Keywords
research about organizations and institutions
ethical concerns
procedural ethics
public interest
critical inquiries
How to Cite
Number of views: 2093
Number of downloads: 721
Abstract
This paper concerns ethical considerations when conducting research about the policies, procedures, practices, and culture of organizations and institutions rather than research with the humans owning, operating, employed at, volunteering for, benefiting from, or impacted by the organization. Ethical conventions for research with humans are well developed but less so for research about organizations. A pressing concern in the nascent literature is weighing protecting the public interest versus the organization’s interests when sensitive, controversial, or damning information about the latter emerges from the research. Given the absence of formally codified procedural ethics, organizational researchers are encouraged to constantly reexamine, debate, and address related ethical concerns. In that spirit, an inaugural compendium of ethical concerns and recommended strategies gleaned from the literature reviewed is shared, and a discussion of omissions from said literature is tendered to scaffold future conversations around this ethical aspect of organizational research.
References
Baker L., Phelan S., Snelgrove R., Varpio L., Maggi J., & Ng S. 2016. “Recognizing and Responding to Ethically Important Moments in Qualitative Research,” Journal of Graduate Medical Education 8(4):607-608. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4300/JGME-D-16-00384.1
Bell E. & Bryman A. 2007. “The Ethics of Management Research: An Exploratory Content Analysis,” British Journal of Management 18(1):63-77. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-8551.2006.00487.x
Bell E. & Wray-Bliss Ed. 2009. “Research Ethics: Regulations and Responsibilities,” in D. Buchanan & A. Bryman (Eds.), Sage Handbook of Organizational Research Methods (pp. 78-92). Sage.
Benčin R., Šumič-Riha J., Strle G., & Riha R. 2015 (June). Ethics Assessment and Guidance in Different Types of Organisations. Satori. Available online at: https://satoriproject.eu/media/3.e-Universities.pdf (accessed October 10, 2023).
Berger R. 2015. “Now I See It, Now I Don’t: Researcher’s Position and Reflexivity in Qualitative Research,” Qualitative Research 15(2):219-235. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/1468794112468475
Berterö C. 2016. “Guidelines for Writing a Commentary,” International Journal of Qualitative Studies on Health and Well-being 11, Article 31390. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3402/qhw.v11.31390
Borgatti S. P. & Molina J. L. 2005. “Toward Ethical Guidelines for Network Research in Organizations,” Social Networks 27(2):107-117. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socnet.2005.01.004
Braddock C. H. 2018. Truth-telling and Withholding Information. University of Washington Medicine. Available online at: https://depts.washington.edu/bhdept/ethics-medicine/bioethics-topics/detail/82 (accessed October 10, 2023).
Canadian Institutes of Health Research, the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada, and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council 2019.
“Tri-Council Policy Statement: Ethical Conduct for Research Involving Humans [TCPS 2 2018].” Catalogue No: RR4-2/2019E-PDF. Available online at: https://ethics.gc.ca/eng/documents/tcps2-2018-en-interactive-final.pdf (accessed September 15, 2023).
Canadian Institutional Research and Planning Association 2012. “Code of Ethics for Institutional Research.” Available online at: http://cirpa-acpri.ca/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/CIRPA-CODE-OF-ETHICS_Approved-16-April-2012_EN_FINAL.pdf (accessed September 5, 2023).
Collinson W. 2021 (July). “The Public Interest,” Ethical Journalism Network. Available online at: https://ethicaljournalismnetwork.org/the-public-interest (accessed September 10, 2023).
Eccles R. G., Newquist S. C., & Schatz R. 2007. “Reputation and Its Risks,” Harvard Business Review 85(2):104-114. Available online at: https://hbr.org/2007/02/reputation-and-its-risks (accessed September 10, 2023).
Economic and Social Research Council 2005. “Research Ethics Framework (REF).”Available online at: https://www.york.ac.uk/media/abouttheuniversity/governanceandmanagement/governance/ethicscommittee/hssec/documents/ESRC_Re_Ethics_Frame_.pdf (accessed October 12, 2023).
Economic and Social Research Council. 2015. “ESRC Framework for Research Ethics: Updated January 2015.” Available online at: https://webarchive.nationalarchives. gov.uk/ukgwa/20220207164637/http://esrc.ukri.org/files/funding/guidancefor-applicants/esrc-framework-for-research-ethics-2015/ (accessed September 10, 2023).
Farquhar J. D. 2012. Case Study Research in Business (1st ed.). Sage. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4135/9781446287910
Gall M. D., Gall J. P., & Borg W. R. 2015. Applying Educational Research (7th Ed.). London: Pearson.
Greenwood M. 2016. “Approving or Improving Research Ethics in Management Journals,”Journal of Business Ethics 137:507-520. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10551-015-2564-x
Gregg H. R., Restubog S. L., Dasborough M., Xu C., Deen C. M., & He Y. 2022. “When Disaster Strikes! An Interdisciplinary Review of Disasters and Their Organizational Consequences,” Journal of Management 48(6):1382-1429. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/01492063221076808
Ho L. S. 2013. Public Policy and the Public Interest (1st Ed.). London: Routledge. Institute and Faculty of Actuaries 2019. The Actuaries’ Code (Version 3). Available online at: https://www.actuaries.org.uk/system/files/field/document/Revised%20Actuaries%27%20Code%20FINAL.pdf (accessed September 10, 2023). Jay 2014 (May 28). “Difference between Legal and Ethical Issues,” in O. Dawson (Ed.), DifferenceBetween.COM. Available online at: https://www.differencebetween.com/difference-between-legal-and-vs-ethical-issues/ (accessed October 12, 2023).
Jeanes E. 2017. “Are We Ethical? Approaches to Ethics in Management and Organisation Research,” Organisation 24(2):174-197. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/1350508416656930
Jones M. 2014. Researching Organizations. Sage.
Kristensen C. J. 2023. “Research Ethics and Organizations: The Neglected Ethics of Organizational Ethnography,” Journal of Organizational Ethnography 12(2):242–253. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/JOE-11-2022-0031
Langley A. & Royer I. 2006. “Perspectives on Doing Case Study Research in Organizations,” M@n@gement 9(3):81-94. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3917/mana.093.0081
Martin J. 2002. Organizational Culture. Sage. DOI: https://doi.org/10.4135/9781483328478
McGregor S. L. T. 2020. “Transdisciplinarity and Transpraxis,” Transdisciplinary Journal of Engineering & Science 11:74-89. DOI: https://doi.org/10.22545/2020/00134
Millum J. 2012. “Canada’s New Ethical Guidelines for Research with Humans: A Critique and Comparison with the United States,” Canadian Medical Association Journal 184(6):657–661. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1503/cmaj.111217
Mirvis P. H. & Seashore S. E. 1979. “Being Ethical in Organizational Research,” American Psychologist 34(9):766-780. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1037/0003-066X.34.9.766
Morse J. M. 2005. “Ethical Issues in Institutional Research [Editorial],” Qualitative Health Research 15(4):435-437. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/1049732305274575
Nadel M. V. 1971. The Politics of Consumer Protection. Indianapolis: Bobbs-Merrill. Office for Human Research Protections 2019 (March 19). “Companion Q&A’s about the Revised Common Rule.” Available online at: https://www.hhs.gov/ohrp/ sites/default/files/Revised-Common-Rule-Q-and-As-march2019.pdf (accessed September 6, 2023).
Resnik D. B. 2020 (December 23). “Essay: What Is Ethics in Research & Why Is It Important?” National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences. Available online at: https://www.niehs.nih.gov/research/resources/bioethics/whatis/index.cfm (accessed September 10, 2023).
Rodgers M., Thomas S., Harden M., Parker G., Street A., & Eastwood A. 2016. “Developing a Methodological Framework for Organisational Case Studies: A Rapid Review and Consensus Development Process,” Health Services and Delivery Research 4(1):1-141. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3310/hsdr04010
Rowley J. 2004. “Researching People and Organizations,” Library Management 25(4/5):208-214. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/01435120410533792
Runeson P. & Höst M. 2009. “Guidelines for Conducting and Reporting Case Study Research in Software Engineering,” Empirical Software Engineering 14:131-164. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10664-008-9102-8
Scott, W. R. 2008. Institutions and Organizations (3rd Ed.). Sage.
Shamoo A. & Resnik D. 2015. Responsible Conduct of Research (3rd Ed.). Oxford University Press.
Shaw D. & Townend D. 2021. “Research with Human Participants in the European Union,” in D. Orentlicher & T. K. Hervey (Eds.), The Oxford Handbook of Comparative Health Law (pp. 613-630). Oxford University Press. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/oxfordhb/9780190846756.013.19
Sin C. H. 2005. “Seeking Informed Consent: Reflections on Research Practice,” Sociology 39(2):277-294. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1177/0038038505050539
Stake R. E. 1995. The Art of Case Study Research (1st Ed.). Sage.
Stake R. E. 2003. “Case Studies,” in N. K. Denzin & Y. S. Lincoln (Eds.), Strategies of Qualitative Inquiry (2nd ed.) (pp. 134-164). Sage.
United Kingdom Research and Innovation 2021 (August 17). Framework for Research Ethics. Available online at: https://www.ukri.org/councils/esrc/guidance-forapplicants/research-ethics-guidance/framework-for-research-ethics/our-coreprinciples/#contents-list (accessed September 10, 2023).
Warren S. 2009. “Visual Methods in Organizational Research,” in D. Buchanan & A. Bryman (Eds.), Sage Handbook of Organizational Research Methods (pp. 566-582). Sage.
World Health Organization 2023. Ensuring Ethical Standards and Procedures for Research with Human Beings. Available online at: https://www.who.int/activities/ensuring-ethical-standards-and-procedures-for-research-with-human-beings (accessed September 10, 2023).
Yin R. 2018. Case Study Research and Applications (6th Ed.). Sage.
License
Copyright (c) 2023 Sue L. T. McGrego
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.