Lecture 7 ARM Flashcards
Ethics in Anthropological Practice (21 cards)
What is ethics? ORwhat are ethics? DOOOOIINK
Used in different contexts
Singular (what is ethics) - philosophical field of study as a system of moral principles - as a concept
Plural (what are ethics) - the individual moral principles or rules or guidelines, oftentimes multiple considerations
Ethics (morals)
- roadmap that helps us navigate through different features
- rules for distinguishing between right and wrong OR
-norms for conduct that distinguish between ACCEPTABLEand UNACCEPTABLE behaviour - also change regarding to cultural contexts
Medical ethics
The Hippocratic Oath
- Oldest form of ancient ethics
- All doctors are to follow these guidelines
- Most important: Do no harm
Five key components of ethics
- Moral principles
- Ethical theories
3.Applied ethics - Moral relativism vs absolutism
- Ethical decision-making
Key component of ethics 1: Moral principles
Fundamental beliefs about right or wrong that guide our behaviour
(depending on socialisation, intuitive, universal values, fundamental rights, core beliefs about justness and fairness)
EG in anthropology - treating people as valuable beyond their contribution to a research
Key component of ethics 2: Ethical theories
Systemic ways of thinking about moral problems. Each are used for different kinds of ethical challenges
eg virtue ethics, deo-ontological, utilitarianism, care ethics…
Key component of ethics 3: Applied ethics
How theory is applied to actual practice
Developing guidelines for fields, protocols, solving real world dilemmas
EG signing informed consent - detailed protocol for agreement of participants
Key component of ethics 4:Moral relativism vs absolutism
Challenging - are moral truths universal or culturally relative?
Absolutism - there are something always wrong or right independent of context
Relativism - whether something is wrong or right depends on the cultural context
Pluralism - mutliple can co-exist
Universalism - some basic principles will always exist no matter what
Eg in anthro: egalitarianism (everyone is equal) - if you come from a egalitarian society studying a society where status is determined by birth - how do you study this “objectively?”
Key component of ethics 5: Ethical Decision-Making
Practical process of making ethical choices- considering all perspectives, reflecting on outcomes, identify the ethical issue before or during, make reasonable decisions and evaluate the result of these decisions. - bringing together all the other components
Stances on ethics
1)Universalism
2) Situation ethics
3) Ethical transgression
4) Anything goes (more or less)
5) Deontological
6) Consequentialist
Depending on the situation, you can take multiple stances
Universalism stance
Ethical principles should never be broken.
Even in difficult situations
Eg white lies could never be told
Situation ethics stance
Each case should be considered independently. Opposite universalism.
Ethical transgression stance
Claims that social researcher’s ethical transgressions are relatively trivial - perspective that compares the social harm of some disciplines than other fields
Anything goes stance
There is a certain amount of flexibility in ethical decision making - more relaxed to ethics in general.Can lead to inconsistency
Deontological stance
An act is either right or wrong.
Focus on action rather than principles.
Consequentialist stance
Whether an act is right or wrong depends on its consequences. Focus on the outcomes if they provide less harm.
Five focal points in ethics!
- Informed consent OR passive deception
2.Privacy - protecting personal information through robust methods - Do no harm - what do you do if you see harm as a social researcher? Harm can be many different things.
- Exploitation - are you exploiting people by using them for data?
- Consequences for future research - how will the research impact the population for good and bad? Colonialist ethnography has affected current access
Passive deception
When the researched are not told the complete truth about the research
NOanthropologists do this - more in psychology
Historical context - case studies for our ethics today
1 - Tuskegee Syphilis study - participant never told they were given syphilis nor offered treatment (informed consent, racism, vulnerable population, longterm consequences on community trust - how to trust medical system again?)
2 - Stanford Prison Experiment - college students creating a simulated prison, with guards and prisoners - creating psychological harm for prisoners
3 - Milgram Experiment - obedience on authority through giving “electric shocks”
The difficulties of ethical decision making
1 - unexpected ethical issues can arise - rarely black and white contexts
2 - ethics is a live issue - we must pay attention and monitor it
3 - online data creates new ethical challenges
4 - informed consent can be difficult or impossible with covert methods and with visual methods
How to decide whether asking for ethical permission is required or might be wise
- your research has a direct impact on life of participants
- your research may pose a risk to yourself or assistants
- your research is situated in a field of clashing interests
- your own interests may dash with those concerned
- your project could imply risks for human dignity, life, freedom, property, environment, or peaceful coexistence - that can be misused third parties
