Planning of Study Participant Recruitment & Selection Study Execution Reporting of Results Enforcing Ethics Ethics in HR research

Competence to conduct research Researcher’s skills & expertise Familiarity with ethical guidelines Sound research design Based on theory & previous research, use appropriate methods & applicable samples Ethical acceptability of study Cost vs. benefits of study Costs of not conducting study Ethics in Planning

Using subject pools Employees Employee beliefs re: effects of and confidentiality of non-participation E.g., Absenteeism study Implications of organizational consent for employee consent Appropriate language E.g., Latino immigrants’ study; Absenteeism study Ethics in Participant Recruitment & Selection

Using subject pools University students Issues w/losing vs. gaining credit, student beliefs Minors in universities Parental consent Language Ethics in Participant Recruitment & Selection

Volunteers Recruitment strategies Highlight importance of research Make non-threatening request for participation Offer small gift for participation –Feedback report w/findings & recommendations Avoid stressful tasks Assure anonymity & confidentiality Ethics in Participant Recruitment & Selection

Volunteers Identify issues of concern when studying exploited groups Danger of potentially harmful results E.g., diversity studies; Latino immigrants study Excessive & coercive incentives SES of participants; willingness to undergo considerable risk Ethics in Participant Recruitment & Selection

Planning of Study Participant Recruitment & Selection Study Execution Reporting of Results Enforcing Ethics Ethics in HR research

Informed consent Privacy Confidentiality Deception Debriefing Special issues in HR/IR/IO research Ethics in Study Execution

Study Description Purpose What is expected of participants E.g., amt of time taken, type of tasks to be completed Importance of study Can increase participants’ motivation to be honest Relevant info to make decision about participation Need not reveal study hypotheses Ethics in Study Execution Informed Consent

Right to decline or withdraw at any time without negative consequences E.g., students, employment status of participant Consequences of withdrawing before completing study E.g., effect on payment Ethics in Study Execution Informed Consent

List of risks Stress, anxiety etc. List of benefits Scientific knowledge, report w/findings & recommendations Steps taken to preserve confidentiality and/or anonymity Promotes participation & honest responses (see p. 41) Answer additional questions Provide contact info for questions, concerns, report summary Ethics in Study Execution Informed Consent

When not to use signed consent Situations w/behavioral consent Provide Study Information Sheet w/same info E.g., Mail surveys study When signed consent harms participants E.g., Immigrant study Ethics in Study Execution Informed Consent

Issues w/Experimental Research Participants’ do not have choice in assignment to experimental vs. control condition Ensures against sampling bias Not available w/field correlational study Ethics in Study Execution Informed Consent

Issues w/Qualitative Research Participant observation Being unobtrusive vs. reminding participants that they are being observed Observation can change nature of phenomenon Hidden observation Public vs. private domain Archival/Trace measures Permission from participant vs. custodian of data Ethics in Study Execution Informed Consent

Informed consent Privacy Confidentiality Deception Debriefing Special issues in HR/IR/IO research Ethics in Study Execution

Right to refuse/withdraw at any time Type of info requested from participants Right to limit the amount & sensitivity of info about themselves Violation of privacy When participants are given unwanted info Info is released to unauthorized parties Info for decisions is withheld Ethics in Study Execution Privacy

Data issues Access to data, maintenance of records, anonymity of participants, prevention of unauthorized disclosures Nature of HR archival research e.g., absenteeism study Remove identifying info after coding Balance b/w confidentiality and specificity of feedback (Saks) Ethics in Study Execution Confidentiality

Issues w/Qualitative Studies When verifying accuracy of participants’ statements When documenting findings When information that can do good to the system is unearthed When info that can harm another individual is revealed Ethics in Study Execution Confidentiality

& internet surveys Confidentiality Secure transfer and storage of data via data encryption technology & using passwords Informed consent To determine participants’ understanding Provide phone/ info or arrange for personal meetings to answer qs Debriefing Ethics in Study Execution Confidentiality Saks, Aguinas & Henle

Mislead, misinform, with-hold info, use confederates, produce false beliefs or assumptions Used when alternatives are not feasible or appropriate Demonstrate that value of deception outweighs harm to participants Usually used in experimental studies Ethics in Study Execution Deception

Consent form indicates possible use of deceptive procedures in study Indicates physical/psychological harm or other conditions that may change willingness to participate Debrief participants after study About the nature and cause of deception Take steps to undo harm/mistrust Ethics in Study Execution Deception

Benefit of participation via scientific knowledge Purpose of research Info about previous research How current study adds to knowledge Info about design, procedures Application of results to org’n settings Importance of research Obtain participant opinions about study and reasons for their responses Ethics in Study Execution Debriefing

Preserve participants feelings of Time well spent Dignity Remove effects of deception Dehoaxing=explain deception, remove misinformation, alleviate negative feelings Desensitize Help participants deal w/new self insights as a result of responses in study or due to participation in study (e.g., anger toward confederate etc.) Discuss Normality of reactions Ethics in Study Execution Debriefing

Informed consent Privacy Confidentiality Deception Debriefing Special issues in HR/IR/IO research Ethics in Study Execution

Conflicts in ethics of researchers and org’n stakeholders Researchers’ obligation to ensure well-being of participants Perception that participation is part of the job Implications for informed consent, confidentiality, anonymity, privacy Ethics in Study Execution Special Issues in HR/IR/IO

Right to beneficial treatments Use lottery to assign to control vs. experimental groups Implement interventions in stages Spatially separate groups Qualitative Data Nature & quality of data produced can be shaped by researcher’s assumptions Ethics in Study Execution Special Issues in HR/IR/IO Saks

Informed consent Privacy Confidentiality Deception Debriefing Special issues in HR/IR/IO research Ethics in Study Execution

Planning of Study Participant Recruitment & Selection Study Execution Reporting of Results Enforcing Ethics Ethics in HR research

Misrepresenting Falsification/omission Recording data w/out being blind to hypotheses Errors in data analyses/entry Effect on future research Censoring Org’n is negatively portrayed E.g., management study Contradiction of previous research or hypotheses Ethics in Reporting of Results

Plagiarism & authorship credit Not giving credit for another’s ideas Using another’s work w/out citing Passing off another’s work as one’s own Self-plagiarism Data Sharing Verify reported findings Ethics in Reporting of Results

Misconduct Pressure to reject null hypothesis Pressure for desirable findings E.g., Validate interventions Trimming=Removing outliers, dropping data Cooking=Altering data Forging=Making up data Implications for literature base Enforcing Ethics

Preventing misconduct Familiarize oneself w/APA ethics code Institute IRBs to assess potential risks Minimize risks, benefits outweigh risks to participants, participants are fairly selected, informed consent is obtained & documented Exemption from IRB, expedited review Replicate research Peer review of research Enforcing Ethics

Planning of Study Participant Recruitment & Selection Study Execution Reporting of Results Enforcing Ethics Ethics in HR research