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I won't say "never", since some research might directly benefit prisoners; new methods of drug rehabilitation, prevention of STDs, psychological experiments to reduce rates of recidivism(sp?) and improve rehabilitation into society. Also, many experiments are little more than an inconvenience, rather than a serious risk to individuals. However, this is something that should only be done with the strictest of controls.

Any program with prisoners has to have the same ethical controls as on any other human experimental participants. Volunteer only with full knowledge of the experiment and the risks associated, and levels of compensation equal to anyone on the outside participating in similar experiments. Prisons should be places of rehabilitation first and foremost; treating them as a resevoir of expendable humanity is toxic to the principals of a free and equal society.

Posted by: Left_Wing_Fox | August 14, 2006 5:05 AM

The fundamental question becomes to what degree you at all can be an informed, willing participant when your entire existence is one of duress. Even a completely false suspicion that their treatment by people in authority will change for the worse may well be enough to push someone to participate in something they don't really want to.

A second question is of course how good a prison population is for most research. They're pretty far from any population mean in many respects.

Posted by: Janne | August 14, 2006 7:08 AM

Yup, it is a conspiracy theory.

Posted by: coturnix | August 14, 2006 12:32 PM

Prisoners do retain some rights. I think that should include the right to volunteer as research subjects. It's the responsibility of society to do whatever is necessary to ensure that the (remaining) rights of prisoners are respected.

Posted by: bob koepp | August 14, 2006 2:19 PM

the problem is the whole penal and adversarial system itself. add to that a prisoner's desire to 'get away from the doldrum' by volunteering for research and you could throw just about anything their way and it would be a big 'yes'. i'm not saying criminals should be pampered or have rights above victims (which has happened here on the west coast of canada), but if you're in for life or 5, 10, 15 years, research is going to look a lot more attractive then cleanup, workout, tv, blah blah blah. hence the problem with how far the research could go....and how do you regulate that? how is it regulated now?

and exactly what kind of experiments are we talking about and for what purpose? the variables are wide.....and that's why i brought up eugenics.

Posted by: scout | August 16, 2006 1:52 AM