Research Methods in Crime and Justice

Chapter 3The Ethical Principles that Guide

Researchers

Ethics in Social Science Research

• Social science researchers are obliged to improve the human condition through research.

• Ethical behavior is often determined by the particular circumstances of a research project.

• There are, however, seven enduring ethical principles that should guide researchers.

Principle 1: Do No Harm

• Neither the research process nor the researcher should do anything that would put another person at risk of harm.– Physical harm– Psychological harm– Legal harm

• Researchers should develop contingencies to mitigate potential harm and even abandon potentially harmful research projects.

Principle 2: Ensure Privacy

• Privacy is the right to be left alone.• In research we differentiate between two

types of privacy.– Confidentiality – that researchers know but agree

not to divulge the identity of research subjects.– Anonymity – occurs when the researcher does not

and cannot know the identity of research subjects.

Principle 3: Obtain Voluntary and Informed Consent

• Research subjects must consent to participate in research projects.

• Consent must be;– Voluntary – subjects are completely free to

participate or not participate without threat, and– Informed – subjects are told what is expected of

them and the risks associated with the research.

Principle 4: Get Permission

• Researchers must seek and obtain permission to access research subjects.

• Vulnerable populations – comprised of individuals who are less able to manage their own affairs.– Children– Mentally ill– Inmates

• Additional safeguards must be in place when working with a vulnerable population.

Principle 5: Avoid Sponsorship Bias and Suppression

• Sponsorship bias – occurs when the sponsor of a research project attempts to influence the study’s design of interpretation of the data for the sponsor’s own benefit.

• Suppression – occurs when a research sponsor fails to disclose findings that shed an unfavorable light on the sponsor’s products or services.

Principle 6: Prevent Misrepresentation

• Occurs in many forms– Misrepresentation – is purposeful lying.– Research fraud – is an extreme form of

misrepresentation that may involved lying about or fabricating data and research findings.

– Plagiarism – a form of misrepresentation involving the presentation of another person’s intellectual property as one’s own.

– Deception – occurs when a researcher lends credibility to an unscrupulously produce research project.

Principle 7: Ensure the Safety of Researchers

• Extends the do no harm principle to researchers and their assistants.

• Criminal justice researchers often find themselves in the presence of dangerous people and situations.

• Researchers should develop contingency plans to insure their safety as well as that of their assistants.

Minimizing Ethical Dilemmas

• Most of the ethical principles have been codified into legislation, regulations and codes of conduct.

• Collectively, these rules represent the minimum standard of ethical conduct.

Legislation and Policy Oversight

• Researchers are bound by;– International treaties,– Federal laws and regulations, and– Institutional procedures.

• When their research involves collecting data from human subjects.

Institutional Review Boards

• Institutional review boards (IRBs)– Supported by most universities and research

organizations .– Staffed with experienced researchers.– Review proposed research to be sure the human

subjects involved will not be harmed by the research.

Levels of an IRB Review

• The intensity of an IRB review is determined by the potential harm the research project could have on humans.– Expedited review – occur when very little

potential for harm is anticipated (e.g. an anonymous survey).

– Full reviews – occur when the proposed research could cause substantial harm to the human subjects involved (e.g. requesting highly personal information from research subjects).

Codes of Ethics

• Many scholarly, academic and professional organizations publish codes of ethics.

• These codes govern the research behavior of their members.

Getting to the Point

• Social science researchers should be concerned about ethics because ultimately their obligation is to improve the human condition through research.

• What constitutes ethical behavior often depends on the particular circumstances of individual research projects.

Getting to the Point

• The principle of doing no harm means that researchers should never subject research participants to physical danger, cause them psychological harm or expose them to legal liability.

• Researchers should build contingencies into the research plan to prevent or mitigate potential harm.

• In extreme cases, they should abandon the research project altogether.

Getting to the Point

• Privacy means the right to be left alone and free from public scrutiny.

• There are two types of privacy in research. – Confidentiality means that the researcher knows

who the research subjects are, but does not disclose their identity to others.

– Anonymity means that nobody, not even the researcher, knows the identity of the research subjects.

Getting to the Point

• Researchers must obtain consent from research subjects prior to collecting information from them.

• This consent must be given;– Voluntarily meaning that the research subjects must

be completely free to participate or not participate without threat, and

– Informed meaning that the researcher must inform the research subjects about the research and any risks associated with participation in the research.

Getting to the Point

• Researchers must seek and obtain permission to work with individuals who are considered vulnerable by virtue of their diminished capacity to direct their own affairs.

• Vulnerable populations include children, the mentally ill, the infirm, the elderly and prisoners.

Getting to the Point

• Sponsorship bias occurs when the sponsor of a research project attempts to influence the study design or interpretation of data for its own benefit.

• Suppression occurs when a research sponsor fails to disclose findings that shed an unfavorable light on the sponsor’s products or services.

Getting to the Point

• Research misrepresentation involves lying about data, results and authorship in research.

• Research fraud is fabricating research data or results.

• Plagiarism is presenting the intellectual property of another as your own

• Deception is lending one’s name and/or reputation to a research project that one does not know much about.

Getting to the Point

• The principle of doing no harm extends to the safety of researchers.

• Research supervisors should ensure the physical, psychological and legal safety of researchers.

• Researchers have an ethical obligation to report criminal activity that could cause harm to themselves or others.

Getting to the Point

• Researchers are subject to numerous international treaties, federal and state laws, and institutional regulations that are designed to protect human research subjects.

Getting to the Point

• Institutional Review Boards (IRBs) review research proposals that involve human subjects.

• The level of scrutiny depends on the potential for human harm.

Getting to the Point

• Many professional organizations and most universities publish formally written codes of ethics.

• These codes are intended to provide guidance to professionals and members of organizations on how to behave ethically.

Research Methods in Crime and Justice

Chapter 3The Ethical Principles that Guide

Researchers