Expanding Access to Inclusive Research Ethics Training

Syracuse University and the University of New Hampshire Institute on Disability’s Research Ethics for All program will now reach a broader national audience through the CITI Program, the most widely used research ethics training platform in the United States.

Developed by Katherine McDonald, Ariel Schwartz, and partners around the US, Research Ethics for All was designed to make research ethics training more accessible to a diverse range of learners — including research partners with developmental disabilities. Research Ethics for All is freely available online at re4all.org. Research Ethics for All supports inclusive research practices by ensuring that everyone involved in research can access and understand the ethical principles that guide responsible studies.

One research participant shared, "I observed that community research partners truly felt represented. Seeing individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities participating in research was valuable to them."

By being hosted on CITI, the training will become available to universities and research institutions across the country through their existing institutional licenses. Many institutions already rely on CITI to certify researchers and track ethics training certification, meaning Research Ethics for All will now be easier for institutional review boards (IRBs) and research teams to adopt.

So far, 12 university IRBs have approved use of Research Ethics for All as an acceptable human participants research ethics training. This milestone reflects growing interest in more inclusive approaches to doing research and training.

As the program expands to reach new institutions and research teams, Syracuse University and the University of New Hampshire continue its commitment to advancing ethical, accessible, and inclusive research practices.