Abstract
Action research (AR) involves one or more researchers and a client organisation. Many guidelines for and reports of the research method have been published. However, the ethical issues associated with AR have been largely neglected. Our review of the AR literature found that ethical dilemmas and their resolution are rarely and inconsistently reported. Stimulated by this neglect and our personal experiences, we aim to raise awareness and understanding about the ethics of planning, conducting and reporting AR. We identify and discuss four issues of concern that merit specific ethical attention when conducting AR: collaboration, competence, persistence and consent. We draw on these four issues in an analysis that augments the principles and criteria for canonical AR (CAR), recently reified as Integrated Action Research (IAR). Our guidance includes an additional principle of AR and 10 associated criteria to address the ethics of AR participation.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 573-594 |
| Number of pages | 22 |
| Journal | Information Systems Journal |
| Volume | 32 |
| Issue number | 3 |
| Online published | 18 Aug 2021 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - May 2022 |
Research Keywords
- action research
- ethics
- research collaboration
- research consent
- research method
- research principles
Publisher's Copyright Statement
- COPYRIGHT TERMS OF DEPOSITED POSTPRINT FILE: This is the peer reviewed version of the following article: Davison, R. M., Martinsons, M. G., & Wong, L. H. M. (2022). The ethics of action research participation. Information Systems Journal, 32(3), 573-594
- which has been published in final form at https://doi.org/10.1111/isj.12363. This article may be used for non-commercial purposes in accordance with Wiley Terms and Conditions for Use of Self-Archived Versions. This article may not be enhanced, enriched or otherwise transformed into a derivative work, without express permission from Wiley or by statutory rights under applicable legislation. Copyright notices must not be removed, obscured or modified. The article must be linked to Wiley’s version of record on Wiley Online Library and any embedding, framing or otherwise making available the article or pages thereof by third parties from platforms, services and websites other than Wiley Online Library must be prohibited.