Research ethics in research methodology (Notes)
The Golden Rule ("Do to others as you would have them do to you"),
A code of professional conduct like the vow ("First of all, do no harm"),
A religious creed like the Ten Commandments (“you should not kill").
The ethics are norms for conduct that distinguish between acceptable and unacceptable behavior (Resnik, 2011).
Most people learn ethical norms at home, at school, in church, or in other social settings.
Although, most people acquire their sense of right and wrong during childhood, moral development occurs throughout life and human beings pass through different stages of growth as they mature.
One may also define ethics as a method, procedure or perspective for deciding how to act and for analyzing complex problems and issues.
Many different disciplines, institutions, and professions have norms for behavior that suit their particular aims and goals.
These norms also help members of the discipline to coordinate their actions or activities and to establish the public's trust of the discipline.
Basic ethical practice in research involving human subjects
i. Informed consent
There should be informed consent from participants before they take part.
This means that, they should know exactly what they are being asked to do, and what the risks are, before they agree to take part.
An Information Sheet is commonly used to provide potential participants with information about the study. In the sheet,
Say who you are; where you are from; and what you are doing.
Tell the person how or why they were selected to be invited to take part.
Inform them that, even if they agree to take part, they can change their mind at any time, without giving an explanation
Tell them what they would be asked to do if they agreed to take part.
Tell them the level of anonymity or namelessness and confidentiality you can guarantee.
Say what the information will be used for, how it will be stored, and how long it will be kept.
ii. There should be no pressure on individuals to participate
Incentives to take part should generally not be provided.
If an incentive is used it needs to be only a token, and not enough to encourage someone to participate who would really prefer not to take part.
iii. Respect individual autonomy
Autonomy means the freedom to decide what to do.
Even when someone has signed a Consent Form, they must be made aware that they are free to withdraw from the study at any time, without giving a reason.
They must also be able to request that the data they have given be removed from the study.
iv. Avoid causing harm
The duty of the researcher is not to cause harm.
Avoid discrimination against colleagues or students on the basis of sex, race, ethnicity, or other factors that are not related to their scientific competence and integrity.
v. Maintain anonymity and confidentiality
Making data ‘anonymous’ means removing the contributor’s name.
However, you will often need to take more than this basic step to protect a participant’s identity.
Organizations, units, and groups may also need their anonymity protected.
Confidentiality’ relates to the protection of the data collected.
Where the aim of your research is specifically to access private feelings, stories, and concerns, you will need to be clear about how the confidentiality of that data will be respected.
But, be clear about the level of confidentiality you can, and cannot, guarantee.
vi. Take particular care in research with vulnerable groups
Think about vulnerability in its widest sense.
Care is clearly needed in research with young children, and with people who are ill, or recently bereaved and mourning (widows, orphans)
However, others may be vulnerable in certain contexts, for example: students; employees; dependents; or people with particular traits that could be subject to prejudice or bias.
Ethics in data processing
Never fabricate or plagiarize experimental data and predictions.
When you carry out experiments, the experimental data must always be collected without any preconceived notion of what it should look like.
No experimental data should ever be dropped just because it does not fit the hypothesis or theory you are trying to validate or invalidate
In case of doubt, repeat the experiment, but report all the repeated trials. You can drop an experimental data only when you have detected an error in your experimental method or measurement technique.
Ethics in report writing
Present new work and that you have established to the best of your efforts that it is new.
It is required to attach the declaration with your signature in your report, immediately after the cover page as a separate page
Do not plagiarize: To use someone else’s exact words without quotation marks and appropriate credit, or to use the unique ideas of someone else without acknowledgment, is known as plagiarism.
When you paraphrase a written passage, you rewrite it to state the essential ideas in your own words.
Because you do not quote your source word for word when paraphrasing, it is unnecessary to enclose the paraphrased material in quotation marks.
However, the paraphrased material must be properly referenced because the ideas are taken from someone else whether or not the words are identical.
Changing a few words and phrases, or changing the order of the sentences to give the impression that the written text is different from the original and is paraphrased is still plagiarism.
Quotations
When you have borrowed words, facts, or idea of any kind from someone else’s work, acknowledge your debt by giving your source credit in running text as cited reference.
Otherwise, you will be guilty of plagiarism. Also be sure you have represented the original material honestly and accurately.
Direct word to word quotations are enclosed in quotation marks.
NB: Re-read basic academic writing rules we sent you to understand and practice research ethics in report writing.
Post a Comment