Researchers in the Willowbrook study obtained
A) fully voluntary consent from the parents of their subjects.
B) fully informed consent from the parents of their subjects.
C) consent from the parents of their subjects, but that consent was neither informed nor voluntary.
D) no consent of any sort from the parents of their subjects.
E) consent from their subjects directly.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The Willowbrook study enrolled children with intellectual disabilities who were housed at the Willowbrook State School. The parents were informed that their children would be enrolled in a hepatitis study, but the consent was not fully informed because the parents were not made aware of the risks, and it was not fully voluntary because the parents may have felt pressured to enroll their children due to the limited options for institutionalized children with disabilities. The study has been widely criticized for this lack of ethical conduct in securing informed consent.

Researchers in the Willowbrook Study Obtained