Research with Children

In the United States we have very mixed feelings about research with human subjects. The Nuremberg Code (the Code), which provides a foundation for the protection of human subjects, was written by American judges in the context of trying Nazi doctors who committed atrocious acts of human experimentation on concentration camp inmates. The Code provides ten common-sense guidelines controlling research. For example, a researcher may not conduct research on human subjects without that subject's informed consent, or if there is an a priori reason to believe that the research will cause death or disabling injury to the subject. What is remarkable about the creation of the Code is that it was thought to be necessary to document and impose the most fundamental moral principles on researchers. The Code demonstrates a remarkable suspicion of research with human subjects and those who perform such research.