Procedural Ethics for Participatory Research: Field-Specific Dilemmas and Recommendations From Researchers, Co-researching Community Partners and the REC Overseeing a Community-Academic ADHD Research Project
Philosophical assumptions of the participatory worldview collide with the biomedical framework on which procedural ethics have been grounded. Consequently, obtaining or approving ethical clearance for participatory research can be challenging. Researchers may resent being pressed to water down parti...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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SAGE Publishing
2025-07-01
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| Series: | International Journal of Qualitative Methods |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1177/16094069251364622 |
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| author | Sarah Cilia Vincenti Paulann Grech Michael Galea Vince Briffa Sarah Borg Spiteri Maria Cachia Sharon Del Bene Jennifer Briffa Desjardins Naomi Galea McKay Mel McElhatton Herma Privitera Brightwell Marie Claire Saliba Erica Schembri Rachel Spiteri |
| author_facet | Sarah Cilia Vincenti Paulann Grech Michael Galea Vince Briffa Sarah Borg Spiteri Maria Cachia Sharon Del Bene Jennifer Briffa Desjardins Naomi Galea McKay Mel McElhatton Herma Privitera Brightwell Marie Claire Saliba Erica Schembri Rachel Spiteri |
| author_sort | Sarah Cilia Vincenti |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Philosophical assumptions of the participatory worldview collide with the biomedical framework on which procedural ethics have been grounded. Consequently, obtaining or approving ethical clearance for participatory research can be challenging. Researchers may resent being pressed to water down participatory features to suit institutional requirements. Co-researching community partners’ trust towards academia may be compromised at the outset if the REC comes across unappreciative of their tacit knowledge or is insensitive to their self-determination appeals. REC members may be conflicted over unfamiliar dilemmas. A report detailing effective collaboration during design and approval of a protocol for a photovoice study aimed to empower ADHD women is provided. This collaboration culminated in study plans which satisfied one and all’s requirements. In an attempt to include co-researcher voice in publications and promote more positive perceptions of REC oversight in participatory scholarship, recommendations by academic and community partners and the REC chair who is overseeing this project are advanced. Many lessons were drawn from this positive experience by those who engaged in it. Ethicality, in the context of participatory research is certainly not straightforward, but its pursuit need not be a battlefield. It requires the mobilization of values embedded in the participatory worldview and, akin to the research itself, holds transformative potential. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-9b1f65e76d41499dbc96e8f6a41672a0 |
| institution | DOAJ |
| issn | 1609-4069 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-07-01 |
| publisher | SAGE Publishing |
| record_format | Article |
| series | International Journal of Qualitative Methods |
| spelling | doaj-art-9b1f65e76d41499dbc96e8f6a41672a02025-08-20T02:56:43ZengSAGE PublishingInternational Journal of Qualitative Methods1609-40692025-07-012410.1177/16094069251364622Procedural Ethics for Participatory Research: Field-Specific Dilemmas and Recommendations From Researchers, Co-researching Community Partners and the REC Overseeing a Community-Academic ADHD Research ProjectSarah Cilia VincentiPaulann GrechMichael GaleaVince BriffaSarah Borg SpiteriMaria CachiaSharon Del BeneJennifer Briffa DesjardinsNaomi Galea McKayMel McElhattonHerma Privitera BrightwellMarie Claire SalibaErica SchembriRachel SpiteriPhilosophical assumptions of the participatory worldview collide with the biomedical framework on which procedural ethics have been grounded. Consequently, obtaining or approving ethical clearance for participatory research can be challenging. Researchers may resent being pressed to water down participatory features to suit institutional requirements. Co-researching community partners’ trust towards academia may be compromised at the outset if the REC comes across unappreciative of their tacit knowledge or is insensitive to their self-determination appeals. REC members may be conflicted over unfamiliar dilemmas. A report detailing effective collaboration during design and approval of a protocol for a photovoice study aimed to empower ADHD women is provided. This collaboration culminated in study plans which satisfied one and all’s requirements. In an attempt to include co-researcher voice in publications and promote more positive perceptions of REC oversight in participatory scholarship, recommendations by academic and community partners and the REC chair who is overseeing this project are advanced. Many lessons were drawn from this positive experience by those who engaged in it. Ethicality, in the context of participatory research is certainly not straightforward, but its pursuit need not be a battlefield. It requires the mobilization of values embedded in the participatory worldview and, akin to the research itself, holds transformative potential.https://doi.org/10.1177/16094069251364622 |
| spellingShingle | Sarah Cilia Vincenti Paulann Grech Michael Galea Vince Briffa Sarah Borg Spiteri Maria Cachia Sharon Del Bene Jennifer Briffa Desjardins Naomi Galea McKay Mel McElhatton Herma Privitera Brightwell Marie Claire Saliba Erica Schembri Rachel Spiteri Procedural Ethics for Participatory Research: Field-Specific Dilemmas and Recommendations From Researchers, Co-researching Community Partners and the REC Overseeing a Community-Academic ADHD Research Project International Journal of Qualitative Methods |
| title | Procedural Ethics for Participatory Research: Field-Specific Dilemmas and Recommendations From Researchers, Co-researching Community Partners and the REC Overseeing a Community-Academic ADHD Research Project |
| title_full | Procedural Ethics for Participatory Research: Field-Specific Dilemmas and Recommendations From Researchers, Co-researching Community Partners and the REC Overseeing a Community-Academic ADHD Research Project |
| title_fullStr | Procedural Ethics for Participatory Research: Field-Specific Dilemmas and Recommendations From Researchers, Co-researching Community Partners and the REC Overseeing a Community-Academic ADHD Research Project |
| title_full_unstemmed | Procedural Ethics for Participatory Research: Field-Specific Dilemmas and Recommendations From Researchers, Co-researching Community Partners and the REC Overseeing a Community-Academic ADHD Research Project |
| title_short | Procedural Ethics for Participatory Research: Field-Specific Dilemmas and Recommendations From Researchers, Co-researching Community Partners and the REC Overseeing a Community-Academic ADHD Research Project |
| title_sort | procedural ethics for participatory research field specific dilemmas and recommendations from researchers co researching community partners and the rec overseeing a community academic adhd research project |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1177/16094069251364622 |
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