Ethical considerations in sociological research involve not harming participants and respecting principles like anonymity, informed consent, and protection from harm. The document discusses several research situations and whether they are ethically acceptable or not based on these principles. Unacceptable situations include publishing participants' names without consent, conducting research on a class without informing them, and putting participants in dangerous situations. Acceptable situations respect principles like informed consent, anonymity, observation over involvement, debriefing participants, and keeping details confidential to protect identities.
Ethical considerations in sociological research involve not harming participants and respecting principles like anonymity, informed consent, and protection from harm. The document discusses several research situations and whether they are ethically acceptable or not based on these principles. Unacceptable situations include publishing participants' names without consent, conducting research on a class without informing them, and putting participants in dangerous situations. Acceptable situations respect principles like informed consent, anonymity, observation over involvement, debriefing participants, and keeping details confidential to protect identities.
Ethical considerations in sociological research involve not harming participants and respecting principles like anonymity, informed consent, and protection from harm. The document discusses several research situations and whether they are ethically acceptable or not based on these principles. Unacceptable situations include publishing participants' names without consent, conducting research on a class without informing them, and putting participants in dangerous situations. Acceptable situations respect principles like informed consent, anonymity, observation over involvement, debriefing participants, and keeping details confidential to protect identities.
Ethical considerations in sociological research involve not harming participants and respecting principles like anonymity, informed consent, and protection from harm. The document discusses several research situations and whether they are ethically acceptable or not based on these principles. Unacceptable situations include publishing participants' names without consent, conducting research on a class without informing them, and putting participants in dangerous situations. Acceptable situations respect principles like informed consent, anonymity, observation over involvement, debriefing participants, and keeping details confidential to protect identities.
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Ethics
In sociology, ethical considerations involve making sure that your research is not offending or harming anyone – that you are doing the right thing.
Situation Acceptable Why? – ethical principle
/not? 1. Jill does some research & No Anonymity – normally we make sure that no publishes her results in a names are mentioned in our finished report, this is newspaper alongside her so that people don’t know who we did our participants’ names research on so their identities are private 2. Susan is a teacher & decides No Informed consent – normally we make sure that our to do some research on her respondents know what our research will involve, and class without telling them what it will be about. Then we should ask them (or their parent) whether they agree to take part. 3. Jim is doing some research No Protection from harm - we should normally make sure into behaviour in extreme that we don’t put our participants in dangerous or situations and takes his distressing situations. This might include dangerous participants to a dangerous situations (cliff path), or even asking them questions which they might find very upsetting. cliff path before asking them questions 4. Ali is managing some No Not placing yourself in harms way – as researchers & wants to find researchers we have a duty not to place ourselves out about a mass fight. She in harm when we do research. So for example, sends one of her researchers doing research in a dangerous situation (like a to get involved to learn about gang fight or with some criminal groups) might not gang warfare. be ethical. 5. Mary goes into a shopping Yes Although we should gain informed consent from centre to watch (observe) participants, if we’re just watching (observing) how people behave around participants and make sure their anonymity is lots of shoppers protected, then it’s ok to not seek permission. 6. David tells his participants Yes Because David makes sure the participants are ok after what his research will involve the interviews (he debriefs them), and gains informed – interviews about things that consent (by telling them what will happen before they terrify them - and then ask take part) David’s research is probably ethically ok – although he should make sure his participants are whether they want to take protected from harm as much as possible. part. He makes sure they’re ok after the interviews. 7. When John does research into Yes Phil keeps confidentiality – he makes sure violent criminals he makes personal details about the individual participants sure the results he publishes are kept between him (the researcher) and the don’t identify the criminals he participant themselves. This way they stay talked to or what crimes they anonymous (because no names were used) and were involved in they can’t be identified by individual facts about the criminals.
