Raili Gothoni
Ethics in research and development work means, succinctly defined, normative ethics, by means of which one tries to prevent wrongs and advance good practices. An extensive view covers questions concerning the legislation and norm system, choosing the topic and the viewpoint, practical action, the relationships between the author of the thesis and different participants, the production of the data and results, and the publication and application of the results. The ethics of using the knowledge concerns the question of to whom and for whom the research and development work is carried out. Collegiality concerns the relationship with the community (Pohjola 2003, 127-128). Because ethical reflection is intertwined with the choices made at different phases of the thesis work, it is important to describe the work process and the reasons for the choices in the thesis. This increases reliability and transparency and is the cornerstone of ethical action (Hallamaa, Launis, Lötjönen 2006).
The ethics of the process of research and development work is regulated by the instructions Responsible conduct of research and procedures for handling allegations of misconduct in Finland, issued by Finnish Advisory Board on Research Integrity. The guiding lines for the ethics aiming to secure the rights of the people involved and their rights as well as the respect for them can be found in the instructions Humanistisen, yhteiskuntatieteellisen ja käyttäytymistieteellisen tutkimuksen eettiset periaatteet ja ehdotus eettisen ennakkoarvioinnin järjestämiseksi (2009) – (Ethical principles in research in the humanities, social sciences and behavioral sciences and a proposal for organizing an ethical pre-assessment, 2009). International research is guided by Guidelines for research ethics in the social sciences, law and the humanities (2006). All research in the health sciences is regulated by Laki lääketieteellisestä tutkimuksesta (L488/1999) – Medical Research Act and Laki potilaan asemasta ja oikeuksista (L785/1992) – Act on the Patient’s Status and Rights. On the whole, the task of ethical committees is to make sure that research and theses take these acts and laws into account.
General ethical principles of thesis work and other R&D activity
In thesis work and other R&D activity, one is to obey the instructions on good scientific practice by Finnish Advisory Board on Research Integrity set up by Ministry of Education and Culture. The basic principles are integrity, carefulness and preciseness throughout the thesis work process. One obeys ethically sustainable methods for information acquisition, research and evaluation methods as well as transparency. The author is to respect the work by others and refer to their publications adequately (Finnish Advisory Board on Research Integrity 2012).
In the thesis work, the student commits himself/herself to the following ethical principles:
Permit, agreement and commitment
In the thesis work, and in all research and development activity, the author has the ethical responsibility. It concerns each choice at the different stages of the work. It is important to be careful with data collecting, data use and data storage (Kuula 2006). Separate ethical instructions have been compiled for research on children and adolescents, which specifically take into account the additional requirements pertaining to the permits and agreements (Lagström, Pösö, Rutanen & Vehkalahti 2010). Also, the vulnerability of elder people entails additional challenges (Nikander & Zechner 2006).
The issuer of the research permit can be the manager of the organization or the managing board. Parishes, bigger organizations and other organizations in the health care and social and educational sector often have their ethical practices in research in a published form. These include ethical committees, the positive statement of which enables attaining the research permit. Cities, parishes and most institutions have homepages containing information on the principles they follow. It is advisable to check there what types of theses (the doctoral dissertation, the pro gradu thesis, the UAS thesis) can attain a research permit in the first place. The process for obtaining the permit is also described. On the pages, there is information on what information is to be given in the application and which criteria are applied when evaluating the applications. The author of the thesis is to follow the instructions carefully and be prepared for the fact that, due to the processing schedules of the ethical committees, it may take months to obtain the permit. The ethical committee supports or prohibits the execution of the research. The ethical committee’s duty is not to issue the permit. The issuer of the research permit is the head of the department, whose duty is to take into account the statement of the ethical committee. If the thesis work is a part of larger development activity, the permits for the thesis work are applied for in conjunction with the entire project.
To apply for a research permit from an ethical committee, an action/research plan is always required, specifying the target group, the research problem, the aims, the method for data collection and analysis. It must also state how the clients are referred to the project or research, and what the author has preliminarily agreed on this with the management of the unit. The data collection method is to be described carefully. The survey questionnaire, the interview outline, the description of observation, the possible use of client/patient data or the plan of an actional thesis work are to be enclosed with the application. Enclosed must also be material to be distributed to the participants, such as an informative paper or the consent form. The application must also include the signature of the author/authors of the thesis and the supervising teacher. This is to make sure that the research plan has been checked and approved by the learning institution and that the teacher commits himself/herself as the supervisor.
In some cases, the thesis work is annexed to a project in such a way that a research permit has been acquired for the entire project, and thus the student need not apply for it separately. In this case, the requirement for ethicalness is even more pressing: the student works with a research permit attained by someone else, as it were, which requires special ethical sensitiveness.
One asks the interviewee or the person participating in the development for a consent, stating clearly what the thesis work is about and what the acquired information is used for. The consent form must include information on the author of the research/development project, the purpose of the project, the use of the data and who has access to it; additionally, it must include the sentence “I have attained information enough to be able to participate in a development/research project”.
In order that children can participate, the guardians’ consent is also needed. The most essential principle of research ethics is the voluntary and adequately informed consent of the persons participating. This means “respecting the autonomy, human right and privacy of a person being researched, as well as his/her right to refuse to participate at any phase” (Nikander & Zechner 2006, 518).
To listen to the participants themselves and to accentuate inclusion is important in all activity in the social, health care and educational and ecclesiastical field, and in development and research work pertaining to it. To listen means not only the role as informants but also including the participants as researchers and developers together. Building trust is the cornerstone of cooperation. At the same time, one must make sure that to participate or to refuse to participate will not complicate the lives of the participants, and that the results will not harm them.
Commitment
Commitments in thesis work concern the student himself/herself, the supervisors, the work community and DIAK. In the thesis work, one writes, in a reflective way, on one’s own position and its potential effect in the work. The development work commitment also involves the non-disclosure commitment. The commitment means that the author of the thesis commits himself/herself to the execution of the research or development work in an honest way, using the methods agreed upon and adhering to the schedule agreed upon, with a standard as high as possible – and to the acquisition, use, process and storage of the data in accordance with the promises.
Ethically, it is problematic if the author of the thesis work acts on the basis of his/her own prejudices and opinions, and in order to strengthen them. Indeed, one must critically reflect on what kind of professional interest and the values in the background possibly affect the development process and the knowledge being acquired. To critically reflect on one’s own role is a sign of work of a high quality. What kinds of ethical questions or conflicts can the simultaneous role of a practicant or employee and the author of a thesis cause? How does this affect the methodological choices and communication? How does one prepare himself/herself for possibly emerging negative issues for the work community or hidden conflicts of interest? The author of the thesis should be aware of his/her own preconceived assumptions: his/her wishes, desires, interests and fears.
The most unethical thing is the author’s intentional research misconduct and dishonesty. They are realized as fabricating the results, fraud, plagiarism, i.e. copying the work of someone. If the plagiarism is exposed, the work is rejected immediately, possibly with other ensuing sanctions depending on the seriousness of the misconduct. At DIAK, in the degree regulations and other instructions, there are separate stipulations on plagiarism, the evaluation of the thesis work and the rectification of the evaluation.
Data collection, analysis, storage of the data and disposal, reporting
Data collection
Ethical problems with data collection can be connected with the rights of the participant and the relationships between the author of the thesis and the participant. The participant has the right to attain accurate and sufficient information on the nature of the research, its aims, author and purpose of use. He/she has the right to decide whether or not he/she will participate in the research. He/she also has the right to interrupt the participation at any time without any explanation or sanctions whatsoever.
The consent of the informed participant requires both self-determination and the competence to use it. Even if the parents or the guardian give the permit, but the child or a person with a developmental disability, for example, does not want to participate, he/she cannot be forced to do so. In all development and research activity, the non-violability of the human right of the participant is respected.
The number of internet surveys in data collection has increased. Then the essential ethical questions are the recognizability of the respondents, their inclusion, non-violability and confidentiality. In all surveys, one must openly ponder on the representativeness of the respondents. An internet survey, for example, best reaches active respondents and the response rate can be low.
Also, the use of existing databases, for example, the use of internet discussions as data, has increased. Ethical reflection concerns informing the persons to be researched, asking for permits and privacy at different stages of the thesis work. The more publicly known the arena is, the smaller is the duty of the author of the thesis to protect the privacy of the discussants and ask for their consent. In direct quotations, to leave out names and pseudonyms or to change them is, even in this case, in agreement with general anonymity practice.
Participatory observation requires not only the permit form the organization but also the condition that those participating in the action are informed of the observation and the role of the observant. Journal notes, for example, are often important data in the context of carrying out the thesis work. Sometimes, the issue is evaluating one’s own action and observations pertaining to it. In all this, the privacy of other persons participating in the action in to be taken into consideration.
Ethically, it is a situation involving a conflict if the author of the thesis and the research participant are in a mutually dependent relationship, which can affect the voluntariness of providing information, for example, student – teacher, manager – employee, helper – object of help. In the thesis work, this and the potential effect are to be pondered on.
Use of sources in the literature
Source criticism is essential when using both historical material and the results of earlier researchers. This means an evaluation of how the data has taken shape, what kinds of limitations and special features are connected with it, and how it fits in with one’s own work. Ethics requires openness. To fit in with earlier research and the comparison or the results with those of the others requires that source notes be accurate. When using the results and text of another person, one must always state the source. In this way, the work of other people is respected, the reader is helped to find the literature bearing on the work, and the ascertaining of the conclusions made by the author of the thesis is enabled. To bring out in the open the deficiencies and conflicts of the research in a reflective way and to evaluate their significance is a greater merit than to try to hide the deficiencies.
The author of the thesis is obliged to store the data in such a way that no-one else can have access to it. The participants have been informed of how the student or the cooperation partner in the development work will store the data, who has the right to access it, how it is to be used, and whether a register will potentially be created out of the data, and when the data is to be disposed of. Confidentiality means living up to this promise. The practices concerning storing and disposing of the data are changing. The discussion on the accrual of collected data for open databases and continuums has recently become more intense (see the discussion http://www.aka.fi/fi/akatemia/media/Ajankohtaiset-uutiset/2015/avoin-tiede).
Disposing of the material must be done carefully, as promised. The digital material of the data must be deleted, and, after the file has been moved into the trash bin of the computer, the trash bin is to be emptied separately.
In reporting, ethicalness may mean the following things:
1)The action and the results are documented and presented honestly and carefully.
2) The reporting has been thought through to ensure anonymity. For many, the condition for participating in thesis work is anonymity. Therefore, the presentation and comparison of very small groups, as well as other such information which enables recognition, is to be avoided in the reporting. It is advisable to change the names, and this must be mentioned in the report. The report must be compiled in such a way that it will not cause harm to those participating in the development and thesis work.
3) It is stated when the permit was received and who issued it.
4) The ethical questions of reporting have been discussed in the report.
The theses at DIAK are published as open access web publications in the Theseus database. Occasionally, one needs to consider the secrecy of the data and the results. The publicity of the knowledge and the results, and presenting and defending the results of the thesis publicly are part of carrying out development and research work.
Information on copyrights is readily available in Tekijänoikeus suojaa luovaa työtä – Copyright protects creative work (2006), published by Copyright Information and Anti-Piracy Centre in Finland. According to the law, the protection by the copyright begins at the moment the work is created. No formalities, for example, registration or the use of the copyright sign, are required. Works include, for example, compositions, written and oral presentations, reports and brochures, photographs, computer programs, databases, maps, plays, films, videos, choreographs, drawings, paintings, buildings as well as works of art industry and handicraft. The Catalogue Protection Act in the Copyright Act concerns catalogues or similar works which contain a great amount of information in a combined form, and databases whose creation has required a great deal of economic or another type of investment.
The author has economic and moral rights to his/her work. The economic rights regulate the use and distribution of the work. The moral rights predominantly protect the honor of the author. It is a good practice to mention the name of the author whenever the work is used. Also, one is not allowed to change or use the work in a way that may infringe on the author.
The duties of the Ministry of Education and Culture, as a ministry responsible for copyright issues, include, among other things, developing the copyright legislation, the copying and recording agreements concerning learning institutions and state administration, and other tasks of the copyright administrations such as setting the cost for the redressive duty. These regulate, for example, the legitimate number copies to be taken of books.
For the broadcasting and public presentation of performances stored on audio recordings and visual music recordings, musicians and singers are eligible for compensation (the Gramex compensation). If the product of a thesis work is, for example, a video, one must carefully consider whether one will choose music on the video, for which Gramex and Teosto compensations must be paid.
The permit of the photographer is needed when copies are made of a photograph or when the photograph is shown publicly on distributed on the net.
Regarding joint articles, one can ask who can require that his/her name be in the article. The general principle is that joint work requires joint writing and knowledge production. Even though the work pair or the members of the team can allot the work in a way deemed appropriate, the work must be recognizable as a joint effort and the work allotments must be commensurable to a sufficient degree. One regards as essential the transparency and ethicalness of the process whereby the authors and their order are stated in the author list. The requires joint discussion.