Research Ethics


NBCC ensures that all research involving human participants conducted by college researchers adheres to the Tri-Council Policy Statement: Ethical Conduct for Research Involving Humans (TCPS 2, 2014). All researchers who are conducting any type of research (including institutional research, basic research, or applied research) involving human participants at NBCC must have their research ethically reviewed and cleared prior to the commencement of research.

Research involving human participants must be directed toward the benefit of humanity and the advancement of knowledge. Researchers are to conduct their research as critical and responsible professionals accountable to their research participants, to the society that supports their work, and to their colleagues, students and research institutions.

The ethics review process is based on three core principles:

  • Respect for Persons
  • Concern for Welfare
  • Justice

NBCC's Applied Research & Innovation (ARI) officers will assist in:

  • Planning the ethics review application
  • Advising on the procedures of the ethics review application
  • Ensuring proper submission of the ethics review application
  • Providing information that can aid in the preparation of the ethics review application

External researchers seeking to use NBCC students or staff as participants for research purposes must submit a formal request to NBCC's ARI office.

Enquiries and clarification on NBCC's Research Ethics Board (REB) policies and procedures are to be directed to the ARI office (appliedresearch@nbcc.ca).

The Policy

Canada's three federal research agencies, CIHR, NSERC and SSHRC, jointly created the Interagency Advisory Panel on Research Ethics (PRE or the Panel) as part of a collaborative effort to promote the ethical conduct of research involving human participants.

The Panel develops, interprets and implements the Tri-Council Policy Statement: Ethical Conduct for Research Involving Humans (TCPS 2, 2018) and requires that all faculty, student, staff, funded or unfunded research proposals at NBCC that involve human participants and fall under the TCPS 2 be brought before the Research Ethics Board (REB) for review and ethical clearance. Please note that the electronic version of the TCPS 2 is the official version of the Policy.

NBCC advises all prospective researchers to read the Tri-Council Policy Statement and complete the TCPS 2 Course on Research Ethics (CORE) online tutorial. The tutorial will help researchers familiarize themselves with the TCPS 2 and consider their research in this light.

The Research Ethics Board

The NBCC REB is an appointed committee of volunteers mandated to review NBCC research proposals that involve human participants. The REB provides this service to the college community by working together with researchers to identify and resolve any ethical issues in their research in order to protect the interests of research participants, maximize the benefits of the research and minimize harm.

The REB consists primarily of NBCC faculty members as well as select representatives from the community. The REB is empowered to ethically clear, reject, propose modifications to (conditional clearance), suspend or terminate research activity that involve human participants and fall under the jurisdiction of the New Brunswick Community College. Applications are reviewed on an ongoing basis throughout the year.

Inquiries

Any questions regarding research involving human participants at NBCC can be directed to appliedresearch@nbcc.ca.