ArticleScience and engineering ethics2016
What is Proof of Concept Research and how does it Generate Epistemic and Ethical Categories for Future Scientific Practice?
Article in Science and engineering ethics, 2016. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT04320355 (Exploring the Effects of Soft Tissue Manual Therapy on the Viscoelastic Properties, Pressure Sensitivity and Touch Sensitivity of the Caesarean Section Scar), which is not on this map. Cited by 21 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Exploring the Effects of Soft Tissue Manual Therapy on the Viscoelastic Properties, Pressure Sensitivity and Touch Sensitivity of the Caesarean Section Scar
Who cites it
21 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- A novel multistep approach to standardize the reported risk factors for in-hospital falls: a proof-of-concept study.Frontiers in public health · 2024Pooled it
- A general framework for selecting work participation outcomes in intervention studies among persons with health problems: a concept paper.BMC public health · 2022Pooled it
- Exploring the Effects of Standardized Soft Tissue Mobilization on the Viscoelastic Properties, Pressure Pain Thresholds, and Tactile Pressure Thresholds of the Cesarean Section Scar.Journal of integrative and complementary medicine · 2022Trial
- Electrophysiological Brain Changes Associated With Cognitive Improvement in a Pediatric Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder Digital Artificial Intelligence-Driven Intervention: Randomized Controlled Trial.Journal of medical Internet research · 2021Trial
- Improving late life depression and cognitive control through the use of therapeutic video game technology: A proof-of-concept randomized trial.Depression and anxiety · 2017Trial
- The ESG-FLW Index: A Multidimensional Composite Index for Comparing Food Loss and Waste Valorisation Pathways.Foods (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Addressing Which Pathogens Are More Suitable to Ensure Water Reuse Safety-A Proof-of-Concept.Microorganisms · 2026Article
- Proof of concept studies in mental health systems research: strategy and steps.International journal of mental health systems · 2025Review
- Genitofemoral Neuromodulation as a Novel Pain Management Solution for Patients with Chronic Testicular Pain: A Proof-of-Concept Study.Research and reports in urology · 2025Article
- Evaluating the feasibility of using the Multiphase Optimization Strategy framework to assess implementation strategies for digital mental health applications activations: a proof of concept study.Frontiers in digital health · 2025Article
- General population screening for type 1 diabetes using islet autoantibodies at the preschool vaccination visit: a proof-of-concept study (the T1Early study).Archives of disease in childhood · 2024Article
- Wearable biofeedback device to assess gait features and improve gait pattern in people with parkinson's disease: a case series.Journal of neuroengineering and rehabilitation · 2024Article
- Assessment of park paths and trails to promote physical accessibility among wheelchair users in Saudi Arabia.Hong Kong journal of occupational therapy : HKJOT · 2024Article
- Two variants of 'constrained participation' in the care of vulnerable adults: A proof-of-concept study.Nursing ethics · 2024Article
- Article
- Unveiling peripheral neuropathy and cognitive dysfunction in diabetes: an observational and proof-of-concept study with video games and sensor-equipped insoles.Frontiers in endocrinology · 2024Observational
- Time discrimination and change detection could share a common brain network: findings of a task-based fMRI study.Frontiers in psychology · 2023Article
- Innovation in Orthopaedics: Part 2-How to Translate Ideas and Research into Clinical Practice.Current reviews in musculoskeletal medicine · 2022Review
- Mobile Application for Promoting Gluten-Free Diet Self-Management in Adolescents with Celiac Disease: Proof-of-Concept Study.Nutrients · 2021Article
- Proof-of-Concept Testing of a Real-Time mHealth Measure to Estimate Postural Control During Walking: A Potential Application for Mild Traumatic Brain Injuries.Asian/Pacific Island nursing journal · 2018Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
1 author.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
"Proof of concept" is a phrase frequently used in descriptions of research sought in program announcements, in experimental studies, and in the marketing of new technologies. It is often coupled with either a short definition or none at all, its meaning assumed to be fully understood. This is problematic. As a phrase with potential implications for research and technology, its assumed meaning requires some analysis to avoid it becoming a descriptive category that refers to all things scientifically exciting. I provide a short analysis of proof of concept research and offer an example of it within synthetic biology. I suggest that not only are there activities that circumscribe new epistemological categories but there are also associated normative ethical categories or principles linked to the research. I examine these and provide an outline for an alternative ethical account to describe these activities that I refer to as "extended agency ethics". This view is used to explain how the type of research described as proof of concept also provides an attendant proof of principle that is the result of decision-making that extends across practitioners, their tools, techniques, and the problem solving activities of other research groups.
Indexed as
Identifiers
26009258What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.