Ethics and politics in social research

Writing about ethics in social research has typically centred on some extreme, infamous cases of deception, invasions of privacy and so on. While these examples help to illustrate our points convincingly, they can be misleading in that ethical dilemmas affect all kinds of social research, down to the most mundane and straightforward research designs.
Reference: Bryman: Social Research Methods: 5th Edition Page(s) 121

Another of the ethical stances that Bryman identifies is the claim that ethical transgression is pervasive and therefore inevitable in social research. This is based on the acknowledgement that researchers have to deceive or withhold information from their participants to some extent. It would be impractical to tell everyone every detail. For example, about the research design. A further instance of this is if the researcher explained the hypotheses being tested, or that most people of a particular socio-economic background hold a particular point of view; whilst this ismore “honest”, it would also bias the response.
Reference: Bryman: Social Research Methods: 5th Edition Page(s) 124

One of the most important ethical principles is that prospective participants should be fully informed about the nature of the research, so that they can make an informed decision about whether or not to take part. Covert observation is often regarded as an ethically dubious method because this principle is breached: the people being studied are not aware of the researcher’s true identity and so do not have the opportunity of refusing to participate.
Reference: Bryman: Social Research Methods: 5th Edition Page(s) 129

One of the four main ethical stances that Bryman identifies (see Key concept 6.1 on page 123) is that of situation ethics. This is the belief that there are no absolute rules of ethical research and that each case must be examined individually. It may be that there was no other way of studying a particularly important phenomenon and so “the end justifies the means” and the researcher had “no choice” but to use this method. However, this approach of “principled relativism” is not the same as the belief that “anything goes”, for it still demands that we draw a line between ethical and unethical conduct and rule out some practices.
Reference: Bryman: Social Research Methods: 5th Edition Page(s) 123,124

It is argued that, just like ethical issues, political issues pervade every aspect of the research process. The social researcher cannot conduct their research in a social and moral vacuum because of a number of factors: their own beliefs and values will shape what they come to research and how they interpret the findings; gatekeepers may try to control what is said about their group or organization; and similarly, the company, industry or research council that is funding the study may impose limits on the types of projects that are carried out and the way findings are reported.
Reference: Bryman: Social Research Methods: 5th Edition Page(s) 141-144

Homan (1991:73, cited on page 129) suggests that it is “easier said than done” to follow the principle of informed consent because of a number of factors. It may not be practical and realistic to tell every participant in a large study all the background information about it. The researcher sometimes wants to withhold certain (minor) details about the procedure so that people will not be dissuaded from taking part, and doing so helps to avoid reactive effects, in that participants are less likely to make their behaviour conform to the researcher’s expectations.
Reference: Bryman: Social Research Methods: 5th Edition Page(s) 129

Becker (1967, cited in “Thinking deeply 6.2” on page 143) argued that some degree of partiality was inevitable in social research, as we cannot help but “take sides” with certain groups whom we are studying. He said that accusations of bias were less likely when the researcher simply reinforced a dominant ideology, and more likely when they took the side of the “underdog”, or less privileged groups in society. In spite of this, Becker thought that it was important for sociologists of deviance, in particular, to give a voice to these oppressed minorities, but he did maintain that we should avoid “sentimental”, one-sided and theoretically weak research. It should be possible, though, to present both sides’ views and even when one side only is shown, it can be done without displaying a particular sympathy
Reference: Bryman: Social Research Methods: 5th Edition Page(s) 143

One of the most commonly cited ethical principles is that we should not cause harm to our research participants. This can take many forms, including physical injury, psychological distress or emotional harm, loss of self-esteem, being persuaded to conduct morally reprehensible acts, and having one’s physical, intellectual or emotional development hindered. We must also be careful about security of our research records, so that respondents may not be identified, or otherwise harmed through loss of confidentiality.
Reference: Bryman: Social Research Methods: 5th Edition Page(s) 126-129

When maintaining records of personal information about your participants, it is important that these data are kept in a safe, secure place to which no one but you has access (unless the participants have consented to other arrangements). Participants have the right to see what has been written about them, or which is stored on computer files about them. Much quantitative data can be made anonymous quite easily and, in any event, the identity of the respondent is not a focus of study but in qualitative research this is not as easily done. Great care must be taken with the handling of this data, particularly in the final published reports, so that individuals cannot be identified from their comments or any details about their backgrounds. The UK Data Protection Act of 1998 is referred to in “Tips and skills” on page 128 and can be accessed on-line for further information.
Reference: Bryman: Social Research Methods: 5th Edition Page(s) 128

It is widely regarded as unacceptable to deceive participants about the nature of the research and their involvement in it. This is mainly because it is unfair and unkind to force people to participate in a project without their being aware that they are being studied and giving informed consent. However, it can also be very damaging for the researcher’s professional reputation if they are known to have indulged in such unethical practices, and this in turn can reflect negatively upon their discipline as a whole. It is therefore each researcher’s responsibility to ensure that their research is as ethically sound as possible and to “leave the field clean” for future researchers.
Reference: Bryman: Social Research Methods: 5th Edition Page(s) 133