MCQ OF SOCIAL RESEARCH ETHICS AND POLITICS

Question 1

There is a tendency for debates about ethics in social research to focus on the most extreme cases of ethical transgression. Why might this create a misleading impression?

a) Because these studies did not actually take place

b) Because it makes social researchers look like nasty, unscrupulous people

c) Because this implies that ethical concerns do not pervade all social research

d) Because most social research is in fact ethically sound and infallible

Question 2

Which of the following ideas is not associated with the stance of situation ethics?

a) Anything goes

b) Principled relativism

c) The end justifies the means

d) No choice

Question 3

Why is it argued that ethical transgression is pervasive in social research?

a) Because most researchers do not bother to follow a professional code of ethics

b) Because researchers rarely provide their participants with all the information they might want to know about a project

c) Because it helps us to justify the more extreme forms of unethical conduct that we prefer to pursue

d) Because sociologists want to present themselves as inconsiderate and careless

Question 4

Which of the following is a form of harm that might be suffered by research participants?

a) Physical injury

b) Stress and anxiety

c) Impaired development

d) All of the above

Question 5

Why is it important that personal data about research participants are kept within secure, confidential records?

a) So that the participants cannot find out what has been written about them

b) In case individuals, places or organizations can be harmed through identification or disclosure of personal information

c) So that government officials, teachers and other people in authority can have easy access to the data

d) To enable the researcher to track down individuals and find out more about their lives

Question 6

Which method is most commonly associated with a lack of informed consent?

a) In-depth interviewing

b) Qualitative content analysis

c) Covert observation

d) Structured interviewing

Question 7

Why is it "easier said than done" to ensure that the principle of informed consent is adhered to?

a) It is not practicable to present every participant with all the information about the study

b) Sometimes it is desirable to withhold certain pieces of information, such as the length of time an interview will take

c) If the participants knew exactly what the researcher was intending to study, they might change their behaviour

d) All of the above

Question 8

Apart from the fact that it is "not a nice thing to do" (p143), what is an important ethical disadvantage of deceiving participants?

a) It can damage the professional reputation of the researcher and their discipline

b) It makes it more difficult to gain access to deviant or hidden populations

c) It means that records of personal data about the participants cannot be made anonymous

d) None of the above

Question 9

Which of the following factors does not add a political dimension to the research process?

a) The researcher's values, beliefs and prior assumptions

b) The response rate of a social survey

c) The vested interests of the funding body

d) A gatekeeper's concerns about representation

Question 10

Whose side did Becker suggest the social researcher should take?

a) The underdog

b) The fat cat

c) The cash cow

d) The sitting duck

 

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