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Six ethical considerations to follow in conducting research in recreation

This is an excerpt from Applied Research and Evaluation Methods in Recreation 2nd Edition by Diane C. Blankenship,Natalia B. Lowe,Jeffrey R. Farr.

Every professional conducting research and evaluation must ensure that the research is being done ethically and within established guidelines. Professionals must follow the guidelines that serve as the national standards for research and evaluation. These guidelines provide all universities and research agencies with ethical rules on how to conduct research. In the real world of the profession, many of the research projects conducted are action research or evaluation. Generally, these types of studies will not harm people; they tend to be a paper-and-pencil exercise, an online survey, or an interview, all of which are very straightforward for professionals and the subject. This does not reduce the importance of examining every research and evaluation project in terms of ethical guidelines and ethical considerations. At a minimum, one needs to revisit the basic ethical considerations for research that are contained in this chapter. This will ensure that the research, data handling, and data analysis are done properly and ethically.

Every college or university across the United States has students or faculty conducting research as part of their graduation requirements or as part of their job. Within the environment of higher education, research is a normal activity pursued by both faculty and students. To ensure that the research projects are being conducted appropriately or ethically, every institution has some type of committee that reviews the plans for research studies. This committee is often called the internal review board (IRB). The IRB’s job is to review the plan for all research studies involving humans and animals to ensure that all institutional and ethical guidelines are met. When students review the research guidelines at their institution, they discover very explicit criteria for the ­application process, consent forms to participate in the research, and ethical considerations. At a college or university, a student cannot begin a research study until the IRB has reviewed and approved the plan. The IRB uses the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services regulation 45 CFR 46, which outlines the protection of human subjects.

Generally, professionals in the field do not have access to an IRB at the agency since this board is associated with higher education and companies conducting research for new medications and treatments. What can a professional do to ensure that the research or evaluation project they are planning adheres to ethical guidelines and will not result in legal action against the agency? The first thing one should do is become familiar with the IRB guidelines at local colleges or universities. This refreshes one’s memory on the topic and provides concrete information about things that should be kept in mind while developing the research plan. The second thing a professional should do is take this information and discuss it with their supervisor. The supervisor can serve as a second reviewer of the information and can help answer any questions regarding legal issues ­associated with the research project. At this point, if one is uncertain about the research plan, it is time to contact the agency lawyer to discuss the concerns. The lawyer can answer questions about the legal implications of the research ­project. By consulting these three resources, professionals can ensure that the overall research plan is appropriate and legal. With that being said, what are the general guidelines that all professionals are expected to follow when conducting research?

Across every field of research, professionals conducting research must consider six ethical guidelines when planning a research study. These guidelines help ensure that the people who are involved in the research are treated appropriately and that the professional conducts themselves appropriately. The ethical guidelines that all professionals conducting research must adhere to are as follows:

1. The professional must ensure that the people involved in the research are protected from harm.
2. The professional must ensure that the identity of the people involved in the research remains confidential.
3. The professional must obtain permission from the parents of children involved in the research.
4. The professional must avoid the use of deception during the research.
5. The professional should use all the data collected for analysis.
6. The professional must not pressure or coerce people to participate in the research.

These six ethical guidelines may or may not apply to the research projects a professional will be conducting, but they should all be reviewed for every project to determine if the research presents an ethical problem. If a problem is identified, then steps must be taken to revise the research plan to eliminate that particular problem. To help professionals and students fully understand the six ethical considerations, each guideline is reviewed in more depth in the following sections.

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Exercise 6.2: Ethical Decision Making

Describe what should be done in each of the following situations in order to comply with the ethical guidelines presented in this chapter.

1. The professor tells his class that they must participate in the research study or they will fail the class.
2. The professional discovers data that do not fit what she thinks is accurate for the group. She decides to exclude these data from the data analysis phase.
3. The professional requires subjects to place their name on the survey and then shares the surveys (with names on them) with a group of graduate students who are assisting with the study.
4. The professional wants to research the social interaction of third graders on the playground. The professional begins the study without the parents’ knowledge of the study and their child’s involvement.
5. The professional tells the students that the questionnaire is 30 percent of their grade, but in reality, the examination is just a test run for a survey.
6. The adventure therapist allows her clients to climb boulders that are 15 feet (4.5 m) above the ground without any spotting or belaying.
7. The park and recreation director requires parents to place their name on the customer satisfaction survey.
8. The day camp coordinator has decided to conduct research to determine how healthy snacks affect the children’s behavior during each camp. This is done without the parents’ knowledge.
9. The day camp director did not like some of the parents’ comments about the staff, so he did not include them in the final report.
10. The program director told parents that if they completed the program evaluation, they would be included in a drawing for a free program of their choice; however, there is no such drawing.

More Excerpts From Applied Research and Evaluation Methods in Recreation 2nd Edition

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