Chapter 3

UNDERSTANDING RESEARCH ETHICS

Learning Objectives

At the end of this module, the researcher should be able to:

1. Understand the value of ethics in research

2. Critique another’s research with an ethical viewpoint
3. Engage in ethical reflection with his research participants
4. Identify and mitigate in his research all issues in ethics
5. Determine the use of principle ethics before, during and completion of the research
process
Overview

1. Introduction
2. The Origin of Ethics in Research
3. History of Research without Ethics
4. The Importance of Ethics in Research
5. The Ethical Practitioner of Research
6. The Ethically Reflective Practitioner
7. Anonymity and Confidentiality
8. Engaging in Ethical Reflection
9. Ethical Guidelines into Research Project
10. Conclusion

1. Introduction

“I’m a good person. Why do I need to worry about research ethics?”

The World Health Organization (WHO) Manual (Section XV.2) describes research with
human participants as any activity that involves the systematic gathering and investigation of
information with the objective to create knowledge or contribute to an existing knowledge base
in social science, medicine, behavior and so forth. In research, participants are subjected to
observation, interrogation and other methods including even manipulation to reach the objective
of the research. It is of vital importance that ethical values govern the methods that researches

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use on their participants. It is imperative to abide by these principles to safeguard the rights,
dignity and well-being of the participants of the research (WHO, 2011).

2. The Origin of Ethics in Research

The roots of ethical standards that researchers apply today were conceived in the
Nuremberg Code. In World War II, the Nazis abused millions of Jews, many of whom perished,
for the purpose of “research.” The researches performed by Nazi doctors were inhumane studies
in determining the results of poisons and viruses to the human population. The discovery of these
experimentations and the subsequent criminal trials of the perpetrators led to the creation of the
Nuremberg Code. The Nuremberg Code, which was created in 1948, is a set of principles in
ensuring that research ethics are to be observed during the conduct of study on human
participants.

The Nazis were not the only inhumane researchers during their time. The Tuskegee
syphilis study, which occurred from 1932 to 1972, analyzed the course of syphilis on roughly
400 black men in Tuskegee, Alabama who were poor and uneducated. The unknowing
participants were offered free food and payment for their ensuing burial for joining the research.
These men were never actually informed of the real objective of the study. Treatment was not
provided so the researchers can monitor the advancement of the disease in a population with no
treatment. The research continued even after the establishment of the Nuremberg Code and the
subsequent creation of the ethical guidelines on research by the American Psychological
Association (APA) in 1953 (Jackson, 2009).

3. History of Research without Ethics

Figure 3.1: Nazi Experiments during World War II

(Source: Medical Review Auschwitz, 1973)

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Guidelines were created for the following objectives:

1. Gaps in research are to be filled in.

2. Answers to new problems regarding ethics and research are to be resolved appropriately.

Tragic stories in research:

– Experiments on Nazi during World War 2

– Tuskegee Syphilis Study

Results

1. “Nuremberg Code, Declaration of Helsinki, Belmont Report “

During these events, establishment of ethical principles helps also to improve the
following: 1. Person care, 2. Benefits allocation, and 3. Fairness to everyone

4. The Importance of Ethics in Research

Throughout the conduct of the research, the researcher needs to contemplate on each of
the individual phases of his study. He lists each of the ethical issues he identifies in the study and
the means with which he has mitigated them. The methodological framework of the research will
contain the ethical reflection of the researcher.

Figure 4.1: The Relationship between Morals, Ethics and Values

(Source: American Journal of Community Psychology, 2016)

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 The Code of Ethics is vital in research. There are various reasons why it is imperative to
follow the ethical principles in research. First, the ethical principles promote the goals of the
study some of which are contributing to a knowledge base and avoiding mistakes. One example
is forbidding fabricating data which in turn contributes to limiting errors and promoting truth in
the study.

Second, ethical principles advocate the values that are important in work where
collaborations are required. Ethical values promote trust, responsibility, respect and being fair.
Ethical principles which protect intellectual property interests such as standards for authorship,
copyright and policies on sharing information will inspire more coordination between
researchers and academics.

Third, ethical values hold researchers accountable to the community. There are policies
on misconduct on research, protection of research participants, conflicts of interest and so on
where researches with funding from the government can be held liable for their studies.

Fourth, ethical values help facilitate research with support from the public. Funding and
assistance will more likely be offered if the community can trust the integrity and quality of the
study.

Lastly, ethical standards promote various other moral and social values. Among them are
human rights, compliance with the law, and public health and safety among others (Resnik,
2015).

A researcher must hold himself to the highest ethical standards as he represents not just
himself but the professional institution or organization that provides him the avenue to conduct
his research.

Figure 4.2: Ethical Review Application Processes and Procedures (Source: EdUHK, 2019)

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 If the objective of research is to discover new information or expand and verify existing
knowledge it is important when conducting research involving people that this knowledge does
not come at the expense of their welfare or rights. Research ethics provide a guideline or set of
principles that support researchers in conducting research so that it is done justly and without
harming anyone in the process. It is the duty of the researcher to ensure they are carrying out
their research project in line with established ethical standards. Every step of the research
project, from formulating your research question to publication, needs to be informed by ethics
to ensure integrity of the project.

Therefore, balance between protection of subject and advancement of knowledge must be

maintained.

Figure 4.3: Presentation of Choosing Right or Wrong for a Researcher

(Source: Teacher Council, 2019)

5. The Ethical Practitioner of Research

The researcher must critically engage with the ethical norms and conduct to be an ethical
practitioner in research. This is validated through the ethical reflection that a researcher does as
he executes his study. The researcher provides a written account of his ethical reflection in the
third chapter of his research which is the methodology chapter. While there is a written account
of the ethical reflection in the research, the ethical standards of the researcher are displayed to
readers and examiners throughout all parts of the study.

The level of technical expertise that the researcher has gained during the course of his
research is also written in the study. This reinforces the ethical values of the researcher in the
study.

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5.1 Do No Harm.

A researcher must do no harm during the conduct of his research. The researcher should
deeply contemplate on all the potential harm that can arise from his study. He must consider the
knowledge area that he is researching and ensure that no harm will be inflicted to the
organizations and individuals that have agreed to participate in his research project. Once he has
identified these potential harm, he must formulate mitigations on how to avoid them in his study
(APA, 2010).

5.2 Integrity

The second principle in ethical research is integrity. The foundation of a research project
is the integrity of the researcher. It is displayed in every section of his study. Integrity comes
from the level of expertise that the researcher has shown during the course of his project. The
readers and examiners must be convinced at the end of the study that the objective of the
research was achieved and what the research intends to measure was effectively measured.

5.3 Plagiarism

Plagiarism is a very severe offence in research. In plagiarism, the researcher takes credit
for the work of another researcher. Even a hint of suspicion of plagiarism can seriously diminish
the integrity of the researcher. Referencing is a very important skill in research. The researcher is
recommended to seek professional supervision to steer clear of any possible trace of plagiarism.
Plagiarism is the worst possible offence against the issue of honesty in research (Walliman,
2011).

5.4 Validity

The validity of the research project is the most basic critique directed to the study. For a
research to be valid, it must be rational, comprehensive, honest, profound and beneficial to the
area of knowledge within which the study was conducted. The measure of validity of a study is
the related to the significance of its contribution to knowledge.

5.5 Power

Another ethical issue is the degree of power bestowed to the researcher because from it is
the implication of the researcher’s expertise and knowledge. The researcher must value this
power during his study. The title “researcher” and the institution or organizations that provide
sponsorship to the study of the researcher assign a degree of power to the researcher and this can
be very beneficial to the study in dealing with gatekeepers and potential participants.
Gatekeepers are entities that allow access to a site where the researcher can conduct his study.
The researcher must be very mindful of how he utilizes this power in his study because
significant ethical concerns may arise from this.

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5.6 Transparency

Transparency of a research project prevents potential harm that may be caused by the
study. It is imperative that the researcher needs to be open, honest and clear to convey his study
to all the parties involved. These will be the participants of the research, the gatekeepers and the
researcher’s adviser. By doing so, it is highly likely that all potential harms will be unveiled and,
therefore, can be properly addressed by the researcher.

Open discussions are very essential. The participants should be provided with an
opportunity to voice out their uncertainties in the study. So that they can be addressed before this
issues become elevated to present potential harm.

Figure 5.1: Components of an Ethical Framework

(Source: American Journal of Community Psychology, 2016)

6. The Ethically Reflective Practitioner

The researcher must then be an ethically reflective practitioner. This means that he takes
time to contemplate on the standard of his study, his behavior during the conduct of the research
and on how he engaged the participants of his research throughout the study.

The researcher must deeply ponder on the method in which he collected, managed,
examined and kept his information on the research. This is because research ethics needs to be
involved in every section of the study (Research Committee, 2018).

Research experts encourage researchers to profoundly engage all parts of their studies.
All potential ethical issues need to be resolved. These issues may arise from the population of the
research, from its samples, the research methodologies used, the evaluation of data or the

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conclusions crafted from the whole study. Researchers are also encouraged to engage other
studies especially if they will impact your own research.

7. Anonymity and Confidentiality

Anonymity

A research participant who wishes not be identified in the study must be assured
anonymity by the researcher. Anonymity is a foundation of research ethics. It means the
researcher does not collect personal information from the participant such as the name, address,
and email address among others. The researcher must also not allow the responses to be linked to
the individual identities (Oliver, 2003).

Confidentiality

Confidentiality in research means that only the researcher will be able to link a research
participant to his responses that were collected for the study. It is the obligation of the researcher
to ensure that anyone outside of the research will be able to connect the participant’s response to
his identity. The researcher must not only have a promise of confidentiality to his research
participants. He must have a plan for confidentiality that is made clear to possible respondents to
his study (Oliver, 2003).

Informed Consent

Another concern on the ethical principles of research is the issue of informed consent.
When the researcher requests an individual to participate in his research, the potential participant
must be informed of the nature of the study, including their required level of participation in the
study. The potential participant will also be informed of potential consequences of the study. The
potential participant will then give his consent to participate or not in the research. The
researcher will provide the potential participant with an informed consent form which will be
signed by the participant as an indication that he has been made aware of the details of the
research and what is expected from him for the study (WHO, 2011).

8. Engaging in Ethical Reflection

The researcher needs to critically think during the planning stage of his study about the
positive impact of his study. The contribution of his study should be significant. In order to
achieve this, the researcher should develop a high level of expertise on the field of the study. He
must be well-versed in the different research methodologies available in order to choose the most
efficient means to execute his research.

During the literature review, the researcher should critically think on how comprehensive
his review was done for his chosen research field. He should be able to avoid delivering a
distorted viewpoint of the literature that he has reviewed.

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 He must also contemplate on his selection of the population for his study. The selected
population must be the right fit for his research. He must be convinced that the population he has
chosen will enable him to achieve the full objective of his research. He must also apply the same
critical thinking on how he will extract his sample from the population. The sampling method
must also be the appropriate method for the study.

He must also think of the research methodologies that he is going to use for the study. It
must be the suitable method to measure what he intends to measure in his study. Through these
methodologies, he must be able to establish the integrity and validity of his study.

For his data gathering, the researcher must reflect on the suitability of the methods he will
select. His techniques for collecting information must result to the data that is essential for the
research. The techniques must be effective without being overly intrusive.

The researcher must also deeply contemplate on how he will access the site of his
research and how he is going to develop a satisfactory relationship with all participants and
gatekeepers of the study. He must remember that transparency is the key to accomplishing this.
He should be open, honest and clear to all stakeholders in the research and hence, avoid any
ethical concerns with them (Research Committee, 2018) .

The researcher must ensure that no potential harm of any kind will be inflicted to
participants of his research. He must, at first, have a crystal clear comprehension of all potential
risks that the participants might face in the course of the study. After identifying these potential
risks, he must convey them clearly to the participants. He should have prepared a clear informed
consent form that he will distribute to the participants to get their permission to be involved in
the study. Next, the researcher must be able to ensure confidentiality and anonymity of all
participants. The participants must be able to contact him at any time throughout the study to
address any concern they may have on the research. Each participant must be made aware that
they can pull out of the study at any time without any repercussions to them.

The researcher must formulate an effective plan for the management of data. He must
come up with a secure location to store all his research information. He must be able to discern if
there will be other parties who can access this location. He must also devise a way to code the
data for anonymity and confidentiality. And after the research, he must devise a way to properly
dispose of all information collected for the study.

The researcher must ensure that he has the skills to effectively analyze data he has
collected for the research. He must have ample time to collect and evaluate the needed
information. His conclusions must be direct derivations from his data.

When finalizing the study, the researcher must think of how his conclusions can be
profound and useful. His conclusions must contribute to his field significantly. The
recommendations he presented should be within reason and attainable. He also must know that

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his referencing is complete. The researcher must avoid any suspicion of plagiarism by proper
referencing. He must be able to say in the end that his study was done with a high level of
expertise. And lastly, his research must be free from any ethical issues.

In completing his study, the researcher must know how to publish his research. He must
also think of how to provide responses to the findings of his study if needed to individual readers
or to organizations. The researcher must remember that the next line of researches will want to
critique his work just as he has done to other studies to move forward with his research.

9. Ethical Guidelines into Research Project

Before the Research Process: Research Methods and Ethics

What are the ethical strengths and limits of the methods? Have they been used ethically
in a similar context before? Are they respectful of your respondents’ capacity and willingness to
participate? Some methods will work better with some groups than with others.

Are there any potential unintended consequences of your research, e.g. disclosures of
sensitive information that may arise through those methods, potentially causing stress or
embarrassment? Do the methods proposed fit with the ethics principles mentioned earlier in the
webinar? If not, can the exception be justified? Is what you are proposing to do justifiable in
terms of the benefits, risks and harms of your research?

Sampling

Selecting samples or groups of people to study is one of the first tasks in designing your
study, and the first ethics question you face in sampling is who you include, or exclude. You
should be clear about why the people you want to study need to be involved. You should also
reflect on who is left out of your study, and why?

Your sample will often determine which ethics committee you need to go to, and who
you need to seek permission from, so it is critically important to think through the ethical
implications of the sampling strategy you develop. If your sample includes particular groups in
the population, such as children and young people, or vulnerable adults (a person aged 18 years
or over who may require assistance to care for themselves, or protect themselves from harm or
from being exploited) you will have additional requirements and considerations to address; for
example getting consent from guardians, as well as the participants.

Information & Consent

To recruit potential participants, you need to provide them with information about your
project, in order for them to be able to give you their fully informed consent. Informed consent
comprises three major elements; 1) Information, 2) Voluntariness3) Comprehension

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 Information-When providing information researchers must ensure that participants are
given sufficient detail about the nature of the research and the procedures involved; the
information should highlight the objectives of the study, and any potential risks and benefits.

Voluntariness- Consent must be freely given and may be withdrawn at any time. Undue
influence may take the form of inducement or authority over prospective participants.

Comprehension -Voluntary participation implies that participants make an informed

choice while informed consent assumes that the information given is accurate. Both principles
are underpinned by the principle that participant understands what it is they are being asked to
participate in.

The way in which you provide information depends on who will take part in your
research. You can provide information about your research in a number of ways such as with a
DVD or in writing (whether on paper or in a webpage)

Recruitment of Research Participants

The usual approach is to provide an information leaflet, and ethics committees will often
expect you to do this (and want to know why you are not, if you don’t). Ethics committees
sometimes prefer information leaflets (or require them) because they can check that a leaflet
includes all the information that a potential participant might need to ensure valid. As part of the
ethical guidelines; confidentiality of information supplied by research participants and the
anonymity of respondents must be respected.

Confidentiality

In practice, this means that you must inform potential participants what is going to
happen to the data they provide so they can make an informed decision about whether they want
to participate in the study or not; and then follow through on whatever assurances you have given
them both during and after your project.

Limitations of Confidentiality

While it is important that you both assure participants that their data will be kept
confidential and ensure that it is, there are limits to this confidentiality: One reason for breaching
confidentiality relates to a duty of care if you are concerned that someone could be at risk of
harm. That could arise because a participant tells the researcher something that causes significant
concern, or it could be something that is observed during fieldwork, such as an illegal activity.

Alternatively, confidentiality may be limited because the nature of the research means
that interviewees are potentially identifiable: 1. you are doing small a number of interviews 2.
you have a public interest duty because of something that a participant reveal. You should make

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sure that participants are clear of the limits of confidentiality in your project, and plan for the
unexpected, in as much as you can.ms of the benefits, risks and harms of your research?

During The Research Process

As mentioned earlier participants should be recruited ethically by providing them with

the appropriate information about your research so that they can make an informed decision.
Extra time should be taken when recruiting participants so that they have a chance to voice any
questions or concerns about your study. This is not only vital to the informed consent process but
is also valuable for the researcher as it ensures participants fully understand the research, builds
trust and can help to maintain participation in the study.

When conducting your research, participants should be reminded that they: Do not have
to do or answer anything they do not feel comfortable with. That they can leave at any time
without penalty or loss. That they can take breaks whenever they wish

Debriefing Your Participants

What is debriefing and why should you do it? The purpose of debriefing is to remove
any misconceptions and anxieties that the participants have about the research and to leave them
with a sense of dignity, knowledge, and a perception of time not wasted

The aim of the debriefing is not just to provide information, but to help the participant
leave their engagement in the research process in a similar frame of mind as when he/she entered
it (Aronson, 1988).

Once a participant has completed their participation in your study, you should:

Thank them for agreeing to take part.

If relevant, remind them if they will be given an opportunity to review their transcript.

Explain the purpose of the study again, the logic of it, what you predict and possible
applications of this work, if relevant.

If the study involves any kind of possible stress, however mild it might seem, e.g. in
answering a depression or anxiety questionnaire, the participant must be told to whom and where
they can access support after their participation

Managing Your Data

Dealing with data is a key element of research ethics, regardless of whether you are
collecting new data, or if you are using existing data for secondary analysis or review. Data

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management is also increasingly highlighted by funders and research ethics committees as an
explicit priority for researchers.

Anonymizing Your Data

Quantitative data

Remove direct identifiers, e.g. personal information such as names and addresses.
Aggregate or reduce the precision of variables that might be identifiable. Generalize text
variables to reduce identifiability. Restrict continuous variables to reduce outliers. Pay particular
attention to anonymizing relational data, for example, some anonymized variables may be come
identifiable when considered in combination, combining location with special educational needs.

Qualitative data

Anonymization of qualitative data can be particularly complex, and is not simply a

matter of removing personal information such as names or addresses, or o fusing pseudonyms.
You do not need much of somebody’s life history to work out who they are, if you know them,
or if they are distinctive in some way. A distinctive even for combination of descriptions in a
qualitative account could make somebody recognizable.

These concerns can mean that qualitative data may need some editing to ensure their
anonymity. When the data editing is complete, researchers should take care that: The editing has
not distorted their data or changes what the data is telling you, for example, deleting all possible
identifiers from text or sound recordings is a simple but blunt to all that creates data that are
confidential but maybe unusable

Data Storage and Security

Whether you are collecting new data or accessing existing data, you need to consider:
How your data will be stored and who will have access to the data.

If, and how the participants will be able to access data, your planning should take account
of what you need to do with hard copies, such as, paper notes of interviews; computer files with
anonymized data that are not identifiable; and computer files with personal or identifiable data.
Research ethics is all about unanticipated events. You need to plan for unexpected and
undesirable events, like leaving a bag on a train, or losing a USB stick.

However simple or complex your data set, think about what you might need to do to
ensure that your management of the data respects the terms of your consent, and in particular, the
confidentiality and anonymity that participants were promised

Incorporating Ethics Principals After You Have Completed Your Research

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Ethics in the Write-Up & Publication

1. Mistakes you should avoid

2. Failure to deal ethically with non-random error (bias)
3. Developing a post-hoc hypothesis, when using a deductive research approach, that is:
4. Data mining or looking at previously collected data sets for patterns rather than stating a
hypothesis and then collecting data to test it
5. Inappropriate statistical tests or procedures, which produce unreliable and erroneous
results
6. Low statistical power
7. Cooking the data –the practice of producing a group of values where you know or expect
them to occur
8. Trimming –not reporting an outlier when they are not justifiably omitted
9. Cutting corners/ fabricating data –sometimes done to meet a publication deadline or other
obligation
10. Selective reporting of findings –reporting only what supports your hypothesis

Sharing & Ownership of Data

Set ground rules for collaborations, including authorship, before you begin a
collaborative research project. Think about sharing data before you begin and if there is a
possibility that you will want to share the data, include that in the informed consent documents,
so that you do not share what was not authorized. By the same token you have an obligation to
make sure that data that is shared with you was authorized. Data should be archived for at least
five to seven years so that others can re-analyze the results, or if your findings are challenged,
you can go back and look at it again.

Grant and/ or journal reviewers hear about new ideas as part of that process; if you are in
this position it is unethical for you to take those ideas without giving credit to the originator.
Ownership is the primary means of giving credit, but also designates responsibility for the study
and the results of it. The use of anyone else’s discovery, words, ideas, data or analysis must be
cited in a way that others can find the references and see the contribution.

Ethics Related to Publication

Publication helps to fulfil the responsibility to the funding agency, the public and our
participants. It is the point at which our academic/ research community can assess, validate and
further develop the results of your work. Articles should contain all of the information necessary

14
for others to repeat the work. Fragmentary publication of the results of findings or multiple
publications of the same or similar data are not appropriate.

Publication credit should accurately reflect relative contributions to the research.

Institutional position does not justify authorship credit. Minor contributions should be
acknowledged in the introductory statement or in footnotes.

After publication, if you learn of errors that change the findings, you are obligated to
correct the error(s) in a correction, retraction, erratum or other means.

10. Conclusion

Ethics in research is of utmost importance. Engaging in ethical principles during the

course of the study highly benefits all stakeholders of the research. They protect the participants
and gatekeepers from potential harm by safeguarding their rights, dignity and well-being in the
study. Ethical principles also afford the researcher more resources and more opportunities for
collaboration for his study. They also reinforce his research more to a higher level of expertise.

Also, the researcher must always bear in mind all principles of ethics at the beginning,
during and upon completion of his research. It is very important that they verify and check their
works if it’s still aligning to ethical standard.

Ethical values establish and strengthen both the integrity and validity of the research.
They guide the researcher to successfully achieve the full objective of his study.

End of Chapter Questions

 Why is ethics valuable in research?

 Prepare a checklist for ethical reflection in research?
 Differentiate anonymity and confidentiality.
 What questions can a researcher ask during an ethical reflection on engagement
with his research participants?
 Discuss the ethical concern on the principle of informed consent.
 Why is power a fundamental ethical issue in research?
 What questions can a researcher ask during an ethical reflection on his engagement with
his research participants?
 What is the impact to a research if there are suspicions of plagiarism on it?
 Discuss the potential harm of a research that is being conducted in the field of medicine.
 What questions can a researcher ask on the planning phases of his research
process?
 What are the important factors to maintain anonymization of Qualitative Data?
 What is the key difference of Confidentiality and Anonymization?
 What are important things in managing your data?

15
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Canterbury Christ Church University Research and Development Centre (2014) “An
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Campbell, R. (2016). "It's the Way That You Do It": Developing an Ethical Framework for
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