Regulating Human Research (Paperback)

Sarah Babb

ISBN 10: 1503611221 / ISBN 13: 9781503611221

Published by Stanford University Press, Palo Alto, 2020

About this Item

Paperback. Institutional review boards (IRBs) are panels charged with protecting the rights of humans who participate in research studies ranging from biomedicine to social science. Regulating Human Research provides a fresh look at these influential and sometimes controversial boards, tracing their historic transformation from academic committees to compliance bureaucracies: non-governmental offices where specialized staff define and apply federal regulations. In opening the black box of contemporary IRB decision-making, author Sarah Babb argues that compliance bureaucracy is an adaptive response to the dynamics and dysfunctions of American governance. Yet this solution has had unforeseen consequences, including the rise of a profitable ethics review industry. This book traces the historic transformation of institutional review boards (IRBs) from academic committees to compliance bureaucracies. Sarah Babb opens the black box of contemporary IRB decision-making, which is increasingly outsourced to specialized private firms. Shipping may be from multiple locations in the US or from the UK, depending on stock availability.

Seller Inventory # 9781503611221

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Regulating Human Research (Paperback)
• Publisher: Stanford University Press, Palo Alto
• Publication Date: 2020
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1503611221
• ISBN 13: 9781503611221
• Binding: Paperback
• Condition: new

About this title

Synopsis

Institutional review boards (IRBs) are panels charged with protecting the rights of humans who participate in research studies ranging from biomedicine to social science. Regulating Human Research provides a fresh look at these influential and sometimes controversial boards, tracing their historic transformation from academic committees to compliance bureaucracies: non-governmental offices where specialized staff define and apply federal regulations. In opening the black box of contemporary IRB decision-making, author Sarah Babb argues that compliance bureaucracy is an adaptive response to the dynamics and dysfunctions of American governance. Yet this solution has had unforeseen consequences, including the rise of a profitable ethics review industry.

About the Author

Sarah Babb is Professor of Sociology at Boston College, and author of many published works exploring the connections among organizations, professions, and the state. She served on the Boston College IRB for three years.