Abstract
This research note reflects on the gaps and limitations confronting the development of ethical principles regarding the accessibility of large-scale data for civil society organizations (CSOs). Drawing upon a systematic scoping study on the use of data in the United Kingdom (UK) civil society, it finds that there are twin needs to conceptualize accessibility as more than mere availability of data, as well as examine the use of data among CSOs more generally. In order to deal with the apparent “digital divide” in UK civil society – where, despite extensive government rhetoric about data openness, organizations face not only the barriers of limited time, funds, and expertise to harness data but also the lack of representation within existing data – we present a working model in which ethical concerns accompanying data utilization by civil society may be better accounted. This suggests there is a need for further research into the nexus of civil society and data upon which interdisciplinary discussion about the ethical dimensions of engagement with data, particularly informed by insight from the social sciences, can be predicated.
Highlights
This research note reflects on the gaps and limitations confronting the development of ethical principles regarding the accessibility of large-scale data for civil society organizations (CSOs)
In order to deal with the apparent “digital divide” in United Kingdom (UK) civil society – where, despite extensive government rhetoric about data openness, organizations face the barriers of limited time, funds, and expertise to harness data and the lack of representation within existing data – we present a working model in which ethical concerns accompanying data utilization by civil society may be better accounted
Innovation: The European Journal of Social Science Research 53 volume, and variety” (Laney 2001) of Big Data obscures deeper questions: what is being done with data but who is able to access it? What are the societal effects of this accessibility – or lack thereof? Vonnegut, an American author who often expressed concern about humans squandering ecological, intellectual, and technological resources, captured the significance of questions like these over 25 years earlier
Summary
Following Arksey and O’Malley (2005), this study employed a scoping study methodology to map the literature underpinning the concepts of Big Data and civil society in the UK context. Often part of a longer process of systematic review, scoping studies are useful when there is an undefined amount of evidence at hand (Levac, Colquhoun, and O’Brien 2010). Identification of relevant studies occurred in a series of iterative waves from January to March 2014 using Social Science Citation Index (SSCI), Social Science Research Network, Applied Social Sciences Index & Abstracts (ASSIA), Cochrane Library, and the Campbell Library, supplemented by Google Scholar searches.. Retrieved studies prompted further searches of bibliographies, which in turn generated more relevant literature. Each piece of literature was initially screened on keywords, title, and, if available, an abstract. Relevant studies were obtained, charted, tagged with keywords, and stored in an electronic database. A total of 202 items were collected in the course of this study.
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