Applying an Ethics of Care to Internet Research: Gamergate and Digital Humanities

Suomela, Todd; Chee, Florence; Berendt, Bettina; Rockwell, Geoffrey

doi:10.16995/dscn.302

Cited by 14 publications

(12 citation statements)

References 7 publications

(7 reference statements)

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“…The author also discussed the ethics of processing, transmitting, storing, and using information. Key ethical issues that arise during data archiving were explored by Suomela et al (2019). Baeva (2019) described the threats to personal and cultural security associated with online information use.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Digitalization processes vs. traditional ones: ethical and environmental aspects

Serkina¹,

Novikova²,

Sukhorukih³

2022

Ethics. Sci. Environ. Polit.

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At the current level of economic development, the digital transformation of society is an important factor in advancing any social structure. The purpose of the present study was to explore the transformation of a traditional society into a digital one, with a focus on ethical and environmental aspects. The study draws on a variety of information analysis methods to identify strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats of digitalization, including the environmental aspect. Our research revealed that in Russia, the only highly digitalized sectors were information technology and finance. Digitalization is strikingly different in the European countries, where only transport and building industries slowly implemented digital technologies into their business processes. We also examined digitalization levels in 7 Moscow universities. The universities managed to improve their digitalization scores with the help of recommendations developed for online learning, such as selection of quality software, having qualified teaching staff, constant monitoring, and evaluation of knowledge. The findings can be used in economic, social, and environmental spheres since they highlight the ambiguous effects of digitalization using practical examples.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Digitalization processes vs. traditional ones: ethical and environmental aspects

Serkina¹,

Novikova²,

Sukhorukih³

2022

Ethics. Sci. Environ. Polit.

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“…Unlike more traditional basis of ethics, it focuses on the relationships in the research, acknowledging the differences in power that exist along with vulnerability. It also emphasizes the ethical decisions that need to take place in project design ( 90 ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Toward an Ethical Framework for the Text Mining of Social Media for Health Research: A Systematic Review

Ford

Shepherd

Jones

et al. 2021

Front. Digit. Health

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Background: Text-mining techniques are advancing all the time and vast corpora of social media text can be analyzed for users' views and experiences related to their health. There is great promise for new insights into health issues such as drug side effects and spread of disease, as well as patient experiences of health conditions and health care. However, this emerging field lacks ethical consensus and guidance. We aimed to bring together a comprehensive body of opinion, views, and recommendations in this area so that academic researchers new to the field can understand relevant ethical issues.Methods: After registration of a protocol in PROSPERO, three parallel systematic searches were conducted, to identify academic articles comprising commentaries, opinion, and recommendations on ethical practice in social media text mining for health research and gray literature guidelines and recommendations. These were integrated with social media users' views from qualitative studies. Papers and reports that met the inclusion criteria were analyzed thematically to identify key themes, and an overarching set of themes was deduced.Results: A total of 47 reports and articles were reviewed, and eight themes were identified. Commentators suggested that publicly posted social media data could be used without consent and formal research ethics approval, provided that the anonymity of users is ensured, although we note that privacy settings are difficult for users to navigate on some sites. Even without the need for formal approvals, we note ethical issues: to actively identify and minimize possible harms, to conduct research for public benefit rather than private gain, to ensure transparency and quality of data access and analysis methods, and to abide by the law and terms and conditions of social media sites.Conclusion: Although social media text mining can often legally and reasonably proceed without formal ethics approvals, we recommend improving ethical standards in health-related research by increasing transparency of the purpose of research, data access, and analysis methods; consultation with social media users and target groups to identify and mitigate against potential harms that could arise; and ensuring the anonymity of social media users.

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“…Forum posts are important texts for understanding the anti/social nature of online gaming communities (Albrechtslund, 2011;Bergstrom, 2017;Braithwaite, 2014;Brock, 2011;Paul, 2010;Ruberg et al, 2019), but the risk of identifying individual posters sharing personal information requires careful consideration when publishing their words outside the context of the YoWorld forums. In consultation with the Association of Internet Researcher's most recent ethical guidelines (Franzke et al, 2020) and evolving conversations within game studies informed by a feminist ethics of care (Beyer, 2012;Suomela et al, 2019), I now briefly describe the decisions I have made in regards to presenting data in this article. Of particular note is Jessica Beyer's (2012) discussion of best practices for researching forums.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Intended as a quick start guide for readers suddenly asked to avoid congregating in groups during the COVID-19 pandemic, the article offered up a crash course on games that allow for individuals or groups to participate in a leisure activity while practicing physical distancing. Missing from the text of the article and reader comments, however, were any caveats about the toxic underbelly of many online communities-toxicity that is well documented by scholars investigating digital games and the people who play them (Chess & Shaw, 2015;Condis, 2018;Consalvo, 2012;Gray et al, 2017;Suomela et al, 2019). Stakeholders well versed in the anti-social elements of digital games quickly took to social media to warn of the dangers of sending novices into games without proper preparation for the negative interactions they might encounter.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Anti-social social gaming: community conflict in a Facebook game

Bergstrom

2021

Critical Studies in Media Communication

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Social Network Games (SNGs) are played via social networking sites such as Facebook. In this article, I examine some of the negative interactions that happen within SNGs that may be obscured by the assumption-driven by benevolent sexism-that these games are entirely collaborative. Drawing on posts made to an online forum devoted to YoWorld-a long-running Facebook game-I detail player frustrations with bullying and other forms of interpersonal conflict. I argue that if casual games are only ever seen as docile spaces of collaborative play, it reaffirms the gendered and stereotypical assumptions underpinning who plays SNGs and for what reasons. Furthermore, I argue that assumptions about collaborative and welcoming environments may also be setting novice players up for disappointment when they inevitably encounter anti-social behaviors within a SNG gaming community. If SNGs are framed as an easier entry point for girls and women into broader gaming cultures, it is imperative that alongside encouraging their play, we also equip them with the necessary tools to respond to the negative interactions that they might experience, thereby reducing the likelihood of their eventual disengagement from gaming.

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Applying an Ethics of Care to Internet Research: Gamergate and Digital Humanities

Abstract: This is a peer-reviewed article in Digital Studies/Le champ numérique, a journal published by the Open Library of Humanities.

Cited by 14 publications

References 7 publications

Digitalization processes vs. traditional ones: ethical and environmental aspects

Digitalization processes vs. traditional ones: ethical and environmental aspects

Toward an Ethical Framework for the Text Mining of Social Media for Health Research: A Systematic Review

Anti-social social gaming: community conflict in a Facebook game

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