Controversies on the ethical review of research in the Humanities and Social Sciences by System CEP/Conep

Abstract

The Ethics Committee must review all researches involving human subjects conducted in Brazil, which has caused controversies about the ethical review of research in the humanities and social sciences. The purpose of this article is to discuss the controversies of the ethical review of research in these areas in System CEP/Conep. The controversies are the biocentrism, the punctual improvements in Resolution 466/2012, the emergence of a parallel system of ethical review for theses areas or the constitution of supplementary resolution in the system CEP/Conep. These controversies relate to functional limitations of the ethical committees: high demand of projects, few committees, limitations of the Brazil platform and the need for members training. The System CEP/Conep should continue as the only system of ethical review in Brazilian research; but it requires that the resolutions are continually revised in order to include the specificities of the researches in the humanities and create more committees with better training.