Ethics statement
We hope the tools we share will help to inspire ideas and create opportunities for people to come together and explore individual and shared experiences in ways that are rewarding and fun. However, as with any research tools, taking part in the process can sometimes be challenging for people or could bring up sensitive issues.
We’ve outlined some key ethical considerations below, but if you are using the tools in a professional context please check your organisational or institutional ethics policy and guidelines before using the tools for research. If these don’t exist, then it’s a good time to produce them!
We follow the Research Ethics Guidance from the UK Social Research Association, which acts as a professional standard for applied research practice, particularly that taking place outside of institutional ethics procedures.
We’ve outlined some key considerations, aligned with this guidance, according to the core tialt values below, however this is not exhaustive and you should think through, discuss and prepare an ethics policy for each research project you engage in.
Care
If you are leading a research project or exercise you have a duty of care to those taking part in it. This means providing reassurance that participation is voluntary and participants can withdraw their participation and contributions at any time.
It means you will do everything you can to avoid and reduce harm to all those taking part. This also means that you can provide additional information or support to anyone who feels they may need it. This means being prepared with additional support resources, or working with partners who can provide them.
It also means being sensible about what tools and methods are appropriate for whom and adapting them wherever necessary. People are more important than data.
It’s better to not use a tool or method if it doesn’t make sense in the moment or will just make you or anyone else feel uncomfortable. Many times we have had to abandon a planned method or approach because it just will not make sense in the research context we find ourselves in.
Respect and co-creation
Nurturing a respectful environment in the research process is very important. Particularly if people are being asked to describe or discuss personal experiences, some of which may be quite sensitive. It is therefore important to assure participants of confidentiality. This means being very clear that things they share in a research process will not be repeated outside of that process, unless they explicitly provide consent.
A good way to establish levels of comfort with participants is to explain what the process involves and what it is for. You can explain the approach you are planning to use and ask if they would like to adapt it in any way, or if they have other ideas for how the research could be done. The level of co-creation possible will vary from project to project, but wherever possible it’s always a good idea to open up the process to further input from those who will be taking part - before it gets going and throughout.
Responsibility and consent
Consent is vital on two levels:
Consent to take part in the research process, based on a full understanding of what this involves.
Consent that contributions can be shared in outputs resulting from the research process (e.g. reports, creative or multimedia outputs).
Ideally consent will be gained in writing (paper or electronically). If this is not possible then informed consent can be obtained verbally after a full explanation of the research process and outputs.
Many of the tools we use suggest some form of sharing beyond the research process itself. If this is happening then you must ensure that everyone is clear about what will be shared, where, in what format and that participants explicitly agree to this. If even one person does not consent to something being shared in a particular format, or is not sure, then you should come up with a different plan.
If you are working with groups where personal informed consent may not be possible due to their age or other life circumstances then these same principles apply and must be followed with the person who can provide consent to participate on their behalf.
We also have a professional responsibility to be sensible; to ensure that we are thinking these things through, planning, sharing with colleagues and keeping informed about these issues.
Trust and anonymity
Trust is central to the relationship between a researcher and those taking part in the research. Along with respect, it’s a good idea to name trust as a core value in the research process itself, unpacking what this means if necessary, and making sure everyone is on board with that.
Trust is also linked to the agreed levels of anonymity. You should decide with each participant to what extent they will be identifiable in the research. We usually default to full anonymity wherever possible. Where this is not (e.g. a very small group of participants or where creative contributions from an individual may be shared publicly) it is vital to be clear about the level of anonymity that will or will not be possible and obtain full and informed consent.
Sometimes people are happy and proud to be identified next to their contributions, other times they may want to share something that they really would not want to be identified against. If you are ever not sure, ask them. Triple-check if necessary.
Ultimately we trust you to use your professional experience and personal ethics to make sensible choices about using these tools. Plan and prepare before any research process and if you are unsure about anything, read-up about it, talk to colleagues, and talk to us and the tialt community!