Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Concept Videos

Nurses' Legal Responsibilities I01:27

Nurses' Legal Responsibilities I

747
In healthcare, informed consent is a crucial process that involves thoroughly communicating medical treatment options to patients, including benefits, risks, potential side effects, and alternatives. This process enables patients to make well-informed decisions about their care, ensuring they understand the implications of their choices before consenting to or refusing treatment.
The legal responsibilities of a nurse regarding informed consent include the following:
747
Blinding01:11

Blinding

2.5K
Blinding is a commonly used method of not telling participants which treatment a subject is receiving. Blinding is a critical part of a randomized control trial or RCT. It reduces the bias that affects the results. In an RCT, blinding is used in the form of a placebo. A placebo effect occurs when untreated subjects falsely believe they have received the treatment and report improved symptoms. A placebo or a dummy treatment is administered to subjects to negate the bias caused by such an effect.
2.5K
Blind Procedures02:07

Blind Procedures

10.6K
Ideally, the people who observe and record the children’s behavior are unaware of who was assigned to the experimental or control group, in order to control for experimenter bias. Experimenter bias refers to the possibility that a researcher’s expectations might skew the results of the study. Remember, conducting an experiment requires a lot of planning, and the people involved in the research project have a vested interest in supporting their hypotheses. If the observers knew which...
10.6K
Obedience01:08

Obedience

32.9K
According to obedience research, we may harm others under the forceful pressures of an authority figure (Milgram, 1974). How about if the inappropriate orders were delivered with less force? The increasing interdependence between nurses and physicians compelled Hofling and his colleagues to explore nurses’ reactions to a potentially harmful medical request made by the perceived authority figure, the doctor (Hofling, Brotzman, Dalrymple, Graves, & Pierce, 1966). In this situation,...
32.9K
Ethics in Research01:56

Ethics in Research

23.0K
Today, scientists agree that good research is ethical in nature and is guided by a basic respect for human dignity and safety. However, this has not always been the case. Modern researchers must demonstrate that the research they perform is ethically sound.
23.0K
Torts I01:14

Torts I

1.2K
Torts in nursing are wrongful acts that can harm patients and potentially lead to civil liability for the involved nurse. These wrongful acts range from unintentional errors to deliberate actions. Depending on the nature and severity of the tort, a nurse found liable may face financial penalties or disciplinary actions. Understanding the distinctions between intentional, quasi-intentional, and unintentional torts is crucial for nurses to mitigate risks and provide safe patient care.
Intentional...
1.2K

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

AI-assisted rational decision-making.

Synthese·2026
Same author

The Challenge of Ignorance Under Scrutiny: Response to Open Peer Commentaries on "Informed Consent Under Ignorance".

The American journal of bioethics : AJOB·2025
Same author

Breaking Up Rationally.

The journal of ethics·2025
Same author

Personal psychedelic experience of psychedelic therapists during training: should it be required, optional, or prohibited?

International review of psychiatry (Abingdon, England)·2025
Same author

Same Same but Different: On Psychedelic Exceptionalism.

The American journal of bioethics : AJOB·2025
Same author

How to Make Psychedelic-Assisted Therapy Safer.

Cambridge quarterly of healthcare ethics : CQ : the international journal of healthcare ethics committees·2024
Same journal

Defending the Ethical Permissibility of Laryngeal Transplantation.

The American journal of bioethics : AJOB·2026
Same journal

A Framework of Institutional Obligations for Pragmatic Clinical Trials.

The American journal of bioethics : AJOB·2026
Same journal

Should Adherence to Medical Recommendations Be a Requirement for Kidney Transplant Candidacy?

The American journal of bioethics : AJOB·2026
Same journal

How "America First" Abandoned Global Health: The Case for an African Model.

The American journal of bioethics : AJOB·2026
Same journal

Carrots and Sticks: Incentives in Shaping Digital Health Products.

The American journal of bioethics : AJOB·2026
Same journal

From Empowerment to Offloading: Task Shifting and the Redistribution of Responsibility in Digital Health.

The American journal of bioethics : AJOB·2026
See all related articles

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jul 6, 2025

A Familiarization Protocol Facilitates the Participation of Children with ASD in Electrophysiological Research
08:42

A Familiarization Protocol Facilitates the Participation of Children with ASD in Electrophysiological Research

Published on: July 31, 2017

8.2K

Informed Consent Under Ignorance.

Daniel Villiger1

  • 1University of Zurich.

The American Journal of Bioethics : AJOB
|January 5, 2024
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Informed consent remains possible despite irreducible ignorance in medical treatments. Open discussion of ignorance during the informed consent process is crucial for ethical medical practice.

Keywords:
Ignoranceinformed consentmedical ethicstransformative experienceunderstanding

More Related Videos

An Experimental Analysis of Children's Ability to Provide a False Report about a Crime
07:36

An Experimental Analysis of Children's Ability to Provide a False Report about a Crime

Published on: May 3, 2016

8.5K
Neuroimaging Field Methods Using Functional Near Infrared Spectroscopy NIRS Neuroimaging to Study Global Child Development: Rural Sub-Saharan Africa
08:10

Neuroimaging Field Methods Using Functional Near Infrared Spectroscopy NIRS Neuroimaging to Study Global Child Development: Rural Sub-Saharan Africa

Published on: February 2, 2018

14.9K

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Jul 6, 2025

A Familiarization Protocol Facilitates the Participation of Children with ASD in Electrophysiological Research
08:42

A Familiarization Protocol Facilitates the Participation of Children with ASD in Electrophysiological Research

Published on: July 31, 2017

8.2K
An Experimental Analysis of Children's Ability to Provide a False Report about a Crime
07:36

An Experimental Analysis of Children's Ability to Provide a False Report about a Crime

Published on: May 3, 2016

8.5K
Neuroimaging Field Methods Using Functional Near Infrared Spectroscopy NIRS Neuroimaging to Study Global Child Development: Rural Sub-Saharan Africa
08:10

Neuroimaging Field Methods Using Functional Near Infrared Spectroscopy NIRS Neuroimaging to Study Global Child Development: Rural Sub-Saharan Africa

Published on: February 2, 2018

14.9K

Area of Science:

  • Bioethics
  • Medical Law
  • Philosophy of Medicine

Background:

  • The concept of informed consent is fundamental to patient autonomy and ethical medical practice.
  • A resurgence of the "challenge of ignorance" questions the feasibility of informed consent in certain medical contexts.
  • Authors argue that irreducible ignorance in specific treatments may render informed consent impossible.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To examine how ignorance is perceived to impede informed consent.
  • To identify specific medical treatments affected by irreducible ignorance.
  • To evaluate the validity of the claim that ignorance fundamentally prevents informed consent.

Main Methods:

  • Philosophical analysis of the concept of ignorance in relation to informed consent.
  • Review of existing literature and arguments concerning ignorance and medical treatments.
  • Empirical and theoretical evaluation of the impact of ignorance on informed consent.

Main Results:

  • The study identifies specific ways in which ignorance is argued to undermine informed consent.
  • It acknowledges that if the challenge of ignorance were valid, it would pose a significant obstacle to informed consent.
  • However, the paper finds the argument that ignorance prevents informed consent unconvincing from both empirical and theoretical standpoints.

Conclusions:

  • Irreducible ignorance does not necessarily prevent informed consent.
  • The ethical challenges posed by ignorance in informed consent require open discussion.
  • Transparency about the limits of knowledge is essential for maintaining trust in the informed consent process.