Ethics, Self-Study Research Methodology and Teacher Education

Abstract

What does it mean to be an ethical self-study researcher? It is well understood that educational research, particularly social research, is fundamentally and inherently underpinned by ethical practices, responsibilities and professional obligations (Ginsberg & Mertens, 2013; Lapadat, 2017; Zeni, 2001). Ethical research practice reflects a researcher’s moral sense (Kitchener & Kitchener, 2013) and includes addressing ethical principles such as justice; gaining informed consent; “do no harm” (Ernst, 2009); respect; beneficence and reciprocity. Regulatory boards, such as Internal Review Boards and Human Research Ethics Committees, provide guidelines and frameworks for ethical research conduct, and these expectations may be culturally driven and context specific. While research ethics and ethical practice have been extensively examined in broader qualitative and quantitative paradigms, this volume specifically examines the role of ethics in self-study research. In many ways, the self-study ethics research presented in this volume reflects what has been described as “metaethics” which is a practice that “asks questions about the meaning of ethical words, the logic of justifying moral decisions and the reality of moral properties” (Ginsberg & Mertens, 2013, p. 2).