Future of Pervasive Health Workshop

Research Article

Ethical Considerations in Pervasive Health Research

  • @INPROCEEDINGS{10.4108/eai.16-5-2016.2263813,
        author={Haley MacLeod and Maia Jacobs and Katie Siek and Kay Connelly and Elizabeth Mynatt},
        title={Ethical Considerations in Pervasive Health Research},
        proceedings={Future of Pervasive Health Workshop},
        publisher={ACM},
        proceedings_a={FUTURE OF PERVASIVE HEALTH WORKSHOP},
        year={2016},
        month={6},
        keywords={pervasive health; ethics; breast cancer; rare diseases; patient advocates; community based research; privacy; patient empowerment; research methods; personalization},
        doi={10.4108/eai.16-5-2016.2263813}
    }
    
  • Haley MacLeod
    Maia Jacobs
    Katie Siek
    Kay Connelly
    Elizabeth Mynatt
    Year: 2016
    Ethical Considerations in Pervasive Health Research
    FUTURE OF PERVASIVE HEALTH WORKSHOP
    EAI
    DOI: 10.4108/eai.16-5-2016.2263813
Haley MacLeod1,*, Maia Jacobs2, Katie Siek1, Kay Connelly1, Elizabeth Mynatt2
  • 1: Indiana University
  • 2: Georgia Institute of Technology
*Contact email: hemacleo@indiana.edu

Abstract

The field of pervasive health has matured over the last few decades and the community has begun to converge on commonly accepted practices. In this work, we argue for a need to consider the ethical implications of the choices we make as researchers, particularly when working with vulnerable or sensitive populations. We outline a number of considerations that should be given more attention moving forward. We discuss these considerations as they have emerged from our work with people with rare diseases and with newly diagnosed breast cancer patients, both sensitive communities requiring a careful attention to ethics. We organize these ethical considerations around two main themes: the importance of involving participants in the research process and the need for flexible approaches to both research methods and the design of tools. We provide recommendations for researchers towards a successful, ethical future of pervasive health research.