This ethics companion for criminology and criminal justice is intended to:

1.Strengthen the role of criminology and criminal justice in promoting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people’s rights by supporting research about matters such as self-determination, cultural knowledges and protocols and achieving equity

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2.Reduce stereotyping, discrimination and all forms of racialised harm in and arising from research and evaluation

 

3.Promote ethical research on improving outcomes for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in contact with the criminal justice system, as well workforce development and system reform.

 

This ethics companion uses the four principles of the AIATSIS Code. The AIATSIS Code is generally used in the humanities and social sciences disciplines to inform the approach and methodology of a research project, whereas the NHMRC guidelines, whilst being broad enough to include social determinants, are more health and medicine focused.  The AIATSIS Code principles are explained on their own page, describing relevance to criminology and criminal justice research and evaluations. 

 

The NHMRC’s Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander guidelines are not specifically named, though they were drawn on to develop content. While mandatory for research on the health and wellbeing of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in the criminal justice system, much research criminology and criminal justice research is broader, and the AIATSIS Code applies to all research.