Ethical issues in Internet research.

2012 ◽  
pp. 385-400 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael Hoerger ◽  
Catherine Currell
Keyword(s):  
Ethical Issues ◽  
Internet Research

Internet Researches as Means of Obtaining New Knowledge (Studying of Foreign Experience)

2010 ◽  
pp. 93-98
Author(s):  
Galina V. Varganova
Keyword(s):  
Ethical Issues ◽  
Internet Research ◽  
Foreign Experience ◽  
New Knowledge

The article deals with the librarianship internet research works in the context of their advantages, limitations and related ethical issues.

Ethical Dilemmas in Online Research

2011 ◽  
pp. 734-739
Author(s):  
R. Melville
Keyword(s):  
Data Privacy ◽  
Ethical Issues ◽  
Internet Technology ◽  
Internet Research ◽  
Online Research ◽  
Ethical Challenges ◽  
Cultural Groups ◽  
Ethical Practices ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
Uniform Code

Online research raises unique ethical concerns (Ess & AoIR, 2002), including the treatment and recruitment of participants, gaining consent, accessing electronic forms of data, privacy, and responsibility to the participants of online mediums (e.g., discussion lists and groups). Until the mid-1990s, very little attention was paid to ethical issues in online research for the following reasons: • This communication medium was a very recent phenomenon (Ess & AoIR, 2002; Mann & Steward, 2000) • Internet research posed different ethical challenges for researchers in comparison to conventional face-to-face settings • Existing ethical regulations and ethics review boards did not cover the new ethical issues raised by Internet research • It was too difficult to develop a uniform code of ethical conduct for Internet research given the diverse disciplines, countries, and cultural groups using the Internet (Ess & AoIR, 2002) • The complexity of Internet technology itself, which made adapting conventional ethical practices and processes problematic (Anders cited in Mann & Stewart, 2000; Mann & Stewart, 2000; Thomas, 1996; Whittaker, 2002)

scholarly journals Reflections on internet research ethics from language-focused research on web-based mourning: revisiting the private/public distinction as a language ideology of differentiation

2017 ◽  
Vol 8 (2-3) ◽  
pp. 229-250 ◽  
Author(s):  
Korina Giaxoglou
Keyword(s):  
Research Ethics ◽  
Language Ideology ◽  
Ethical Decision Making ◽  
Ethical Issues ◽  
Internet Research ◽  
Critical Study ◽  
Research Practice ◽  
Web Based ◽  
James Wright ◽  
Key Aspects

AbstractThe present article addresses ethical issues and tensions that have arisen in the context of language-focused research on web-based mourning. It renders explicit the process of ethical decision-making in research practice, illustrating key aspects of a process approach to research ethics, which calls for reflection on ethical issues as an integral and dynamic part of the project (Markham and Buchanan 2015. Ethical considerations in digital research contexts. In James Wright (ed.) Encyclopedia for Social & Behavioral Sciences. Elsevier Press. 606–613; Page et al. 2014. Researching Language and Social Media: A student guide. Oxon: Routledge). In addition, the article draws attention to some vexing ethical tensions raised in research practice and, in particular, to the uses of the terms private and public in research ethics frameworks and in discipline-specific discussions. Based on Gal’s (2005. Language ideologies compared: metaphors of public/private. Journal of Linguistic Anthropology 15 (1): 23–38) semiotic investigation of the private/public opposition, it is shown how the two categories are used as a language ideology of differentiation that discursively contrasts spaces and forms of emotional communication. It is argued that such metaphorical uses of the terms limit their currency in internet research on language, mourning, and death online, which tends to feature the construction and staging of a public self in semi-public contexts. The article concludes with a discussion of the implications of the issues raised in language-focused research on web-based mourning for research ethics as method (Markham 2004. Method as ethic, ethic as method. Journal of Information Ethics 15 (2): 37–55) and calls for the critical study of the key concepts that underlie research ethics stances as a key step in rethinking – or ‘undoing’ – ethics (Whiteman 2012. Undoing Ethics: Rethinking Practice in Online Research. London: Springer).

Ethical Dilemmas in Online Research

2008 ◽  
pp. 3612-3619
Author(s):  
Rose Melville
Keyword(s):  
Data Privacy ◽  
Ethical Issues ◽  
Internet Technology ◽  
Internet Research ◽  
Online Research ◽  
Ethical Challenges ◽  
Cultural Groups ◽  
Ethical Practices ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
Uniform Code

Online research raises unique ethical concerns (Ess & AoIR, 2002), including the treatment and recruitment of participants, gaining consent, accessing electronic forms of data, privacy, and responsibility to the participants of online mediums (e.g., discussion lists and groups). Until the mid-1990s, very little attention was paid to ethical issues in online research for the following reasons: • This communication medium was a very recent phenomenon (Ess & AoIR, 2002; Mann & Steward, 2000) • Internet research posed different ethical challenges for researchers in comparison to conventional face-to-face settings • Existing ethical regulations and ethics review boards did not cover the new ethical issues raised by Internet research • It was too difficult to develop a uniform code of ethical conduct for Internet research given the diverse disciplines, countries, and cultural groups using the Internet (Ess & AoIR, 2002) • The complexity of Internet technology itself, which made adapting conventional ethical practices and processes problematic (Anders cited in Mann & Stewart, 2000; Mann & Stewart, 2000; Thomas, 1996; Whittaker, 2002)

Ethical Issues in Internet Research

2018 ◽  
pp. 597-616
Author(s):  
Bo Mai ◽  
Maria Repnikova
Keyword(s):  
Content Analysis ◽  
Privacy Protection ◽  
Ethical Issues ◽  
Legal Framework ◽  
Internet Research ◽  
Ethical Framework ◽  
Sociocultural Context ◽  
Political Repression ◽  
Ethical Implications ◽  
Methodological Approaches

This chapter examines ethical issues in Internet research by considering the case of China. Drawing on the notion that an Internet ethical framework should be flexible enough to allow for “ethical self-direction and (in case of error) correction,” it explores the ethical implications of China’s own unique sociocultural context for Internet research. The chapter begins with a discussion of the important sociocultural variables that must be taken into account in the application of the Chinese Internet for research purposes, including the pervasive censorship, political repression, and a weak legal framework for privacy protection. It then reviews existing methodological approaches to Chinese Internet research and their ethical ramifications, such as online experiments and surveys, content analysis, and digital ethnography. It also proposes some strategies for ethical navigation of the Chinese Internet space, including the use of virtual names for participants and hiding the original websites of sensitive blogs.

scholarly journals Internet research ethics and the policy gap for ethical practice in online research settings

2014 ◽  
Vol 44 (1) ◽  
pp. 22-37
Author(s):  
Jacqueline G Warrell ◽  
Michele Jacobsen
Keyword(s):  
Research Ethics ◽  
Ethical Issues ◽  
Research Community ◽  
Internet Research ◽  
Online Research ◽  
Current Policy ◽  
Ethical Practice ◽  
Temporal Aspects ◽  
Ethics Policy ◽  
Internet Research Ethics

A growing number of education and social science researchers design and conduct online research. In this review, the Internet Research Ethics (IRE) policy gap in Canada is identified along with the range of stakeholders and groups that either have a role or have attempted to play a role in forming better ethics policy. Ethical issues that current policy and guidelines fail to address are interrogated and discussed. Complexities around applying the human subject model to internet research are explored, such as issues of privacy, anonymity, and informed consent. The authors call for immediate action on the Canadian ethics policy gap and urge the research community to consider the situational, contextual, and temporal aspects of IRE in the development of flexible and responsive policies that address the complexity and diversity of internet research spaces.  

“It’s not black and white”

2019 ◽  
Vol 29 (1) ◽  
pp. 123-143 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sharinne Crawford ◽  
Stacey Hokke ◽  
Jan M. Nicholson ◽  
Lawrie Zion ◽  
Jayne Lucke ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Health ◽  
Health Research ◽  
Ethical Issues ◽  
Cost Effective ◽  
Public Health Research ◽  
Internet Research ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Research Participants

Purpose The internet offers an opportunity for researchers to engage participants in research in a cost-effective and timely manner. Yet the use of the internet as a research tool (internet research) comes with a range of ethical concerns, and the rapidly changing online environment poses challenges for both researchers and ethics committees. The purpose of this paper is to highlight the key ethical issues of using the internet to recruit, retain and trace participants in public health research, from the perspectives of researchers and human research ethics committee (HREC) members. Design/methodology/approach This study employed a qualitative design using semi-structured interviews with eight public health researchers and seven HREC members in Australia to explore the key ethical issues of using the internet to engage research participants. Findings The study identified commonalities between researchers and HREC members regarding the utility and ethical complexity of using the internet to recruit, retain and trace research participants. The need for guidance and support regarding internet research, for both groups, was highlighted, as well as the need for flexibility and responsiveness in formal ethical processes. Originality/value This research contributes to the understanding of how the internet is used to engage participants in public health research and the ethical context in which that occurs. Supporting the ethical conduct of internet research will benefit those involved in research, including researchers, HRECs, organisations and research participants.

scholarly journals MORE THAN MEETS THE EYES: THE LENS OF VISIBILITY IN INTERNET RESEARCH

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Myles ◽  
Daniel Trottier ◽  
Mélanie Millette ◽  
Claudine Bonneau ◽  
Viviane Sergi ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Ethical Issues ◽  
Digital Technologies ◽  
Social Reality ◽  
Social Identities ◽  
Social Recognition ◽  
Internet Research ◽  
The Past ◽  
Digital Materiality ◽  
The Social

The objective of this panel is to examine the analytical and empirical relevance of the “visibility lens” for Internet research. In the past decade, researchers have started to take a specific interest in the constitutive role of online visibility in the organization of social reality. Studies have underlined the fundamental role of visibility afforded by digital technologies in the social recognition or exclusion of individuals, groups, and communities. They have also identified visibility and its management as being constitutive of social identities, relations, and practices among actors in a variety of fields. So far, Internet researchers have provided various definitions and operationalizations of online visibility. For example, visibility can be apprehended as both a political lever for individuals and collectives or as a conceptual category for researchers to make sense of social reality. Visibility is also frequently associated with digital materiality. As such, it is sometimes used as a criterion to categorize digital technologies regarding the control they allow for users to manage and disclose personal contents or activities. Furthermore, visibility can also be conceptualized as an affordance that is enabled by the functionalities of digital technologies and enacted through their situated uses. In this panel, presenters will raise theoretical, methodological, and ethical issues linked to visibility by drawing from a series of case studies. They will then draw similarities and contrasts between cases, as well as discuss the implications and, indeed, the relevance of formalizing the lens of visibility in the field of Internet research.

scholarly journals Ethical, Practical, and Methodological Considerations for Unobtrusive Qualitative Research About Personal Narratives Shared on the Internet

2018 ◽  
Vol 17 (1) ◽  
pp. 160940691878820 ◽  
Author(s):  
Meridith C. Burles ◽  
Jill M. G. Bally
Keyword(s):  
Qualitative Research ◽  
Ethical Decision Making ◽  
Ethical Issues ◽  
Personal Narratives ◽  
Internet Research ◽  
Institutional Review Boards ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Online Content ◽  
Ethical Challenges ◽  
Methodological Considerations

As Internet research grows in popularity, attention to the ethics of studying online content is crucial to ensuring ethical diligence and appropriateness. Over recent years, ethical guidelines and recommendations have emerged to advise researchers and institutional review boards on best practices. However, these guidelines are sometimes irrelevant, overly rigid, or lack recognition of the contingent nature of ethical decision-making in qualitative research. Furthermore, varied ethical stances and practices are evident in existing literature. This article explores key ethical issues for qualitative research involving online content, with a focus on the unobtrusive study of personal narratives shared via the Internet. Principles of informed consent and confidentiality are examined in depth alongside practical and methodological considerations for unobtrusive qualitative research. This critical exploration contributes to ongoing discussion of ethical conduct of Internet research and promotes ethically aware yet flexible approaches to online qualitative research and creative methodological efforts to overcoming ethical challenges.

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