Strategically Communicating

Ethics — particularly research ethics — is an interesting topic for a variety of reasons, one of which is that there is a difference between research ethics and ethical research.

When it comes to these topics, things get really muddy when the internet becomes involved because there’s a sense of privacy and anonymity in particular situations. Is it possible to safeguard yourself against any unwanted online intrusions of a researcher who is looking to collect data? How can it be done? Where do children and social networking come in to play here?

These are a few questions we’ll look at Thursday in class. We’ll also be taking a look at hypothetical situations when research and ethics intersect.

Here’s one of the dilemmas we’ll present Thursday and we hope it will get you thinking about what you would do if you were different sorts of ethical research situations.

Dilemma:

Dr. T has just discovered a mathematical error in a paper that has been accepted for publication in a journal. The error does not affect the overall results of his research, but it is potentially misleading. The journal has just gone to press, so it is too late to catch the error before it appears in print? 

When an ethical issue comes up during online qualitative research, researchers should look to one of the AOIR’s key guiding principles for ethical decision making in Internet research:

 “The greater the vulnerability of the community/author/participant, the greater the obligation of the researcher to protect the community/author/participant.”

There’s a general misconception that whenever something is posted online, it automatically becomes part of the public sphere.  However, Internet communities and message boards are something of a gray area because members often assume that their thoughts and opinions will remain private. Whereas on social networking sites like Facebook or Twitter, buried somewhere in the fine print of the user agreement, is the condition that all posts or “Tweets” become part of the public domain unless the user chooses to make them private.

I believe researchers should carefully consider the subject matter of the online community before beginning data collection. In cases where extremely personal issues, like sexual abuse, are discussed, researchers should always inform users of their intentions and receive permission before using their remarks in research. Those who join online health-related communities, like cancer support forums, do so out of a desire to connect with and lend support to those in similar situations, not be guinea pigs for research. Most would not appreciate their remarks being published in a study without their permission.

Should people in online communities expect privacy? Or are their remarks fair game for researchers?

When it comes to conducting research within online communities, some might substitute “exploitation” for the word research. Researchers certainly have an ethical, if not legal, obligation to adhere to any internet community guidelines prohibiting researcher contact. Violating these guidelines is clearly unethical.

As Eysenbach and Till point out, communities without guidelines create a more ambiguous environment. If a community doesn’t specifically preclude “outside” participation, a researcher could reasonably argue that contacting members isn’t an ethical violation. It is reasonable to assume that internet communities without specific exclusions are open to everyone? I understand, and sympathize with, the privacy argument. However, if the host/sponsoring organization has not made efforts to protect participants’ privacy, is it the researcher’s responsibility to do so?

Even if researcher activity is accepted, other ethical considerations come into play. The internet has the capability to dehumanize. Markham et al., 2012, raise the question, “Is this a text or a person?” The authors mentioned protection of vulnerable populations. Though this issue is not unique to online communities, the “distance” between researcher and subject in the online environment makes it difficult for researchers to gauge subjects’ mental/emotional stability. Authenticity is also a factor. Is the subject who she/he says he is? Does he/she really have the characteristics/experiences the researcher requires?

The IRB regulates research on human subjects. Should a similar body be created to oversee privacy in online communities? Should participants in online communities expect that level of privacy?