Abstract
Online social environments offer a rich source of data that researchers can harvest to gain insight into a wide range of social issues. This type of research is sometimes considered as observation of public behaviour, and therefore exempt from ethical review. This type of research, however, raises ethical issues with respect to the public/private nature of online spaces, consent, and anonymity in the online environment. This project examines research ethics guidelines for recommendations regarding the use of harvested online data, identifying best practices for researchers who engage in this type of research. Les media sociaux offrent une riche source de données que les chercheurs peuvent récolter pour mieux comprendre un large éventail de problèmes sociaux. Ce type de recherche est parfois considéré comme une observation du comportement du public, et donc exempt de tout examen éthique. Ce type de recherche, cependant, soulève des problèmes éthiques en ce qui concerne la nature publique / privée des espaces en ligne, le consentement et l'anonymat dans l'environnement en ligne. Ce projet examine les lignes directrices en matière d'éthique de la recherche pour des recommandations concernant l'utilisation des données récoltées en ligne, identifiant les meilleures pratiques pour les chercheurs qui s'engagent dans ce type de recherche.
Highlights
Online social environments, including social media platforms and online discussion groups, provide important platforms for individual expression and interpersonal connection
Researchers and research ethics boards (REBs) considering the ethics of this type of research would benefit from a comprehensive and integrated summary of the ethical considerations and approaches available in various guidelines: it is exactly such a summary that we present here
Researchers wishing to use harvested online data for research purposes must ensure that they respect the autonomy and anonymity of their ‘participants.’ It cannot be assumed that online spaces are ‘public’, and available for observational research without further ethical consideration
Summary
Online social environments, including social media platforms and online discussion groups, provide important platforms for individual expression and interpersonal connection. These platforms provide researchers with a source of data that can be mined for valuable insight into social issues. This guidance, is variable and often incomplete, with the result that ethical considerations and practices vary substantially between researchers and across institutions. This project examines research ethics guidelines, including the TCPS2 and others, with respect to their coverage of and recommendations concerning research involving the harvesting of social media data. The results summarize the treatment of these issues in guidelines, available in English, that apply to research and researchers in Canada and internationally, culminating with a set of best ethical practices for research that involves this type of data
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