The use of control group in research design: the ethical challenge in the population with intellectual and developmental disabilities

Abstract

Ethics studies moral values and defines good and bad conduct in research and researchers. In the area of research with human beings, it plays a crucial role in imposing limits, reducing abuses, and providing fair lines of research. The use of control groups in this type of research has been addressed and seems to be an effective method to assess the effects of an intervention, but it has raised doubts about the ethical challenges it involves. Therefore, this narrative review aims to address the ethical challenges in the use of control groups in research projects. In the analysed studies on populations with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD), it was found that most researchers favoured the use of control groups which, during the research period, did not engage in any activity other than the usual activities in their daily lives. However, they should ensure that the control group has the opportunity to perform an intervention equal to the one performed by the experimental group, after the end of the research. In addition, it was possible to verify that, for the most part, the authors ensure the follow-up of ethical standards in studies with human subjects.