Research Ethics & Extant Data

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When I discovered this intriguing article, my first thought was: Sage Research Methods Community readers need to learn about this study! "Ethical approval: none sought. How discourse analysts report ethical issues around publicly available online data" is highly relevant given that more of us are conducting research online.

This interview and related article discuss the kind of research that involves collecting extant data, such as social media posts or comments, websites or blogs, documents, and other existing materials.

Are such materials public or private? What is the appropriate, respectful way to use such materials in your research? Based on what Wyke Stommel and Lynn de Rijk found, it is clear that we need to do a better job when it comes to designing ethical studies that include extant data collected online, and being transparent about choices made and why. Wyke Stommel and Lynn de Rijk agreed to talk with me about their stunning research. We discussed the issues at hand and recommendations for researchers and methods faculty, editors and reviewers.

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The Association of Internet Researchers Ethical Guidelines we mentioned are freely available online. You will note that there are multiple iterations: each builds on, but does not replace, the earlier set. I encourage you to look carefully at the 2012 and 2019 guidelines to learn more about ethical research with participants as well as extant or Big Data.

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Sage Research Methods Community posts about online research