Getting students to ‘do ethics’

Dr Katy GraleyHull University Business School

K.Graley@Hull.ac.uk

What I’ll cover

• Policies• Procedures• Getting ‘buy in’ from supervisors• ‘Mainstreaming’ ethics in your RM teaching• What & When• Activities to try• Assessing research ethics

Research Ethics Policies

• Ensure you understand your institution’s policy on research ethics– Do they have one? – More than one?

• What are the key areas covered?• What is the philosophy behind it?• How did it originate?• Consider the author(s) as guest speaker(s)

Respect: For people and opinions that may form part of a research project

Risks: You need to consider your personal safety and the safety of others

Rights: Everyone involved must understand expectations, rights (including right to withdraw), and our obligations to them

Routes: You must receive ethics approval before collecting any data

Record keeping: Includes permissions for interviews and recording of interviews

Pentagon of good

research ethics

practice

The ‘Research Ethics Pentagon’ or ‘5 Rs’

Research Ethics Procedures

• Likely to be different for staff and students• Possibly different for different student groups• Different for different types / risk levels of research• How does your department view research ethics? A

specific procedure? Who is involved?• What are the key requirements and timescales

involved?

Ensure this is outlined clearly in the handbook!

The Supervisory Team

• Do a briefing on expectations and responsibilities with the supervisory team - as early as possible!

• Ensure they understand the process• Encourage them to bring up ethics in meetings

with students• Ensure marking requirements are understood

Teaching Research Ethics

• Sits in Research Methods / Dissertations modules

• Ideally don’t just ‘tag in on’ but weave into each session

• Start with what they already know eg. business ethics, CSR, stakeholder theory

• Start with the carrot – then use the stick!• Link to assessment

What and When• Choice of topic• Philosophy• Choice of method• Recruiting participants• Interactions with participants• Data collection• Data analysis• Writing up • Reflection• Dissemination

Introducing Ethics

Activities

• Starting with what they already know– What does unethical research mean/ look like?– What does ethical research mean/ look like?

• Quick examples • More in depth case studies• Stakeholders in research• Designing their own policy & process• Reflection throughout the research process

Assessment

Proposal Stage– Participant information sheet– Consent form– Research Ethics Approval form

Further assessment– Reflective piece / critical essay / blend of the two

Dissertation submission– Outline expectations for practice, reflection, and

appendices to be included

Remember the Mantra!

Ethical research practice is good research practice