Covert observation in practice: lessons from the evaluation of the prohibition of smoking in public places in Scotland

Abstract

Background: A ban on smoking in wholly or substantially enclosed public places has been in place in Scotland since 26 th March 2006. The impact of this legislation is currently being evaluated in seven studies, three of which involve direct observation of smoking in bars and other enclosed public places. While the ethical issues around covert observation have been widely discussed there is little practical guidance on the conduct of such research. A workshop was therefore convened to identify practical lessons learned so far from the Scottish evaluation.

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