Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 15, 2026

Operant Protocols for Assessing the Cost-benefit Analysis During Reinforced Decision Making by Rodents
Published on: September 10, 2018
Meta-consent in research on decisional capacity: a "Catch-22"?
Elyn R Saks1, Laura B Dunn, Barton W Palmer
1University of Southern California Law School, USA. esaks@law.usc.edu
Abstract:
Empirical studies of ethical issues, which have increased in number and scope in recent years, may themselves raise both practical and ethical issues. One example of such an issue is the question of who may be legitimately enrolled in studies of decision-making capacity; must all participants in studies of consent capacity have capacity to consent? This question may pose a "Catch-22": For example, if some of the participants in a study of consent capacity are deemed by a particular standard to be incapable of consent. In weighing the risks and benefits of studies of consent capacity, how should reviewers consider the context of actual versus hypothetical trials for which the participant's consent is being sought? Here, we explore these "meta-consent" issues by describing the dimensions of the issue and potential solutions, centering around the concept of "active assent" (requiring expressed understanding of the purpose of the study and its voluntary nature, as well as expression of a choice to participate).
Related Concept Videos
Decision Making
Automatic decision-making is fast, intuitive, and relies on gut feelings...
Ethics in Research
Decision Making: Traditional Method
First, a specific claim about the population parameter is decided based on the research question and is stated in a simple form. Further, an opposing statement to this claim is also stated. These statements can act as null and alternative hypotheses, out of which a null hypothesis would be a...
Reason and Intuition
Self-Discrepancy Theory
Cognitive Dissonance
