Ethics in Social Research Chapter 3 Ethics in Social Research
What are Research Ethics? Ethics guide behavior and decisions Ethics guide us through a range of concerns, dilemmas, and conflicts Social researchers have a clear moral And professional obligation to behave in an ethical manner 2
Why Be Ethical? Scientific community demands ethical behavior without exceptions Scientific misconduct Research fraud Plagiarism Unethical but legal 3
Figure 3.1: Typology of Legal and Moral Actions in Social Research 4
Expansion Box 3.1: Informed Consent 5
Ethical Issues Involving Research Participants Origins of Research Participant Protection Tuskegee Syphilis Study Physical Harm, Psychological Abuse, and Legal Jeopardy Physical Harm Psychological Abuse, Stress, or Loss of Self- Esteem 6
Ethical Issues Involving Research Participants Legal Harm Other Harm to Participants Deception Principle of voluntary consent Informed Consent Special Populations and New Inequalities Avoid Creating New Inequalities 7
Ethical Issues Involving Research Participants Privacy, Anonymity, and Confidentiality Privacy Anonymity Confidentiality Information as property Mandated Protections National Research Act (1974) 8
Ethical Issues Involving Research Participants Institutional review board Three Ethical Controversies Milgram’s obedience study Humphreys’s tearoom trade study Zimbardo’s prison experiment 9
Research Precautions Consult with mental health professionals & others who have conducted similar studies Screen out high-risk populations Obtain written informed consent (to be discussed) before the research Monitor conditions & arrange emergency interventions if dangerous situations arise 10
Nuremberg Code 11
Expansion Box 3.2: Basic Principles of Ethical Social Research 12
Ethics and the Sponsors of Research Whistle-blowing Arriving at particular findings Limits on how to conduct studies Suppressing findings Concealing sponsorship 13
Politics of Research Limits to what is studied Objectivity and value freedom Objective Value free Unbiased 14
Expansion Box 3.3: What Is Public Sociology? 15