The ethical acceptability of animal research is typically evaluated on a case-by-case basis. Legislation such as Directive 2010/63/EU on the protection of animals used for scientific purposes provides guidance for ethical evaluation of animal use proposals but does not dictate the outcome, leaving this determination to the ethical review committees of individual institutions. The authors assess different ethics models and how these are reflected in the guidelines of Directive 2010/63/EU. They also describe a matrix for carrying out harm-benefit analyses of animal use proposals, which they identified by examining the practices of three ethical review committees in the Netherlands. Finally, they discuss how this matrix can be applied by ethical review committees at other institutions.

Standardised health-related quality of life questionnaires play an increasing role as measures of outcome in the evaluation of health care interventions. However, problems can arise when the selected functions or dimensions of such standardised measures are not in line with the intervention that is the focus of the research. Furthermore, the subjective element of quality of life makes standardised questionnaires vulnerable to the coping mechanism, thereby decreasing their sensitivity. The capability approach of the economist and philosopher Amartya Sen offers a descriptive concept that contributes to a better understanding of these problems. This article provides an introduction to the ideas of Sen for researchers who wish to go beyond the traditional framework of measuring health-related quality of life.

Aan het werk van ambtenaren worden nieuwe eisen gesteld. Ze krijgen steeds meer beslissingsruimte en daarmee professionaliseert hun beroep. ‘Ambtelijke loyaliteit’ als uitgangspunt voor de beoordeling van hun handelen komt daarmee onder druk te staan. En ook de invulling van integriteit met ‘onkreukbaarheid ’ is te beperkt. Het gaat er niet alleen om wat ontoelaatbaar is binnen een ambt, maar ook wat passend is. De klassieke waarborgen tegen ambtelijke willekeur behoeven daarmee ook herziening. Het laatste deel van het hoofdstuk verkent horizontale verantwoordingsmechanismen als aanvulling of alternatief voor de gebruikelijke verticale verantwoording .

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