[Air-L] research ethics again - students and FB

[Dan L. Burk]

See my comment to Sohail, immediately preceeding.  I worry again about
conflating the legal status of the minors with the ethics of their
participation. 

(And I assume the point of creating pseudonomous Facebook accounts is so
that they *wont* be denied social media access in the future!) 

Cheers, DLB 

On 2018-01-11 23:57, Christopher J. Richter wrote:

> As Sohail Dahdal clarifies, the ethics of human subject research turn not on whether the actions subjects are directed to do are laudable, but whether the research involves risk of harm to the participants, in this case, minors. 
> 
> Risks for the participants of the study as proposed might also include that of being denied social media service in future, which for some folks I know would be devastating!
> 
> As for Dan's hypothetical, yes, requiring participants to face risk of arrest (or of being handcuffed, which can be terrifying and actually can hurt, or tear gassed, or billy clubbed or even shot--sometimes the degree of real world risk is difficult to assess) is unethical, especially if, as minors, they are not legally capable of making decisions about the risk themselves.
> 
> Christopher J. Richter, Ph.D.
> Associate Professor, Communication Studies
> Hollins University
> Roanoke VA, USA
> 
> On Jan 12, 2018, at 7:46 AM, Sohail Dahdal <sohail.dahdal at gmail.com> wrote:
> 
> Asking your research subjects to do ethical illegal actions could be either 'ethical research' or not depending on any risk that you might expose your subject to...
> 
> In that sense highly ethical actions could actually be highly unethical research. 
> 
> In the case of FB fake accounts, you have to ask, about the risk to your subject including the risk of forming bas habits not just the legal implications.
> 
> Prof Sohail Dahdal,
> American University of Sharjah 
> 
> On 12 Jan 2018, at 3:30 am, Dan L. Burk <dburk at uci.edu> wrote:
> 
> So we seem to agree on your second statement. 
> 
> Regarding the first: suppose that Charles designs a study that asks
> minors (or really anyone) to engage in civil disobedience.  Perhaps he
> asks them to trespass, with a risk of arrest and an arrest record.  For
> good reasons, like saving baby seals or giving persons of color seats at
> the lunch counter or something.  
> 
> Definitely illegal.  But also highly ethical behavior on the part of the
> study subjects.  
> 
> ls Charles behaving unethically in asking them to behave highly
> ethically but illegally? 
> 
> Not really my rodeo, but I strongly suspect that the behavior is ethical
> all the way down. 
> 
> Cheers, DLB 
> 
> On 2018-01-10 22:07, Christopher J. Richter wrote:
> 
> Ah, but the question is not whether it is ethical for the minors to violate a (for them) non-binding agreement, but whether it is ethical for the presumably adult researcher to require it of them. And just because something is legal, that does not make it ethical. 
> 
> Christopher J. Richter, Ph.D. 
> Associate Professor, Communication Studies 
> Hollins University 
> Roanoke VA, USA 
> 
> On Jan 10, 2018, at 11:37 PM, Dan L. Burk <dburk at uci.edu> wrote:
> 
> So, although I am not saying that the study design is ethical, or even necessarily a good idea, I would most definitely take issue with either the specific assertion that violating an adhesion contract is always unethical (it is called an adhesion contract for good reason), and with the more general assertion that violations of law are always unethical. 
> 
> Also, non-trivially, the assertion is a non-sequitur: minors generally can't enter into binding contracts, so there is by definition no contract for them to violate.
> 
> None of that means you should go ahead and do it; only that if you decline to do so, it should be for some other reasons. 
> 
> Cheers, DLB 
> 
> Dan L. Burk
> Chancellor's Professor of Law
> University of California, Irvine
> ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
> 2017-18 Fulbright Cybersecurity Scholar 
> <b975a236.gif> 
> 
> On 2018-01-10 09:28, Christopher J. Richter wrote: 
> Dear Charles,
> 
> TOS agreements are most often legally binding. Requiring minors (indeed any study participant, but especially minors) to violate a legal contract, whether online or off, is unethical on the face of it. 
> 
> Then there is the issue of deception, of whom and how interactions on the fake accounts are deceiving.  Deception, by definition, undermines informed consent. Will those who are deceived be debriefed? If not, it's problematic.
> 
> Christopher J. Richter, Ph.D.
> Associate Professor, Communication Studies
> Hollins University
> Roanoke VA, USA
> 
> On Jan 10, 2018, at 4:44 PM, Charles M. Ess <c.m.ess at media.uio.no> wrote:
> 
> Dear AoIRists,
> 
> What are your thoughts regarding the following?
> 
> A research project involves a small number of students, legally minors - and requires that they set up fake FB accounts for the sake of role-playing in an educational context?
> Of course, fake accounts are a clear violation of the FB ToS.
> 
> I know we've discussed the ethics of researchers doing this (with mixed results, i.e., some for, some concerned).
> 
> But I'm curious what folk think / feel about this version of the problem.
> 
> Many thanks in advance,
> - charles
> -- 
> Professor in Media Studies
> Department of Media and Communication
> University of Oslo
> <http://www.hf.uio.no/imk/english/people/aca/charlees/index.html>
> 
> Postboks 1093
> Blindern 0317
> Oslo, Norway
> c.m.ess at media.uio.no
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> -- 
> 
> -- 
> Dan L. Burk
> Chancellor's Professor of Law
> University of California, Irvine
> ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
> 2017-18 Fulbright Cybersecurity Scholar 
> 
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-- 
Dan L. Burk
Chancellor's Professor of Law
University of California, Irvine
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
2017-18 Fulbright Cybersecurity Scholar 
 

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