Terms and Conditions May Apply (But Have Little to Do With Ethics)

Galbraith, Kyle L.

doi:10.1080/15265161.2016.1274796

Cited by 8 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 5 publications

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“…Although EVT was initially developed in the context of interpersonal communication, it also offers a theoretical framework for ethical considerations of online platform-based research. Relying on formal practices such as institutional review or compliance with terms of service is unlikely to address user norms and expectations because social media users are often unaware of research taking place on online platforms (Fiesler and Proferes, 2018), rarely read terms of service (Galbraith, 2017), and interpret the meaning of formal policy documents according to pre-existing expectations (Martin, 2015). Given the limitations of these formal practices, researchers can develop better understandings of user expectations from empirical ethics research (Fiesler and Proferes, 2018; Kennedy et al, 2015; Schechter and Bravo-Lillo, 2014) and from the emerging literature on folk theories of platforms (Devito et al, 2018; Eslami et al, 2016).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Unexpected expectations: Public reaction to the Facebook emotional contagion study

Hallinan

Brubaker

Fiesler

2019

New Media & Society

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How to ethically conduct online platform-based research remains an unsettled issue and the source of continued controversy. The Facebook emotional contagion study, in which researchers altered Facebook News Feeds to determine whether exposure to emotional content influences a user’s mood, has been one focal point of these discussions. The intense negative reaction by the media and public came as a surprise to those involved—but what prompted this reaction? We approach the Facebook study as a mediated controversy that reveals disconnects between how scholars, technologists, and the public understand platform-based research. We examine the controversy from the bottom up, analyzing public reactions expressed in comments on news articles. Our analysis reveals fundamental disagreements about what Facebook is and what a user’s relationship to it should be. We argue that these divergent responses emphasize the contextual nature of technology and research ethics, and conclude with a relational and contextual approach to ethical decision-making.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Unexpected expectations: Public reaction to the Facebook emotional contagion study

Hallinan

Brubaker

Fiesler

2019

New Media & Society

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“…Privacy and data use policies are outlined in click-to-agree contracts and in website Terms of Service. Few users read or comprehend these often lengthy and indecipherable agreements and few understand how to protect their privacy online [ 126 ]. Discourse on how these issues apply in research is growing [ 127 ], yet literature exploring whether privacy risks are exacerbated for minors and vulnerable groups online is limited.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Ethical issues in using the internet to engage participants in family and child research: A scoping review

et al. 2018

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BackgroundThe internet is an increasingly popular tool in family and child research that is argued to pose new ethical challenges, yet few studies have systematically assessed the ethical issues of engaging parents and children in research online. This scoping review aims to identify and integrate evidence on the ethical issues reported when recruiting, retaining and tracing families and children in research online, and to identify ethical guidelines for internet research.MethodsAcademic literature was searched using electronic academic databases (Scopus, PsycINFO, Embase, ERIC, CINAHL and Informit) and handsearching reference lists for articles published in English between January 2006 and February 2016. Grey literature was searched using Google to identify relevant ethical guidelines.ResultsSixty-five academic articles were included after screening 3,537 titles and abstracts and 205 full-text articles. Most articles reported using the internet to recruit participants (88%) with few reporting online retention (12%) or tracing (10%). Forty percent commented on ethical issues; the majority did not discuss ethics beyond general consent or approval procedures. Some ethical concerns were specific to engaging minors online, including parental consent, age verification and children’s vulnerability. Other concerns applied when engaging any research participant online, including privacy and confidentiality, informed consent and disparities in internet access. Five professional guidelines and 10 university guidelines on internet research ethics were identified. Few academic articles (5%) reported using these guidelines.ConclusionsEngaging families and children in research online introduces unique challenges requiring careful consideration. While researchers regarded themselves as responsible for ensuring research is conducted ethically, lack of use of available guidelines and limited academic literature suggests internet research is occurring without suitable guidance. We recommend broad dissemination of ethical guidelines and encourage researchers to report the methodological and ethical issues of using the internet to engage families and children in research.

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“…Consideration of fairness needs to actively foster the use of data to produce knowledge that supports social agency and empowers vulnerable groups, thus explicitly targeting concerns around visibility and representation. This is where the concept of data justice proves effective, focused as it is on fostering fairness in the ways in which people are ‘ made visible, represented and treated ’ through big data (Galbraith, 2017; Taylor, 2017), thus enhancing people’s capacity for action. Data justice aims to counter undocumented bias in datasets that over-represent some population to the expense of others, thus actively and explicitly identifying and eradicating forms of discrimination that limits people’s ability to participate in society (D’Ignazio and Klein, 2020; Veale and Binns, 2017).…”

Section: What Is Data Fairness Within Research?mentioning

confidence: 99%

From FAIR data to fair data use: Methodological data fairness in health-related social media research

et al. 2021

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The paper problematises the reliability and ethics of using social media data, such as sourced from Twitter or Instagram, to carry out health-related research. As in many other domains, the opportunity to mine social media for information has been hailed as transformative for research on well-being and disease. Considerations around the fairness, responsibilities and accountabilities relating to using such data have often been set aside, on the understanding that as long as data were anonymised, no real ethical or scientific issue would arise. We first counter this perception by emphasising that the use of social media data in health research can yield problematic and unethical results. We then provide a conceptualisation of methodological data fairness that can complement data management principles such as FAIR by enhancing the actionability of social media data for future research. We highlight the forms that methodological data fairness can take at different stages of the research process and identify practical steps through which researchers can ensure that their practices and outcomes are scientifically sound as well as fair to society at large. We conclude that making research data fair as well as FAIR is inextricably linked to concerns around the adequacy of data practices. The failure to act on those concerns raises serious ethical, methodological and epistemic issues with the knowledge and evidence that are being produced.

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Terms and Conditions May Apply (But Have Little to Do With Ethics)

Cited by 8 publications

References 5 publications

Unexpected expectations: Public reaction to the Facebook emotional contagion study

Unexpected expectations: Public reaction to the Facebook emotional contagion study

Ethical issues in using the internet to engage participants in family and child research: A scoping review

From FAIR data to fair data use: Methodological data fairness in health-related social media research

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