[IN-PERSON/LIVESTREAMED] Plenary Session: Beyond Evaluating Risk: Now We Must Navigate Sociopolitical Events in Research

This plenary session will be held in-person, livestreamed for the Virtual Meeting, and recorded for on-demand access by attendees registered for PRIMR23 on this day.

This plenary session will explore the challenges researchers and regulatory bodies face when conducting research and reviewing studies in a politically charged environment where controversial news stories and policy decisions can greatly impact research and the experience of research subjects. From the Supreme Court's decision to overturn Roe V. Wade to watchdog groups scrutinizing studies on social media to the judicial branch reexamining FDA approvals, it is clear politics and sociopolitical environments influence how research is conducted, or if it is even conducted at all on politically charged topics, as well as the risks subjects encounter participating in research. For example, the risks related to confidentiality and privacy of routine pregnancy testing in research are now higher for persons living in states with abortion bans. Research participants must be informed of these risks, researchers need to learn operational best practices for safeguarding participant information, and HRPPs/IRBs need to learn to reevaluate risks in the setting of a changing political landscape. These tasks become even more challenging in the setting of multi-site research, in which varying and conflicting state and federal laws, and associated risks of their possible violation, come into play. Beyond evaluating risks, the combination of sociopolitical events, public controversy, and understandable risk aversion by institutions, researchers, and participants limits research on areas of critical public health and social need, such as gun violence, maternal health, LGBTQIA+ health, and primary and secondary education. This session will discuss how researchers and institutions must handle these issues of public controversy and help subjects, researchers, and HRPPs/IRBs to evaluate and understand the risks of conducting and enrolling in research in the context of a changing political landscape. Speakers will provide examples and discuss the lessons learned from encountering these challenging situations, including strategies to minimize risk. Further, speakers will address the roles of research overisght professionals, and attendees of the PRIM&R annual meeting, as leaders in public responsibility in research, including if and how we are supposed to advocate for the types of research conducted and supported by our community, as well as for social justice and political change.