Ethics in Research

Many social scientists struggle with the question of ethics in their research.

Pharmaceutical companies get away with ethical issues in their research and development of drugs because they have a powerful lobby in Washington. Here is an informative article on some ethical violations: http://www.drugwatch.com/2013/10/08/clinical-trials-transparency-tuskegee-study/

OR:

Pharmaceutical companies are interested in profits and might not develop the right medications. The author in this article states "lithium hasn't been extensively tested as a treatment for other conditions in part because it's a natural substance: Elements on the periodic table can't be patented. Pharmaceutical companies therefore have little incentive to promote lithium or develop other uses for it, despite its potential." Could this constitute a violation of ethics?

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/06/28/magazine/i-dont-believe-in-god-but-i-believe-in-lithium.html?_r=1

What are your thoughts on any one of the articles above?

What do you think a responsible social scientist should do in order to ensure s/he has not crossed any ethical lines? Please use one case study of ethical violation either in your textbook or in the article above and explain how and why researchers violated ethical laws.