Dilemmas in Research: Issues of Vulnerability and Disempowerment for the Social Worker/Researcher

Undertaking ethical qualitative research in public health: are current ethical processes sufficient?

“…19 This reluctance to disclose research difficulties highlights that (particularly novice) researchers may not have access to effective debriefing or supervision and suggests the need for clear guidance and information on safe research practice. Educating researchers on ethical issues that can arise during research as well as the skills, strategies and support that may be required throughout a qualitative project is necessary.…”

Ethical Issues in the Use of In-Depth Interviews: Literature Review and Discussion

“…The fifth study is of 19 participants who were predominantly social workers who had undertaken postgraduate or undergraduate research [45]. The themes that emerge from the participants primarily are: first, the role conflict between being a researcher and a social worker; second, the exploitation of participants for the sake of, say, a qualification; and third, problems with supervision.…”

“…Many papers suggest ways to avoid harm, both to participants and to the researcher [31,43,45,47,51,59,64,68,69,85]. Minimizing the risk of researcher burn-out and safety issues are addressed in some detail and may be summarized under the themes of personal and group support, education and training and addressing practical concerns.…”

“…They might potentially harm both interviewees [10,15,16,31,33,49,77] and interviewers [4,37,39,45,51]. Bereavement research is a particular example [9,36,59].…”

“…Others consider the related issue of researchers' legal or professional duties when protecting confidentiality where a crime is reported or witnessed [45,71,87].…”