Ethical and Regulatory Issues with Conducting Sexuality Research with LGBT Adolescents: A Call to Action for a Scientifically Informed Approach

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) adolescents experience disparities in mental and sexual health. There is also
a lack of research on this population relative to other adolescents, which limits our ability to effectively address these
health disparities. Researchers may unfortunately avoid conducting research with this population because of anticipated or
actual experiences with difficulties in obtaining IRB approval. A case example is provided to illustrate the ethical and regulatory
issues related to research with LGBT adolescents. Relevant U.S. federal and local regulations related to research on sexual
and mental health with adolescents is then reviewed. Data are presented demonstrating that requiring parental consent for
LGBT youth under age 18 would likely alter study result. Data are also presented on participants’ appraisals of the risks
and discomforts associated with research participation. The provision of such empirical data on the risks of research participation
is consistent with the goal of moving the IRB process of risk/benefit assessment from being entirely subjective to being evidence-based.
Finally, recommendations are provided on how to approach these issues in IRB applications and investigators are called to
help to build a corpus of scholarship that can advance empirical knowledge in this area.