Ethical Issues to Consider in Research Process

Ethics form the pillar of every aspect of human life. They are the principles that ensure fairness
and consideration of others in our everyday activities. These principles ultimately make the
world a better place through better and considerate choices. Like any other activity, research is
based on ethics by the researchers in every step of the study. In research, ethics promote the
study's aims, such as expanding knowledge in the respective field in which the study is carried
out (XXX). They are the principles that guide researchers to conduct and report their studies
diligently and without harming their respondents or the general public in the process. Ethics
improve the outcomes of the study “A second reason to consider ethics in your research is that it
will improve the quality of the outcomes that you achieve” (XXX). The validity and credibility
of any research are significantly dependent on the ethical underlying of the study. Several ethical
considerations should be considered are as follows:

Informed consent

This consideration ensures all potential participants in the study have full knowledge of all the
study details. The researcher should provide all the necessary information that explains to the
participants in detail what the research is all about and the possibility of an undesirable outcome
in their participation. “Gaining informed consent for your study can go a long way to preventing
harm coming to your research participants. This principle concerns providing prospective
research participants with sufficient information for them to decide whether to take part or not in
the study (XXX). It is considered ethical if the participants are given complete information
regarding the study before accepting to participate in the research. If they agree to be part of the
study after being given the study's full details, then that constitutes informed consent required in
research study ethics (XXX). The primary technique to ensure that this aspect of ethics is
fulfilled is by using an information sheet. This information sheet includes all the information
about the research and the potential harms that can face the participants in their participation. For
clarity, the researchers should use simple and easy to-understand language in these information
forms. Involving participants who have all the details about the study increases the credibility of
the study.
Voluntary participation

The participants of the study should be discretional. There should be no attempts to coerce
potential participants to be part of the research project. Participants should be invited to the
study, and if they decline the invitation, they should not be manipulated to change their minds.
The participants should exercise their free will in deciding whether to be part of the study or not
(XXX). Voluntary participants are likely to give more reliable responses than coerced subjects
who might not be interested in the study. The voluntary participation principle also applies to the
provision to withdraw from the study whenever the participants feel uncomfortable. All
participants should be informed of this possibility to increase their confidence in the activity.

Confidentiality and anonymity

These ethical considerations are meant to preserve the privacy of the participants of the study
during the collection, analysis, and reporting of data. In the case of confidentiality, the researcher
has the participants' identity information but has put place measures and policies to protect their
identity (XXX). This is achieved through the systematic separation of the information obtained
from the participant from their identity information. Confidentiality prevents the details from
landing in the wrong hands or their information associated with them after the study. In contrast,
anonymity involves the collection of study information without bothering to collect the
respondents' identity (XXX). The information obtained from the respondents is valued more than
their identity. Application of the two considerations ultimately protects the participants' identity
and thus increases their confidence in the study.

Potential harm

This aspect of ethical considerations in research aims to reduce the harm to the participants of the
study or the public at large. The harm in research can be through various ways. These ways
include emotional harm, social harm, economic harm, physical harm, and psychological harm.
The researchers should identify the potential areas of harm beforehand and devise ways to
eliminate this possibility (XXX). In the case where the instance of harm cannot be eliminated,
the researchers should minimize to the best of their ability to reduce its impact on the participants
and potentially on third parties. Another effective way to eliminate danger to the participants is
to choose a research problem that does not expose the study participants to harm.
Misrepresentation of results

There is a possibility of researchers being tempted to doctor the results in their reporting to suit a
particular view. Any kind of misinformation robs the whole research process of its credibility
and reliability. The actual results obtained during data collection, processing, and analysis should
be maintained at any cost (XXX). This is meant to ensure that the presented results give the
actual state of the problem at hand and not the influence version of the problem. Any aspect of
the research involving deceit and trickery violates the ethical grounds on which a credible study
should be built.

Conflict of interest

Conflict of interest is another ethical consideration that should be eliminated during the research
process. Primarily, conflict of interest arises when the researcher prioritizes their interests and
obligations over their roles. Conflict of interest in the case of research may involve financial or
nonfinancial gains towards the biased researcher. The judgment or impartiality expected in a
researcher is diminished when there is a conflict of interest involved (XXX). As a result, the
credibility of the results obtained from the research is significantly minimal. The responsibility to
identify, control, and declare the possibilities of any instances of conflict of interest’ rests on the
researcher. In the case of unavoidable conflict of interest, the researcher should capture its
existence in the final reports and any submission that the findings are involved. In a research,
researcher should give full disclosure to potential participants in advance on the study's details
and objectives. This will allow them to take part in the study voluntarily. Also, they will have
informed consent for those that will decide to provide information for the research study (XXX).
In DBA's practical research, study often involves colleagues within an organisation,
confidentiality must be ensure to provide them confidence in the study and assertiveness in their
responses. A possible conflict of interest might arise with the organization's senior management,
a limitation that should be captured in the report. Finally, all the information collected should be
reported diligently on the subject without any form of manipulation or interference.