Ethical Considerations in Action Research

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ETHICAL CONSIDERATIONS IN ACTION RESEARCH

Meaning and importance of ethics in research :


Derived from the Greek word “ethos”, which means “way of living”, ethics is a branch of philosophy
that is concerned with human conduct, more specifically the behavior of individuals in society. Ethics
examines the rational justification for our moral judgments; it studies what is morally right or wrong,
just or unjust.
Besides the above mentioned meaning, ethics in research focuses on the disciplines that study
standards of conduct, such as philosophy, theology, law, psychology, or sociology. One may also define
ethics as a method, procedure, or perspective for deciding how to act and for analyzing complex
problems and issues. For instance, in considering a complex issue like global warming, one may take
an economic, ecological, political, or ethical perspective on the problem.
There are several reasons why it is important to adhere to ethical norms in research.
1. It promote the aims of research, such as knowledge, truth, and avoidance of error. For example,
prohibitions against fabricating, falsifying, or misrepresenting research data promote truth and
reduce error.
2. Since research often involves collaboration and coordination among many different people
across disciplines and institutions, ethical standards promote values that are essential to
collaborative work, such as trust, accountability, mutual respect and fairness.
3. A number of ethical norms help to ensure that researchers can be held accountable to the public.
For example, federal policies on research misconduct, conflicts of interest, protection of human
subjects, and the care and use of animals are necessary to ensure that researchers funded with
public money can be held accountable to the public.
4. Ethical norms in research also help to build public support for research. People are more likely
to fund a research project if they can trust the quality and integrity of the research.
5. And Finally, many of the research criteria promote other important ethical and social values,
such as social responsibility, human rights, animal welfare, compliance with the law, and public
health and safety.

Ethical considerations in Action research:

1. Principle of informed consent: one of the important ethical norms in research is the notion
of informed consent. Meaning, the researchers must inform the subjects/ participants about their
participation in the research process. The researchers must ensure that the subjects in the
research process understand the process of research, what is the goal , what methods will be
used, and any inconveniences or risk the participants may have to face.

2. Principle of right to privacy and confidentiality: the ethical principles of confidentiality


includes responsibility of the researchers to protect information, data collected from the
subjects. Also the researchers must ensure privacy that no authorized person has access to any
data concerning the participants of research.
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3. Principle of Right to withdraw: principle of withdrawal ensuring the participants the right to
withdraw from the process of research at any time for any reason without penalty.

4. Principle of Proper method: As the action research is conducted on the classroom situation
or educational setting, the researchers must adopt methods that are suited to the objectives of
the study , so the findings of the study are valid , reliable and generalizable.

5. Principle of Cultural sensitivity: researchers should be sensitive enough about the cultural
differences of participants and must adress the issues carefully to prevent any discomfort to the
cultural sentiments of any group of participants.

6. Principle of protecting the rights of the child and vulnerable people: researchers must
comply with Article 3 and 12 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of child.
Moreover, researchers must ensure that they comply with legal requirements in relation to
working with school children, vulnerable young people and vulnerable adults.

Besides these, there are some general codes of ethics which the researchers should abide by in
conducting research.

1. Honesty : researchers must maintain honesty in data collection, analyzing data, reporting data,
results, procedure and publications.

2. Objectivity: researchers should be avoid bias in experimental design, data analysis, data
interpretation, peer review, personnel decisions, grant writing, expert testimony, and other
aspects of research where objectivity is expected or required.

3. Openness: researchers should be flexible to welcome new ideas and criticism, and willing to
share data, results, ideas, tools etc. with others.

4. Seek permission: researcher need to obtain consent from school, from participant and other
concerned.

5. Non-discrimination: researchers should not discriminate anybody on the basis of sex, religion,
caste or other factors that are not related to research purpose.

6. Animal care: researchers should show proper respect and care for animals when using them in
experimental research.

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