Research Ethics in & beyond the Academy (ARTS90022)

Using a case study approach and in-class debates, the subject takes a critical approach to research ethics, and opens up challenging areas of research conduct. Concepts such as an ethics of care, relational ethics and power relations arising within or created by a research project will be examined. The subject will provide an understanding of the principles of research ethics (both human and animal research ethics), the origins of ethical standards, the cultural specificity of these standards, and of contested areas of research ethics. It will highlight the relationship between academic research ethics and standards adopted in industry through professional codes of practice or standards. The subject is intended to be of use both in terms of framing one’s own academic research project and in developing a level of ethical know-how that can inform research practices beyond an academic setting