The Possible Contributions of the Concept of Mímesis to Thinking Undergraduate Scientific Research in Times of Regulation of Conduct in Research

Abstract

Research ethics has been the subject of an intense movement of conduct regulation based on a preconceived model under the logic of biomedical sciences. In the context of a mostly normative response to the question of research ethics, this article, based on an exploratory research, aims to investigate the potential of undergraduate scientific research (USR) in stimulating student’s awareness of the issue of ethical conduct in research. For this, the bibliographical research, centered on the concepts of mímesis developed by Adorno and Benjamin, is combined with the analysis of responses given by undergraduate students of the Humanities and Social Sciences with experience in USR to an online questionnaire. The formative potential of USR is affirmed as it is a privileged instance for mimetic behavior, allowing the learning through observation from the practical application of concepts from the moral field to research.