SUBJECT, PROJECT OR SELF - THOUGHTS ON ETHICAL DILEMMAS FOR SOCIAL AND MEDICAL RESEARCHERS

In this paper we address an important but sadly neglected area; namely some of the ethical issues which arise for social and medical researc hers in the course of their work. Our concern is for a wide spectrum o f researchers using the full range of social research methods from sma ll-scale in-depth qualitative work through to large scale quantitative studies. The unifying factor is that they all have an element of cont act and hence the potential for interaction between the researcher and the subject. In our experience (with the exception of some ethnograph ers) few if any social researchers will have had adequate training abo ut the interactional aspects of their work. As a result they are unpre pared for the ethical dilemmas and conflict of loyalties which they mi ght experience. To understand these issues it is important to look at the context within which such research is undertaken.