Chapter 3: The Ethics and Politics of Research

What are some administrative issues in social science research?

• Funding: Limited resources can restrict scope and quality.

• Time Management: Balancing research with other duties; large studies take extensive time.

• Regulatory Compliance: Lengthy approval processes and reporting requirements.

• Data Collection Challenges: Securing participation and representative samples.

• Publication & Peer Review: Navigating the process to share findings.

What are some scientific issues in social science research?

• Systematic Inquiry Methods: Ensuring research is rigorous and unbiased.

• Generalizability vs. Ethics: Balancing broad conclusions with ethical constraints.

• Replication & Reliability: Ensuring studies can be repeated with similar results.

• Complexity of Human Behavior: Human behavior is unpredictable and influenced by many factors.

• Methodological Challenges & Technology: Using the best methods and tools for accurate results.

Examples of various ethical issues in social science research. 

• Voluntary Participation: Participants must choose freely to take part in a study, without being forced or pressured. 

• No Harm to Participants: Researchers must avoid causing physical, emotional, or psychological harm. 

• Anonymity and Confidentiality: Protecting participants’ identities and personal information is essential. 

• Deception: Researchers should avoid misleading participants unless absolutely necessary and must always debrief afterwards. 

• Analysis and Reporting: Researchers are obligated to report findings honestly, without fabricating or misrepresenting data. 

• The Role of Institutional Review Boards: IRBs review research proposals to ensure ethical standards are met and participants are protected.

What ethical issues were involved in the research reported in Tearoom Trade and Milgram’s study of human obedience?

• Humphrey became the lookout for gay men engaging in homosexual acts in public facilities. He wanted to know more about the men, so he wrote down license plates, found their addresses, and then conducted surveys of the men, keeping his identity secret and not revealing the true purpose of his research. This raised ethical issues of deception, invasion of privacy, and lack of informed consent. 

• Similarly, in Milgram’s study of obedience, participants were led to believe they were administering painful electric shocks to others. This involved deception and psychological harm, since many participants experienced intense stress, guilt, and anxiety. 

What are the ways that social scientists now guard against violating these types of ethical issues? 

Today, social scientists guard against such violations through Institutional Review Boards (IRBs), which review research plans to ensure participants’ rights are protected. Safeguards now include informed consent forms, voluntary participation, debriefing after deception, protection of privacy, and strict limits on psychological or physical harm. 

Objectivity

The ability of researchers to set aside personal biases and study social phenomena using facts and systematic methods. 

Ideology

Refers to how beliefs about issues like race, equality, civil rights, and social justice can shape the questions asked in research and how results are interpreted.

• Example: Studies of racial inequality, poverty, or gender roles may reflect the political perspectives of the researchers. 

Political Interference

Occurs when outside political forces influence the design, conduct, or reporting of research, often pushing findings to align with ideological or policy goals.