Department of Psychiatry, School of Medicine, Kyung Hee University, Seoul, Korea
Although disaster research participants are in a more vulnerable state than general research participants, various ethical issues to be considered in the study may be overlooked due to the special situation of disaster. Therefore, research ethics should be considered to reduce damage to study participants and maximize benefits. In addition, from the perspective of researchers, ethical
considerations should be applied in the disaster research process, so research ethics awareness should be established. In addition,
at the health care institution and national level, it is necessary to prepare research ethics that reflect the Korean situation while meeting international standards in consideration of the characteristics of local communities. In Korea, after the Ferry Sewol accident in 2014, social interest in disaster mental health increased and the National Trauma Center was established in 2018, raising the need for disaster mental health ethics guidelines. Therefore, this review aims to discuss the significance of six items: specificity of
the study, prior consent and autonomy, community participation, confidentiality and feedback provision, risk minimization, and
research support. So far, the experience of disaster mental health research is not sufficient in South Korea. Therefore, the current guidelines are required to be continuously revised through practical experience in the future.