A researcher leaves a research file in her car while she attends a concert and her car is stolen. The file contains charts of aggregated numerical data from a research study with human subjects, but no other documents. The consent form said that no identifying information would be retained, and the researcher adhered to that component. Which of the following statements best characterizes what occurred?
A. Confidentiality of the data has been breached
B. There was both a violation of privacy and a breach of confidentiality.
C. The subjects’ privacy has been violated.
D. There was neither a violation of privacy nor a breach of confidentiality
The Correct Answer and Explanation is :
The correct answer is D. There was neither a violation of privacy nor a breach of confidentiality.
Explanation:
In this scenario, there are two key aspects to consider: privacy and confidentiality.
- Privacy refers to the individual’s right to control the access and disclosure of their personal information. In the case of this research study, the consent form explicitly stated that no identifying information would be retained. This indicates that the researcher has taken steps to ensure that the personal privacy of the participants is preserved, even if the data were to be lost or accessed by unauthorized parties. Since no identifying information was included in the file, there is no violation of privacy.
- Confidentiality pertains to the obligation of the researcher to protect the data and ensure that it is not disclosed to unauthorized individuals. The fact that the data in the file is aggregated and does not contain any personal identifiers means that there is no breach of confidentiality. Even though the file was stolen, the researcher adhered to the consent form’s promise by removing any identifying information, so there is no risk of revealing individual participants’ identities.
The absence of personal identifiers or sensitive information in the stolen file means that there is no breach of either privacy or confidentiality. Aggregated numerical data, in this case, does not pose the same risks as identifiable data.
Why the other options are incorrect:
- A. Confidentiality of the data has been breached: This is incorrect because there were no identifying details in the file, so confidentiality is not at risk.
- B. There was both a violation of privacy and a breach of confidentiality: This is not accurate because neither privacy nor confidentiality was violated, as the data was anonymized.
- C. The subjects’ privacy has been violated: This is incorrect because no personal information or identifying details were retained, thus privacy was not violated.
In conclusion, while the loss of the research file is unfortunate, the protections regarding privacy and confidentiality were maintained. Therefore, D is the most accurate answer.