Practices of Informing and Consenting in Indigenous Communities: The Case of The Marshall Islands

Abstract

The 1979 Belmont Report established the guiding principles of informed consent. The 2007 United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) pointed out several problems in the meaning of these principles, and in how they were operationalised in small, indigenous communities. The Belmont Report originated in a developed economy, and was taken forward by researchers in individualist societies more than collectivist societies. But in the 21st century, with cross-cultural work a routine element of academic research, these issues have greater salience. UNDRIP focuses on the local meanings of concepts such as respect, informed, consent and privacy. It privileges local cultural norms, meanings and practices in the processes of gaining consent, and foregrounds the need for selecting culturally appropriate processes of consulting, comprehending, and withdrawing. This paper uses examples from the Republic of the Marshall Islands (RMI) to explore these issues, and make recommendations for social science researchers in navigating cross-cultural dimensions of informing, respect, privacy and consent.