This study aims to provide an overview of RECs (research ethics committees) in Chinese universities, encompassing both medical and non-medical studies. The primary objective is to identify major challenges faced by RECs in Chinese universities and draw meaningful implications from the findings. The investigation focuses on 42 comprehensive Chinese universities, and the results reveal that while all universities have implemented RECs in various forms, only 28.6% explicitly stipulate ethical review requirements for non-medical disciplines. Furthermore, RECs in Chinese universities encounter various (...) challenges, including insufficient attention to research ethics review, inadequate ethics review systems and regulations, a lack of education and training, and lacking ethics review for non-medical research. This paper proposes recommendations for establishing robust RECs in Chinese universities, seeking to enhance ethical governance in research. By addressing the challenges identified, these recommendations aim to strengthen ethical oversight, foster a culture of responsible research, and uphold the highest ethical standards across diverse academic disciplines. (shrink)

In response to the rapidly increasing application and abuse of psychological tests in China, the Psychometrics Division of the Chinese Psychological Society published the 2008 revisions of the Chinese Code of Ethical Use of Psychological Tests. We investigated the implementation status of the code 2½ years after its promulgation. Sample included 284 psychological professionals and psychology graduate students. The average accuracy rate for the appropriate use of psychological tests was 67.1% (range = 25.5?97.5%), with 10 items having accuracy rates below (...) 45%. Participants remained uncertain about the clients' rights to information about the purpose, psychometric properties, and scores of the tests. The most frequent violations involved ?using psychological tests without psychometric information for entertainment purposes? and ?using SCL-90 to measure mental health of normal people.? (shrink)

A qualitative study was conducted with 48 Chinese counselors and psychotherapists who were interviewed in 2006 and an independent sample of 50 participants who responded to a survey in 2014. This study aims to explore how the new emerging expansion of mental health practice is related to issues and challenges of dual role relationship and how the well-engrained values and social characteristics of Chinese culture influences perceptions and resolution of ethical dilemmas. The participants identified similar dual relationships in 2006 and (...) 2014: Incidental boundary crossings, a sexual or romantic relationship, a dual social relationship, and a professional dual relationship were the most frequently reported types of dual relationships encountered by Chinese practitioners, and the socioeconomic and cultural context and the development trajectory of counseling and psychotherapy in China play a significant role in shaping practitioners’ behaviors. The comparison of the data in 2006 and 2014 indicated that practitioners in psychotherapy and counseling have an improved awareness and understanding of ethical issues, evidenced by the decreasing cases of romantic and sexual relationships and increasing cases of social dual relationships influenced by the interrelatedness of traditional Chinese culture. (shrink)