Diving into Research Ethics

As I begin to consider the idea of formulating a research question and trying to situate it within a culture of inquiry, I am starting to also think about the underlying foundations (or building blocks) of conducting the actual research itself. What skills am I going to need to develp? What tools do I need to learn to use? What are the legal and ethical guidelines that I need to take into consideration?  These are all important questions that are part of the "doing" of research.

In my work at Algonquin, I teach a professionalism and ethics course to both business and outdoor adventure students. It is essentially the same course, just applied in different work environments. Despite many similarities, each environment brings its own unique concerns and constraints which are reflected in the social norms/codes of conduct of the workplace. Research is no different.

To help navigate common ethical issues that arise in conducting research, Debra Smith (2003) provides a useful guide with recommendations based on the APA's Science Directorate. She has broken them down into five basic principles:

1. Discuss intellectual property frankly;
2. Be conscious of multiple roles;
3. Follow informed-consent
4. Respect confidentiality and privacy; and
5. Tap into ethics resources (Smith, 2003).

Although based on psychology research, her five principles are generic enough to be applicable for a wider audience. Two points that really stood out for me while reading her recommendations were that (1) many ethical issues can be mitigated or avoided altogether by communicating expectations clearly and in a written form (such as a contract and/or an official agreement); and (2) the internet and use of technology raises new confidentiality/privacy issues that researchers need to be prepared to deal with.  In particular, the second point is concerned with the storage of sensitive research data  and the protection of  the data from hackers. Online research teams working together in online platforms need to be especially careful to ensure the confidentiality and privacy of their subjects.

References

Smith, D. (2003). Five principles for research ethics. Monitor On Psychology. 34(1). Retrieved from http://www.apa.org/monitor/jan03/principles.aspx