"The "mild-torture economy

Exploring the World of Professional Research Subjects and Its Ethical Implications

Bibliographic Data

ID4909312
AuthorsR Abadie (0000-0002-4276-1620, University of Nebraska–Lincoln, corresponding author)
Year2015
Volume25
Issue3
Pages709-728
Publication date2015-09-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenuePhysis Revista de Saúde Coletiva (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0103-7331 • E-ISSN: 1809-4481
PublisherFapUNIFESP (SciELO) (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1590/s0103-73312015000300003
OpenAlexW2278389909
SCIELO_PIDS0103-73312015000300709
LanguageEN
Citations received2
References cited10

This paper documents the emergence of the subject of professional research in Phase I clinical trials that test the safety of drugs in development. Based on ethnographic research among subjects self-identified as "professional guinea pigs" in Philadelphia, USA, it examines their experiences and opinions on the conduct of trials and risks they take. The author argues that the risks posed by the continued participation, such as exposure to potentially dangerous drug interactions are minimized or ignored by research subjects because of the prospect of financial gain. Risks to the professional guinea pigs are also ignored by the pharmaceutical industry, which has become dependent on the usual participation of experienced research subjects. Arguing that financial incentives undermine the ethical imperative of informed consent to be given freely by volunteers, this research confirms the need to reform the policies governing the participation of paid subjects in Phase I clinical trials

Alternative medicine · Clinical trial · Economics · Ethnography · Incentive · Informed consent · Pathology · Political science · Public relations · Sociology · Test (biology · Torture · Ethics in Clinical Research · HIV, Drug Use, Sexual Risk · Law · Medicine · Prenatal Substance Exposure Effects · Psychology

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Open DOIOpen Access