Research: pertinent thoughts

Photo: Munem Wasif / DRIKNEWS

Bangladesh has surged into the era of research. Research has been going on in various NGOs which are doing research on a regular basis as part of their projects. Another group of researchers comprises students engaged in research needed for their thesis for various academic programmes. The question is: Who regulates all this research which is going on haphazardly, the majority of which involves human subjects. After completion of this research some of the findings are not even disseminated for the benefit of the masses. Many organisations prefer to publish the research findings selectively so as to maintain a politically correct image. The question is: is this ethically correct?
Huge funding is pouring in from different agencies. But there is no regulatory body to monitor these expenses. Sometimes there is an overflow of these funds, yet it fails to reach the ones in need i.e. the target population. Many NGOs misappropriate the funds and fabricate statements to convince the audit team. Is this not a waste of money?
Academicians and some researchers conduct research for their own academic advancements. 'Publish or Perish' is the slogan of the day. Is research being done simply for the sake of research? Are we doing it for our personal interest? Are we being sincere with our objectives? How many of these findings actually reach the policy makers?
Examining the other side of the coin, we find that the developing world is merely subjected to research and the individuals residing in the developing countries are being utilized as 'guinea pigs'. This is exploitation of individuals at large.
It's high time for the researchers to take a pause, to reflect back and ponder about what they are doing. It's time to be fair to the research subjects so that the principles of ethics are maintained. Let's not merely do research for the sake of research!