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Current Perspectives on Research Ethics in Qualitative Research

Wolff-Michael Roth & Hella von Unger

Abstract: In this article, we provide a brief introduction to the special issue on research ethics in qualitative research. We describe the general context within which our idea emerged to organize a special issue and present its design and, for purposes of transparency, some particulars with respect to the selection and review process. We sketch some of the common themes that are shared across parts of the paper set, including critical analysis of ethics codes and ethics reviews, the intricacies of informed consent, confidentiality and anonymity in qualitative research and questions of vulnerability.

Table of Contents

1. Introduction

2. Design of Special Issue and Process of Selecting Contributions

2.1 Design

2.2 Selecting contributions from submissions and editorial process

3. Overview of the Special Issue

4. Coda

References

Authors

Citation

1. Introduction

The question of ethics has been a mainstay of philosophical inquiry for millennia —e.g., when the ancient Greek wondered about phronesis, that is, the nature of wisdom in practical action that inherently affects others (RICŒUR, 1990). In research involving human subjects, the phenomenon is much more recent (ROTH, 2004a). In the historical development of the debate, medical research ethics played a prominent role. For example, the Nuremberg Code (1947) constituted a key milestone. It was formulated in response to the inhuman medical experimentation practices under the Nationalist-Socialist regime in Germany and included principles such as voluntary participation and informed consent. Since then debates and ethics codes have evolved in many fields and disciplines throughout the world. Yet, during the 1950s and 1960s it was still possible to expose human beings to extreme physical and mental stress—such as testing the chemical weapons Agent Orange and Agent Purple on the Canadian Forces Base Gagetown (New Brunswick) without 1. informing nearby communities, 2. the consent of the Canadian and U.S. military personnel stationed there or distributing the agents, and 3. providing appropriate knowledge concerning the consequences of exposure (AGENT ORANGE ASSOCIATION OF CANADA, 2009). Also in the 1960s, an American psychologist conducted experiments where subjects were led to extreme distress when coaxed into punishing others by means of electroshocks (MILGRAM, 1963)—a study that is

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. Forum Qualitative Sozialforschung / Forum: Qualitative Social Research (ISSN 1438-5627)

Volume 19, No. 3, Art. 33 September 2018

Key words: anonymity; confidentiality; ethics codes; ethics reviews; informed consent; knowledge/power; vulnerability

FQS 19(3), Art. 33, Wolff-Michael Roth & Hella von Unger: Current Perspectives on Research Ethics in Qualitative Research

also discussed in this issue, albeit with a different focus (YANOV & SCHWARTZ- SHEA, 2018). These and other controversial research practices triggered outrage, public debate and political action resulting in the creation of a new ethics infrastructure. Human research ethics boards—called institutional review boards (IRB) in the US, research ethics boards (REB) in Canada, research ethics committees (REC) in the UK, as well as other names elsewhere—were created around the world to curtail such exposures. However, the implementation of such boards, which happened rather quickly in most Anglo-Saxon countries (Australia, Canada, New Zealand, UK, and US), has not occurred at the same rate in other parts of the world (e.g., Germany, see VON UNGER, DILGER & SCHÖNHUTH, 2016)—and their role in fostering ethical research practices remain unclear at least. In fact, they have drawn extensive criticism, in particular from qualitative researchers in the social sciences (CANELLA & LINCOLN, 2011; ISRAEL, 2014; VAN DEN HOONAARD, 2011). [1]

Yet, it is undisputed that the question of ethics also arises in qualitative research as “the emergent, dynamic and interactional nature of most qualitative research” involves complex ethical responsibilities (IPHOFEN & TOLICH, 2018, p.1). Nearly 15 years ago, this has led the editors of this journal to create a forum for debating ethical issues. Our purpose at the time was to evolve a community of ethical research practitioners rather than merely talk about and theorize ethics without actually engaging with the issues of practical conduct in the field and how research affects all those involved (ROTH, 2005). We wanted issues to be discussed that might otherwise not have a forum to be aired. An immediate concern was the different ways in which experimental psychologists and participant or activist researchers engaged with participants, how much input participants should or could have in the design of specific research projects. There had been signs in experimental research on drugs developed for AIDS that the involvement of participants improved on the quality of the (quantitative) research rather than watering it down (EPSTEIN, 1995). Other issues that arose at the time concerned the involvement of research participants as authors, and the particular (audience-dependent) conditions where it made sense to include them and when it did not. [2]

Various conceptualizations of research ethics exist and the topic has been at the center of a lively and heated debate internationally (HAMMERSLEY & TRAIANOU, 2012; IPHOFEN & TOLICH, 2018; VAN DEN HOONAARD, 2011; VON UNGER et al., 2016). The current controversies mainly revolve around the institutional regulation of research ethics, i.e., what GUILLEMIN and GILLAM (2004) aptly termed “procedural ethics” (p.263). In some national contexts, institutional ethics reviews are obligatory not only for medical research but also for social science research including qualitative research. As stated above, a substantial critique has formed pointing to the shortcomings and dangers of institutional ethics reviews and codified ethical standards and principles (e.g., HAMMERSLEY & TRAIANOU, 2012; ISRAEL, 2014; VAN DEN HOONAARD, 2011; VON UNGER et al., 2016). Negative implications have been described for scientific quality and academic freedom in general and for qualitative research in particular (e.g., VAN DEN HOONAARD, 2011). The institutionalized means for

FQS http://www.qualitative-research.net/

FQS 19(3), Art. 33, Wolff-Michael Roth & Hella von Unger: Current Perspectives on Research Ethics in Qualitative Research