Which of the following is true about conflicts of interest?

Which of the following is true about conflicts of interest?

A. A project must be funded by an external source in order for any confl interest to be present.

B. A financial dimension must be present in order for it to be a conflict of interest.

C. Researchers are not permitted to have any conflicts of interest.

D. Conflicts of interest increase the likelihood of bias.

Answer: D. Conflicts of interest increase the likelihood of bias.

Research compromised is the ability of conflicts of interest to compromise or bias the researcher’s professional judgement or actions for personal, professional or financial advantage. Having a conflict of interest does not automatically imply that bias will occur but it greatly contributes to it, hence the correctness of option D.

For instance, imagine a medical researcher who has shares in a certain pharmaceutical firm researching a new drug produced by the firm in question. This financial interest can dictate some sort of bias in the researcher’s presentation of data or results through data interpretation, despite the bias being unintentional. The researcher might be more inclined to report positive outcomes or minimize adverse side effects of an intervention, Thus, coming up with bias in the study.

An example might be a nutritionist who is paid for by a food manufacturer’s association to investigate the impact of a specific food item. While the researcher is obligated not to let bias affect their work for the funding, there are chances that the study design, data analysis or conclusions taken could be coloured by the desire to produce outcomes that will be pleasing to the funding party.

One should also indicate that conflicts of interest are not necessarily unethical and they are not always hallmarked by bias. However, such risks are not completely eradicated and are present in the mini-case, although not in a very significant manner. This is why many institutions and journals require researchers to declare or state their interest, in a way that can help to make the readers understand if the writer may benefit from a particular outcome of the research. Transparency enables other people to see when deciding on these conflicts’ results, they will be considered.

Conflicts of interest, when dealt with improperly, can easily bias research and thus, the public interest that the findings represent and embody should not be taken lightly.