Ethics

If your community engagement is part of your research process, you will have considered ethics as part of research ethics and integrity. Considering what is ethical is also important for activities not connected to research.

The University’s Ethics Advisory Group for Engaged Research (EAGER) will provide advice on ethical conduct for projects that don’t need formal research ethics approval. This may include community engagement projects involving children and vulnerable groups. EAGER will also provide Research Ethics Committees and colleagues with advice on how to involve members of the public and communities in research.

UUN@ed.ac.uk and password required

Other useful reading is:

• ‘Ethics and Community Engagement’ on Graeme Stuart’s Sustaining Communities blog
• ‘Find Support & Resources’: Outwith: Participatory research and the Library 
• ‘Ethics in community-based participatory research’ from the Centre for Social Justice and Community Action at Durham University 
• Searching the National Coordinating Centre for Public Engagement’s website

Questions to ask yourself and your team

• What are the power dynamics?
• Who stands to benefit, and how much? Is this proportionate to what is being asked of them?
• Communities are not homogeneous. Is everyone comfortable in the same room together?
• Are any consents, e.g. photography, freely given? Could anyone feel a sense of obligation?
• What will happen to the relationships with communities if and when your activity ends?
• Has someone else already done this work or approached this community recently? ‘Engagement fatigue’ is real.
• Have you made best efforts to remove disadvantages that could be created by taking part, e.g., cost of childcare? 
• Is what you’re doing accessible to everyone who could potentially benefit?
• Have people been fully involved in the making of decisions that affect them?