To tell or not to tell? The ethical dilemma of the would-be whistleblower.
Despite the growing emphasis placed on the responsible conduct of research, little attention has been devoted to the question of what an individual should do upon discovering research misconduct. This article takes seriously the dilemma of a would-be whistleblower. It identifies ethical considerations that can be taken into account in moral decision-making about reporting research misconduct. It also offers rough guidelines about the moral significance of each consideration in the decision-making process based on the facts of the case in question. The article, therefore, offers tools for a would-be whistleblower to use to arrive at a defensible resolution to a difficult dilemma.
Malek
Janet
J
Department of Medical Humanities, Brody School of Medicine, East Carolina University, Greenville, North Carolina 27834, USA. malekj@ecu.edu
D003657:Decision Making / Q000941:ethics*; D032984:Ethics, Research; D006801:Humans; D009014:Morals; D010558:Personnel Loyalty; D024382:Professional Role; D012108:Research Personnel / Q000941:ethics; D015871:Scientific Misconduct / Q000941:ethics*; D012941:Social Responsibility; D014481:United States; D035642:Whistleblowing / Q000941:ethics* / Q000331:legislation & jurisprudence