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Undertaking scientific research is imperative if countries
want to progress and compete in a globalized world. However, the funding and
controlling of this research remains a contentious issue. In my opinion, the
government should have the predominant responsibility for this.
One of the first issues is the knowledge
that we gain from research. If governments are responsible then they are driven
by the need to make advances in knowledge in order to improve people’s lives.
This is because they are accountable to the public and the research is paid for
by taxes. On the other hand, private organizations are driven by profit. This
may mean that some research that could be valuable to society may not begin
because there is no monetary gain.
Another disadvantage related to this is
the research process. When the funding for research comes from the same
organization that can be expected to gain from a favorable outcome, there is a
strong potential for biased results. Taking drugs companies as an example,
governments usually require rigorous trials for new drugs that can take many
years. The companies have large amounts of money invested in such research and
the need for positive results is paramount. It is difficult for a scientist to
remain impartial in these circumstances. However, if this is controlled and
funded by governments, their accountability means that such conflicts of
interest are less likely to occur.
On balance, I would argue that although it
is not realistic to remove all opportunities for privately funded research,
governments should have the main responsibility for the monitoring and
controlling of this. Strong checks and balances need to be in place to ensure
future research is ethical and productive.
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