title: Prisoners as research participants: current practice and attitudes in the UK.
abstract: The use of prisoners as research participants is controversial. Efforts to protect them in response to past exploitation and abuse have led to strict regulations and reluctance to involve them as participants. Hence, prisoners are routinely denied the opportunity to participate in research. In the absence of comprehensive information regarding prisoners' current involvement in research, we examined UK prisoners' involvement through review of research applications to the UK National Research Ethics Service. We found that prisoners have extremely limited access to research participation. This analysis was augmented by a survey of those involved in research and research governance (UK researchers and Research Ethics Committee members). Our results suggest that pragmatic concerns regarding the perceived burden of including prisoners are far more prominent in motivating their exclusion than ethical concerns or knowledge of regulations. While prisoners may remain a vulnerable research population due to constraints upon their liberty and autonomy and the coercive nature of the prison environment, routine exclusion from participation may be disadvantageous. Rigorous ethical oversight and the shift in the prevailing attitude towards the risks and benefits of participation suggest that it may be time for research to be more accessible to prisoners in line with the principle of equivalence in prison healthcare. We suggest the necessary first step in this process is a re-examination of current guidance in the UK and other countries with exclusions.
authors: Medical School, College of Medical and Dental Sciences, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK.
authors: Anna
authors: A
authors: Charles
authors: Institute of Biomedical Ethics, University of Zürich, Zürich, Switzerland Department of Social Science, Health and Medicine, King's College London, London, UK.
authors: Annette
authors: A
authors: Rid
authors: National Research Ethics Service, London, UK.
authors: Hugh
authors: H
authors: Davies
authors: Medicine, Ethics, Society and History (MESH), School of Health and Population Sciences, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK.
authors: Heather
authors: H
authors: Draper
mesh_terms: D001290:Attitude; D028744:Ethics Committees, Research; D032984:Ethics, Research; D049673:History, 20th Century; D006801:Humans; D028683:National Socialism / Q000266:history; D011329:Prisoners / Q000266:history; D011330:Prisons; D035842:Research Subjects / Q000266:history; D006113:United Kingdom; D035862:Vulnerable Populations
keywords: Prisoners; Research Ethics; Research on Special Populations