Can One Get Fish and Bear's Paws at the Same Time Ethical Dilemma of Qualitative Health Research in Chinese Culture

Abstract

Abstract-Ethical considerations of qualitative research are often likely to be ignored or downplayed. This article will follow bioethics principles to explore the dilemmas expressed in the Chinese proverb: One cannot get both fish and bear's paws simultaneously. This succinct expression relates to so many phases of a research, based on the ethical characteristics of qualitative research. Four specific ethical dilemmas will be examined in this paper: the dilemmas between "building trust and rapport" and "informed consent," finding the right balance between "providing benefit to participants" and "coercion through kindness," the trade-off between "burning out researcher" and "ending research relationship," and giving consideration to both "quoting comprehensive qualitative data" and "ensuring participant privacy." Furthermore, the paper explores the different interpretations of autonomy between Chinese culture and Western individualism and their impact on the ethics aspects of qualitative research.