What is the difference between privacy and confidentiality in research?

What will be an ideal response?

Ans: Privacy means the “control over the extent, timing, and circumstances of sharing oneself (physically, behaviorally, or intellectually) with others” (DHHS, 1993). Confidentiality means “the treatment of information that an individual has disclosed in a relationship of trust and with the expectation that it will not be divulged to others without permission in ways that are inconsistent with the understanding of the original disclosure” (DHHS, 1993). Privacy most often comes into play during the recruitment and data collection phases of research; it is incumbent upon the researcher to ensure that participants are selected for and approached about research discreetly, and that participants have a safe and respectful place to share their study data (whether an interview or a blood sample). Confidentiality more often relates to the data management side of things, from the time the data are collected to final analysis and reporting, making sure that the participant’s identity and information are kept within the research team, as specified in the protocol and agreed upon during informed consent. Both concepts are related to the ethical principles of Respect for Persons and of Beneficence, and are of particular importance in research where the primary risks to participants are a breach of confidentiality or lack of privacy.