Research Ethics

Research ethics: Who defines that?¶

• International Ethical Frameworks define the values and principles of ethics (e.g., UNESCO ethical frameworks)

• Disciplinary Norms and Communities define what is ethically sensitive or ethically problematic in their own context. These norms guide ethical evaluation (e.g., the Declaration of Helsinki by the World Medical Association)

• Ethics Committees or Institutional Review Boards check what is ethically permissible in concrete research projects

• Funders may require ethical (self-)assessment and review (e.g., EU grants from three EU programs such as Horizon Europe, Digital Europe, and European Defence Fund)

Main research ethics documents for using AI in research projects¶

• UNESCO Recommendation on the Ethics of Artificial Intelligence (https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000381137)

• OECD Principles on Artificial Intelligence (https://oecd.ai/en/ai-principles)

• EU High-Level Expert Group on AI – Ethics Guidelines for Trustworthy AI (https://digital-strategy.ec.europa.eu/en/library/ethics-guidelines-trustworthy-ai)

• EU Grants: How to complete your ethics self-assessment https://ec.europa.eu/info/funding-tenders/opportunities/docs/2021-2027/common/guidance/how-to-complete-your-ethics-self-assessment_en.pdf

Research ethics in Germany¶

A collection of best practices in research ethics for reseachers and research committees can found at the website of the German Data Forum (RatSWD): https://www.konsortswd.de/en/topics/best-practices-research-ethics

UNESCO recommendation on the ethics of AI¶

• A human rights approach to AI

• 4 core values

  • Respect, protection and promotion of human rights and fundamental freedoms and human dignity

  • Environment and ecosystem flourishing

  • Ensuring diversity and inclusiveness

  • Living in peaceful, just and interconnected societies

• 10 principles

Source: United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), 2022

UNESCO recommendation: 10 principles¶

1. Proportionality and Do No Harm (risk assessment, choosing appropriate AI tools)

2. Safety and security (risks should be addressed, prevented and eliminated)

3. Fairness and non-discrimination

4. Sustainability

5. Right to Privacy, and Data Protection (legal, ethical, and technical compliance)

6. Human oversight and determination (responsibility lies on people or legal entities)

7. Transparency and explainability (a need to balance with privacy, safety, and security)

8. Responsibility and accountability (AI actors and Member States)

9. Awareness and literacy (based on impact on human rights and access to rights, on the environment and ecosystem)

10. Multi-stakeholder and adaptive governance and collaboration

The Ethics of Artificial Intelligence by Floridi¶

Floridi (2023) considers five ethical principles of AI:

1. Beneficence (“do only good”): Promoting Well-Being, Preserving Dignity, and Sustaining the Planet

2. Nonmaleficence (“do no harm”): Privacy, Security, and ‘Capability Caution’

3. Autonomy: The Power to ‘Decide to Decide’

4. Justice: Promoting Prosperity, Preserving Solidarity, Avoiding Unfairness

5. Explicability: Enabling the Other Principles through Intelligibility and Accountability

Ethics guidelines for trustworthy AI¶

• Trustworthy AI should be lawful, ethical, and robust.

• Trustworthy AI systems should meet 7 requirements:

  1. Human agency and oversight: AI systems should empower human beings

  2. Technical Robustness and safety: AI systems need to be resilient and secure

  3. Privacy and data governance: Privacy and data protection, adequate data governance

  4. Transparency: The data, system and AI business models should be transparent

  5. Diversity, non-discrimination and fairness: Unfair bias must be avoided

  6. Societal and environmental well-being: AI systems should benefit all human beings and environment

  7. Accountability: Mechanisms should be put in place to ensure responsibility and accountability for AI systems and their outcomes

Tool: ALTAI (The Assessment List for Trustworthy Artificial Intelligence)¶

ALTAI is the Assessment List for Trustworthy AI.

Ethical self-assessment in EU grants¶

See https://ec.europa.eu/info/funding-tenders/opportunities/docs/2021-2027/common/guidance/how-to-complete-your-ethics-self-assessment_en.pdf

“Any use of AI systems or techniques should be clearly described in the project and you must demonstrate their technical robustness and safety (they must be dependable and resilient to changes).”

Tool: Data protection decision tree¶