Ethics and impact in research

Ethics and impact in research is a conversation that goes far beyond ticking boxes on an ethics form. Rather it is one that interconnects with so many other conversations in the Higher Education sector – not least equity, diversity, and inclusion, decolonisation, research culture, and the concept of fairness. 

This blog is a summary of Saskia's audio interview with Dr. Ashley Rogers, an ethnographic researcher and senior lecturer in criminology at the University of Stirling. 

Listen to the full conversation on YouTube.

A deep dive into the ethical considerations of impact in research

Back in 2023 I recorded an audio tutorial for our Impact Integrators training programme that featured a fascinating conversation with Dr. Ashley Rogers, an ethnographic researcher and now senior lecturer in criminology at the University of Stirling. Ashley’s work focuses on social justice and crimes of the powerful, with extensive experience in Bolivia exploring women’s experiences of violence and access to justice, as well as more recent research in asylum, refugee rights, and extreme weather events.

Beyond checkboxes: the complex layers of ethics

Ethics isn't a simple, cut-and-dried topic as our conversation quickly reveals. There's also often a lot of discomfort for people around ethics, a sentiment many of us can likely relate to. We delved into the complexities of impact and ethics in research and in particular, these three aspects:

1. Practical: Dealing with informed consent and ensuring participants understand what they're involved in. Ashley emphasises "continued consent" rather than just initial sign-offs, recognising that consent can evolve throughout the research process.

2. Positionality: Acknowledging and critically reflecting on our own identities and how they shape our research. This isn’t a tokenistic gesture for an ethics form, but an ongoing, embodied experience.

3. Philosophical: This is where things get deep. We discussed the often-overlooked realm of morality, values, and beliefs. This layer involves acknowledging the power we hold as knowledge producers and grappling with questions of epistemic justice. Who are we as researchers? Why are we doing this work? What impact do we truly want to have?

Navigating the complexity: an example from Bolivia

To illustrate this, Ashley shared an example from her PhD research in Bolivia. She was struggling to portray the women she worked with as fighters and agents of change, rather than just victims. There was a real sense of power and strength, but that didn’t always come through in her writing. This led us to reflect on the narratives we create in our research and whether they accurately reflect the realities and agency of our participants and question how societal structures, the researcher's positionality, and dominant philosophical paradigms can unintentionally shape research outputs.

Impact and the REF hero narrative: a critical look

The conversation then turned to impact as framed by the Research Excellence Framework (REF). We acknowledged the positives – the increased focus on the meaning and change brought about by research. However, we also critiqued the potential for impact case studies to become "controlled narratives" that prioritise quantifiable metrics over meaningful community impact. We discussed the challenge of measuring success by external standards rather than those of the communities themselves.

We touched upon the fantastic initiative called the "Hidden REF" which challenges the "hero narrative" and forefronts other voices as part of the impact case study narrative. It really resonated that true impact, as Ashley mentioned, is sometimes where your name is never mentioned again – it's about empowering communities and creating sustainable change that continues long after the research project ends.

Responsible Knowledge Exchange and reciprocity and sustainability: more than just buzzwords

We touched on the “Responsible Knowledge Exchange, Engagement and Impact Project” by Oxford University, led by Professor Alis Oancea, Aileen Marshall Brown, and Juliet Scott Barrett. They’ve outlined six principles for responsible KE: Integrity and ethics; Equity, diversity, and inclusion; Sustainability and reciprocity; Contextual sensitivity; Sharing and openness; and Support and recognition.

We focused on reciprocity and sustainability – the meaningful and lasting benefits for communities and environmental sustainability. Reciprocity isn't just about transactional exchange; it's about building genuine relationships and finding ways to give back to the communities that grant us access to their lives and knowledge. Ashley’s small acts of kindness, like caring for children or volunteering at a Women's Centre, highlight the importance of human connection and respect in research. These “small” actions are, in fact, really key because no matter how big the project is it all starts with the small.

Sustainability extends beyond environmental concerns to include the long-term impact of our research. We questioned funding structures and the tendency to "decentre" local knowledge by requiring researchers based in the global North to be at the core of projects. How can we ensure that our research empowers local communities and doesn't just perpetuate existing power imbalances?

Taking the conversation forward

This discussion didn't provide neat answers, and that's precisely the point. It's about sparking reflection and encouraging us to grapple with these complex issues in our own work, something I’d like to invite you to also do. 

What does ethical impact mean to you? How can you ensure research impact is meaningful and sustainable? How can researchers and enablers of research impact challenge the existing narratives around research and create a more equitable and just system of knowledge production?

I'd love to continue this conversation and invite you to share your thoughts and experiences in the comments below.