positive attitudes towards RECs; almost half (44.0%) thought that RECs would delay research. Less than half (36.8%) had received prior training in research ethics, and the average score they achieved on the questions on research ethics was only 40.2%. Most (>90%), were favorable towards research ethics education. Some faculty held attitudes regarding certain research ethics practices that were not optimal. We conclude that among the dental faculties participating in our study, there is broad-based acceptance of RECs and training in research ethics, while there are knowledge gaps in research ethics. We recommend further studies to determine the generalizability of our findings to other institutions
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