Vulnerability in research ethics: A call for assessing vulnerability and implementing protections

This article examines the standard approach of relying on stated categories for addressing vulnerability and presents a practical approach for improving vulnerability assessment and protections. Original data collected from 355 legal/regulatory documents governing social/behavioral research for 107 countries identifies 68 distinct vulnerability categories that vary regionally, calling attention to possible overreliance on international standards. The data also reveal that some categories, such as displacement and trafficking, where research participants are vulnerable by any reasonable definition, are neglected. The article provides a conceptual framework that shifts the problem away from static, enumerated categories toward differentiation of inherent, situational, and research-induced vulnerability. Based on our conceptualization and coding, we present a framework for assessing vulnerability and implementing appropriate protections.