Read on Twitter
Many folks seem to think that ethics in research is black and white; you're either ethical or you are not.
I think that's true in some cases. But in my view, often, ethics are shades of grey. And these grey cases matter a lot! 1/N
I think that's true in some cases. But in my view, often, ethics are shades of grey. And these grey cases matter a lot! 1/N
As such, I'd like to start a thread of grey ethical areas. I'll start out, but please add other areas that you see as grey.
2/N
2/N
p.s. I'm trying to do this in a spirit of honest curiosity. It's not my intent to attack ethics. On the contrary, I greatly admire folks who study ethics professionally *specifically because*, in my view, wading through ethical considerations is so hard. 3/N
Is deception really always bad (as #TeamNoDeception sometimes implies)? What would you choose between deception or killing bugs? 4/N https://twitter.com/JohnHolbein1/status/1304069798914134016
Is it ethical to (potentially) swing an election (either through mobilization or persuasion)? Is it ethical if the party you are helping is the "good" party? Is it ethical as long as you believe what you are doing is--on net--good? 5/N
(5/N cont)... If there is a "good" party, is it ethical to *not* intervene? Does the "good" party have to be clearly superior, or is marginally better OK? Who decides which party is the "good" one? Is it really just individual belief? Or do we collectively decide? 6/N
Is it ethical to conduct research that imposes really small costs on a lot of people, such that the total cost is large? What about an intervention that puts large costs on small groups? Should we really think in terms of total costs? 7/N
A common response to ethical concerns with interventions is, "we partnered with an organization that was going to do this intervention anyway." Does partnering with an organization really cover your tail? 8/N
Is publishing/promoting research that has clear opportunities for bias in its identification strategy ethical? What's our threshold for "clear opportunities" for bias? Who decides? 9/N
Is burying research because you believe it will be weaponized by bad actors ethical? Is it ethical to publish research that is otherwise correct/good but that will cause harm? What's our threshold for harm? Does it vary depending on who is being harmed? 10/N
Should we debrief subjects if we believe that doing so will cause more harm than good? 11/N
If a professional organization to which you belong sets standards for ethical behavior that you disagree with, is it ethical to disobey them? Is it ethical to *not* disobey them? How much disagreement necessitates disobedience/obedience? 12/N
