Ethical Considerations in the Development of Research on Sexual and Gender Minorities: An Integrative Review
Abstract
Introduction. Sexual and gender minorities have a long history of discrimination and abuse within research, with practices such as involuntary castration, hormone injections, behavioral therapies, shock treatments, and institutionalization. This discrimination and abuse reveal the need to understand the ethical safeguards involved when conducting research that includes this population. This article aims to identify the ethical considerations that must be considered when developing research involving sexual and gender minorities. Methods. An integrative review was conducted by searching the PubMed, Web of Science, and Scopus databases, resulting in 258 full-length articles. From these, 14 articles were selected based on specific inclusion criteria: articles published in Spanish or English between 2017 and June 2022 that addressed ethical aspects in research involving sexual and gender minorities. Exclusion criteria included letters to the editor, editorials, book chapters, theses, conferences, and essays. Results. The considerations were grouped into research preparation and ethics committee approval, data collection, analysis and presentation of results, and considerations regarding transgender authors and academics. Discussion. The scientific community acknowledges the importance of recognizing the vulnerability of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and other gender identity and sexual-oriented populations. This recognition is crucial for supporting research that adequately addresses their unique characteristics and needs. Conclusion. The importance of acknowledging the population of sexual and gender minorities is emphasized, along with the use of representative samples, ensuring anonymity, and employing inclusive language.
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