Master of Science in Organizational Dynamics Theses
Document Type
Thesis or dissertation
Date of this Version
July 2008
Abstract
Standard research practice has been to protect the rights of human subjects by providing an informed consent document that explains the study in clear and concise language. The problems inherent in writing this document are considerable and it is not known how effective these documents are in providing information and enhancing understanding about research participation. I have selected a clinical research trial involving older men to illustrate the challenge of providing sufficient information so that a person can make an informed choice. I describe the many human, educational and technological aspects that must be considered in developing an alternative method to the written informed consent process. I have developed a tutorial that can be tested within the clinical trial to compare the differences in informed consent methods. The research community is obligated to improve the informed consent process and these preliminary efforts are worthy of further development.
Date Posted: 11 July 2008
Comments
Submitted to the Program of Organizational Dynamics in the Graduate Division of the School of Arts and Sciences In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Science in Organizational Dynamics at the University of Pennsylvania
Advisor: Larry Starr