Ethics review for qualitative inquiry - Adopting a values-based, facilitative approach

In many institutions, the institutional review board/research ethics board (IRB/REB) uses the traditional audit approach that emerged from the biomedical community (e.g., Nuremburg Code, Belmont Report) to review the ethical acceptability of research using humans as participants. This approach is guided by participant protection and risk management concerns. This article discusses the approach to ethics review currently being adopted at a large Canadian university in transition from a teaching to a research institution. It articulates the values that guide the REB in its deliberations and explores how these values support a facilitative-rather than an audit-approach to ethics review. Two case studies of innovative qualitative inquiry are discussed to demonstrate how Concordia University (Montreal, Canada) has adopted an approach to ethics review that attempts to encourage, engage, and support qualitative researchers in their research initiatives, while respecting established legal and ethical guidelines targeted primarily at clinical research.