ABE 139: Qualitative Methods in Agribusiness Research Ethics PDF

ABE 139: Qualitative Methods in Agribusiness Research Ethics in qualitative research 4 September 2024 Intended learning outcomes 1. Discuss ethics in qualitative research Historical background Importance of ethics in research Some basic checklists What is ethics? o May gui...

ABE 139: Qualitative Methods in Agribusiness Research Ethics in qualitative research 4 September 2024 Intended learning outcomes 1. Discuss ethics in qualitative research Historical background Importance of ethics in research Some basic checklists What is ethics? o May guide or tell us what is “right” and “wrong” Ethics in research o Ethics in research – do we need them? o Research has become an issue in ethics o Protecting the interests of those who are to take part in your research o Scandals on manipulated data o Ethics committees ensure that participants in a study are protected in the research process o In some contexts, greater sensitivity of the research for vulnerable groups or different ethnic groups Ethics in research: need? o Case 1: Human experiments during World War 2 (Weindling et al., 2016) Experiments on humans, unethically conducted In Nazi Germany, human test subjects were sourced from concentration camps “Unit 731” of Japan’s human experiments Ethics in research: need? o Flick (2014) highlights the principles of research ethics: 1. Researchers have to justify why their research is necessary 2. They must explain what their research aim is and under which circumstances will subject the participants 3. Need to explain in detail the methodological procedures in their research 4. Researchers must be able to estimate on their research will have ethically positive or negative consequences on the participants Ethics in research: need? o Flick (2014) highlights the principles of research ethics: 5. They must assess the possible violations and damages that may arise from their research before the start of their research project 6. The researchers must take steps to prevent such violations and damages as identified in no. 5 7. The researchers must not make fake statements to describe their research’s usefulness 8. They must adhere to regulations pertaining to data protection Codes of ethics o Formulated to regulate the relation between researchers to their samples and fields to be studied o Requires that researchers must avoid harming participants through considering their needs and interests o Research must be based on informed consent! Codes of ethics o Murphy and Dingwall enumerate “ethical theory”: Non-maleficence: researchers must avoid harming participants Beneficence: research on human subjects should produce some positive and identifiable benefit rather than simply carried out for its own sake Autonomy or self-determination: Research participants’ values and decisions must be respected Justice: All people should be treated equally Codes of ethics: Ethics committees o Generally focuses on three aspects: o Scientific quality Can be unethical for a research to be repetitive o Welfare of participants What is the welfare of the participants versus the new knowledge that can be discovered o Dignity and rights of participants Consent is needed before participants can participate in a study Confidentiality of the participants’ data How to act ethically? o Informed consent Consent should be given by someone competent to do so Consent must be based on adequate information Is given voluntarily In the case of vulnerable population, you may ask a substitute (with consent, of course!) Examples: ✓ For children: their parents or other family members ✓ For elderly participants: their family members or responsible medical personnel How to act ethically? o Avoiding harm to participants in collecting data Dealing with experiences of people is another ethical problem Anonymization is a challenge – researchers must take care to anonymize information that is from their participants o Doing justice to participants in analyzing data When writing your data analysis, you will make certain interpretations and judgments You must not include judgments on a personal level How to act ethically? o Confidentiality in writing about your research Readers should not be able to identify who participated in your research Data must be stored in a safe and secure area to prevent unauthorized access o The problems of context in qualitative data and research It may be easy to identify who gave the information in your qualitative data Checklist for ethical consideration 1. How to put the principle of informed consent into practice? 2. How to inform all participants who will take part in the study or involved in it? 3. How to ensure that participants are not harmed or disadvantaged from your research? 4. How to guarantee that participation is voluntary? 5. How will you anonymize data and protect data in your research? 6. Did you check your method of proceeding against the relevant ethical code(s)? If yes, what became evident? 7. Do you need an ethics committee for your study? If yes, have you obtained it? 8. How novel is your research that can justify doing your study? Ethics in research o Example: ✓ Informed consent Ethics in research o Example: ✓ Informed consent Ethics in research o Example: ✓ Informed consent Debrief o What have you learned from today’s class? References Flick, U. (2014). An Introduction to Qualitative Research (5th ed.). SAGE Publications. Weindling, P., von Villiez, A., Loewenau, A., & Farron, N. (2016). The victims of unethical human experiments and coerced research under National Socialism. Endeavour, 40, 1-6. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.endeavour.2015.10.005