Meaningful consent to participate in social research on the part of people under the age of eighteen

Introduction Increasingly, university ethics committees are being asked to consider social science research proposals that involve research encounters with young people without formal parental consent. In most cases, these are carefully argued, well thought-out proposals: the research involves contact with young people in circumstances where parental consent is regarded as inadvisable or unnecessary. Professional opinion about parental consent issues in social work, youth justice and youth work agencies has been changing, and the law has also changed. In this fluid situation, the task of research ethics committees is complex. This article considers the principles involved and illustrates some ways in which they can be implemented, using case examples.