Introduction
The global educational paradthe igm has evolved from the ancient learning techniques to modernized forms of learning where the quality of education is drawing considerable attention in a bid to produce professionally competent individuals. Undertaking scientific research has been a contemporary learning practice in institutions of higher learninthe g across the world.
The need to embrace ethical principles in education is one of the issues that arise when conducting modern scientific research where learners should be ethically grounded to certain principles while undertaking research. Asthe scientific research continues to be an intricate and arduous process, at times, students breach ethical principles of research. This essay explores ethical principles within the professional practice in studthe ents’ specialization while focusing on core ethics that are necessary for doctoral research.
Overview (modern doctoral scientific research & ethical principles)
The education paradigm grew exponentially, which resulted in the integration of modernized learning techniques that require learners to undertake comprehensive scientific research studies. This contemporary learning practice covers a new generation of researchers, which are integrated into culturally diverse groups with high interaction dynamics due to a rapid globalization process, thus making it a challenge to supervise doctoral students (Ekblad, 2006).
While undertaking a doctoral degree, scientific research is essential in the learning practice where learners undertake a comprehensive research investigation on certain areas of study. During the learning process, which involves scientific writing, learners may make unethical mistakes that ruin their learning outcomes (Ekblad, 2006).
Doctoral scientific research covers carrying out a literature review, conducting research, and compilation or finalization of the dissertation manuscript. All these processes demand ethical principles that learners should adhere to to meet the educational standards required in research work.
Ethical issues in the literature review
Ethical issues are paramount in doctoral research work, and literature review is one of the practices that are essential in conducting scientific doctoral research (Tendler, 2013). A literature review is a researching process that entails employing techniques in evaluation and analysis of previous researches concerning the same concept to understand one’s primary findings. In the literature review, learners seek relevant data from prior journals, books, newspapers, and other materials.
In the progression of undertaking a literature review, learners get into unethical practices by breaching a continuum of research principles, which affects their professional doctorate research projects (Tendler, 2013).
Given that scientific research writing is a complex and demanding process, consciousness and clarity are important aspects, and at the same time, accuracy and integrity are elementary components. Foremost issues that demonstrate serious concerns regarding ethical dilemmas involved in scientific research writing are serious cases of plagiarism, issues of informed consent, adherence to utmost standards of quality, and other ethical and legal compliances.
Plagiarism in scientific research
The issue of plagiarism, which forms one of the renowned unethical lapses in research works, is instrumental to understanding the essential ethics in a literature review. Plagiarism is a form of unethical and illegal practice occurring in more subtle instances that entail using other people’s information in the form of ideas, research methods, or documented data without the authors’ consent (Ekblad, 2006).
Learners should respect the information provided by authors and understand that literary theft is a felony, and consequently it affects academic appraisal as it undermines academic integrity. The responsible scientific and academic inquiry should appreciate the principles governing appropriate writing practices where researchers’ integrity counts.
Academic integrity involves learners’ commitment to values of responsibility, fairness, respect, honesty, and legality involved in scientific research work (Tendler, 2013). While undertaking a literature review, understanding legal aspects including the breach of intellectual property rights, respecting professional standards and practices, and remaining honest in educational procedures are fundamental components of ethical learning that subsequently promote academic integrity in scientific research.
Acknowledging or consenting owners
One of the commonly breached requisites of research work, which is relative and closely connected to plagiarism, is the failure to acknowledge the owners of the used information. Plagiarism is broad, and it mainly entails scientific research misconducts such as violation of privacy norms, defamation, personation, abuse of research resources, and deliberate neglect of intellectual property rights or even sabotage issues (Tendler, 2013).
Failure to acknowledge the sources of the ideas discussed in the literature review, text derived from a certain publication, or improper paraphrasing of other scholarly writings amounts to serious felony regarding copyright infringement. Violating copyright laws regarding the code of ethics in academic research involves researchers’ failure to observe and respect relevant legal norms governing publication and dissemination of information without owners’ consent (Tendler, 2013).
In a bid to avoid such issues, learners should learn to acknowledge information owners through proper citation and referencing practices, appropriate selection, and application of research methodologies coupled with following other relevant guidelines throughout the research work. Students should also avoid self-plagiarism and other unethical practices during research work.
Ethical considerations in conducting research
Another significant stage in undertaking scientific research that accounts for a great proportion in determining the effectiveness and reliability of the findings is the conducting of primary research that involves substantial fieldwork (Tendler, 2013). Primary research is the actual study that determines the effectiveness of the formulated objectives and it seeks to investigate the convictions stipulated in different theories where empirical evidence seeks to affirm theoretical perspectives.
Researchers engage in fieldwork to assemble data that answer specific research questions, objectives, or rationales. As noted by Fouka and Mantzorou (2011), at this research stage, comprehensive personal involvement significantly determines the outcome of the research and several ethical issues emerge during this fundamental researching period.
Common ethical matters that come out during primary research, which regularly breach the code of ethics in academic research, include issues concerning informed consent, privacy and confidentially of participants, principles of data handling and reporting, novice mentorship and issues of mistakes, and negligence.
Informed consent in scientific research
Primary research, as an integral process involved in undertaking doctoral research, requires substantial commitment and understanding of ethical aspects regarding informed consent is paramount (Tendler, 2013). The initial process should begin from seeking permission from the Institutional Research Board (IRB).
The researcher assumes the responsibility of undertaking scientific research in ethically and appropriate manner while considering essential aspects regarding cultural and social dimensions. Informed consent is one of the majorly rising ethical issues in scientific research and it means that participants should be well versed and prepared to partake in the study.
Researchers should ensure that individuals participating in the study make informed personal decisions to participate in the research without coercion. As explained by Fouka and Mantzorou (2011), the code of research conduct and ethics advocates for “voluntary informed consent, liberty of withdrawal from research, protection from physical and mental harm, or suffering and death” (p.4). Both novice and experienced researchers should acknowledge the autonomy of participants and only accept voluntary consent.
Privacy and confidentiality
Fear is a common aspect amongst participants on the possible consequences of participating in a scientific study as the information they willingly provide and approve may return to haunt them later. This aspect normally troubles researchers, hampers individuals from participating in certain studies that contain sensitive matters, and leads to the acquiring of unreliable data from the primary study (Fouka & Mantzorou, 2011).
Respect for fidelity and dignity of participants, privacy, anonymity, and confidentiality, which closely connected to the rights of beneficence, are essential research components that assure participants’ freedom of expression and freedom from intimidation. Research should understand essential aspects regarding the protection of the participant and promise to cover their anonymity and privacy in the research (Fouka & Mantzorou, 2011).
In modern research, disclosure of sensitive data to third parties is prohibited and elements touching on confidentiality including reckless public information sharing even through social networks are illegal practices too. Researchers should provide safe cover for the participants, cover them from any form of harm, and assure them privacy through confidentiality and anonymity.
Risk assessment, mistakes, and negligence
Before engaging in any form of doctoral scientific research, especially one that involves comprehensive human participation, risk assessment to ascertain possible risks and benefits of research is an integral practice. The principles of rights of beneficence that entail professional mandate to avoid harm or injury towards research participants should be determined under the assistance of mentors for novice researchers where possible (Tendler, 2013).
There should be care for both human and animal welfare and considerable acknowledgment of risks involved when participants engrain in the study. The researcher should ensure that mistakes, whether technical in nature or from human conduct, are minimal or avoided as much as possible to cushion the reputation of the report.
Negligence is another issue in scientific research where researchers fail to adhere to the guiding principles and ethics when undertaking research work. It involves deliberate lack of proper utilization of risk assessment tools, lack of proper procedural accountability, valid consent, breach of anonymity, and confidentiality as such elements are detrimental to participants.
Ethical requirements in dissertation compilation
The research process is normally diverse and comprehensive with a sensitive framework. The culmination of the scientific research is essential to determine whether the investigation finally achieved its intended purpose and arrived at a possible conclusion regarding the problem under inquiry (Ekblad, 2006).
Ethical considerations arise even at the final process of scientific research where data compilation, publication, and dissemination are the major stages involved. The researcher at this point should be informed about information handling and processing as well as being aware of the consequences involved in the improper distribution of information collected from the research and its findings.
According to Fouka and Mantzorou (2011), malpractices against academic integrity occur when researchers mishandle data from participants, research data, and sensitive data obtained from the research processes. Key issues that may result in ethical dilemmas during culmination include data handling, reporting, and results in disseminating processes.
Data handling and reporting
During scientific research methodology, critical aspects of data handling and reporting of findings in any form of report documentation are among foundations and specific requirements essential in the research practice.
Each research should be lawful and it contains aspects of honesty where researchers should consider proper management of research data, which entails proper data protection and publication (Tendler, 2013). From data gathering, sorting, analysis, and presentation during the academic research, both novice and experienced researchers in the doctoral level should handle sensitive, personal, and research data appropriately.
Researchers should espouse explicit written consent to acquire the participant’s personal information and record research data with appropriate referencing while observing issues of anonymity and confidentiality. According to Tendler (2013), it is paramount to be sensitive when handling ethical and racial data with the origin of religious beliefs, labor relations, physical or mental conditions, the sexual life of participants, and data containing legal parameters.
Dissemination of data
Scientific research is a broad process with a stiff framework and its ethics run throughout the successive procedures. As postulated by Fouka & Mantzorou (2011), research ethics involve requirements on daily work, the protection of the dignity of subjects, and the publication of the information in the research. The process of data dissemination is also significantly diverse and it requires observation of principles governing data publication and dissemination of findings obtained from a study.
The publication should follow all protocols involved in the research production process, and learners conducting doctoral research should publish their reports in compatibility with the realities of contemporary academic publishing. Novice researchers should be aware of the consequences associated with the dissemination of reports in the wider media.
Before full documentation and compilation of the report through the dissemination process, understanding of the principles governing intellectual property rights, the principle of beneficence, privacy, accountability of authorship, confidentiality, and anonymity should act as guidance to the dissemination process.
Conclusion
Doctoral scientific writing involves three major processes that are bound by certain principles articulated in the code of ethics for educational research. Key phases of doctoral research writing that carry aspects of ethics involve a literature review where plagiarism is the most unethical lapse observed.
Conducting primary research is another imperative phase that requires an understanding of ethical issues such as negligence, issues of informed consent, confidentiality and anonymity of participants, and information provided among others. The last process is handling of data and dissemination processes where ethical issues also heavily count. Of greatest importance, researchers should observe the code of ethics during their research work to maintain educational integrity.
Reference List
Ekblad, S. (2006). Ethics and diversity need to be considered in successful international doctoral supervision. World Cultural Psychiatry Research Review, 2(3), 96-101.
Fouka, G., & Mantzorou, M. (2011). What are the major ethical issues in conducting research? is there a conflict between the research ethics and the nature of nursing? Health Science Journal, 5(1), 3-14.
Tendler, S. (2013). Code of research conduct and research ethics. Web.