Question

The introduction of the Internet poses new opportunities as well as new challenges to the conduct of research. Experimental research can now be conducted without researcher and participant ever meeting face-to-face. What do you think are some ethical issues to consider when conducting experiments by Internet? Please give examples to support your points and, remember, your Initial Response should be at least 350 words.

Answer 1

Experimental research has become the major source of research and learning amongst the masses. It has given them the opportunity to work from their premises and explore the hidden aspects. Lets take an example of cosmos. NASA and other space agencies are responsible to explore the cosmos, in which they have to examine end number of stars, galaxies and other heavenly bodies, However with limited time and equipment it becomes difficult to manage and process truckload of data. So to tackle this, online platforms provide the user with tasks in hand to investigate far reaching galaxies through their computers and transfer the data to the requisite space industries. This is possible with the aid of internet based research and learning.

However there are few ethical issues associated with it, lets discuss them in brief. Issues like data protection and participant privacy posses a major problem, for example when data that was posted on the internet for other purposes is then used for research. It is believed that, if information is posted on the internet and in the public domain, people assume that their data will not be shared in public domain but how sure can they be about this belied of theirs especially if the information is pertaining to  children or other vulnerable groups who may post information about themselves without understanding the extent to which their information could be disseminated or used. While countries like UK have their own data protection bills and are adamant to protect the rights of their consumers, there needs to be a global consensus on the use of publically accessible data when the extent of the owners’ (the study participants’) awareness of its use is unclear, especially when the participants are from a country that is different from the researchers’ or are a vulnerable group.Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act of 2004 lays out the principles under which any personal information should be collected and secured. The act suggests that appropriate administrative, physical, and technical safeguards should be put in place to protect the personal information against theft, loss, and unauthorized collection, use, copying, modification, or disclosure.

Surveys and interviews are common and well-developed methods of online research. In conducting surveys and interviews online, ethical concerns may arise with regard to obtaining informed consent, ensuring anonymity of the participants, and maintaining confidentiality of the data. Consent is considered to be knowledgeable when individuals know the purpose of the information collected about them and their right to give, withhold, or withdraw the consent anytime they wish.

Enrolling participants for research involves some open and clear communication between the researcher and the potential participants, however this may be compromised in virtual settings. Different ways through which an online consent can be obtained include emails or online statements that may require participants to agree to the terms of participation, thus implying consent. However, it is difficult to verify whether the participant has actually read the details carefully, whether there are any misunderstandings and issues in comprehension, and whether the person who is giving the consent is the authentic participant . Furthermore, verifying certain information such as age or mental capacity to give the consent can also be difficult

Researchers should provide complete details of the study, including a readily available link that provides contact information, study aims, data collection procedure, potential benefits and harms, and steps taken to maintain anonymity and confidentiality of the participants. These steps ensure that the participants have opportunities to reach out to the investigators and clarify if they have any questions or concerns. Other ways to ensure participants read and understand the study details in online settings include use of multistage consent forms, enhancing readability of the document by reducing the amount of text, use of subheadings, or colors. Flicker and colleagues propose that “concerns about identity fraud could be addressed by asking the same questions in multiple formats and then checking for discrepancies”. Prior or pilot testing the consent forms and survey questionnaires are other important ways to minimize the risk of unintended consequences at later stages of the research

While online research methods have several advantages, the ethical challenges associated with them are many. In addition, lack of homogeneity in the terminology and typology of online research methods often leads to confusion and makes it difficult for new researchers to find uniform guidelines to practice these methods. While the guiding ethical principles applicable to online research are the same as those applicable to any research involving human participants, application of these principles can be different depending on the type of the online method and its purpose.