Chapter 1: Research Ethics for Social Impact

This chapter addresses the question of how might research ethics be conceptualised for social impact. In response, we posit that ethics in research should not be confined to considerations of processes but be extended to the objectives and the implicit choices of the research, and the researcher’s role in shaping these. Put differently, we seek to broaden the conceptualisation of research ethics beyond institutional compliance by arguing that researchers have a responsibility to consider the implications of the knowledge they create and need to turn a critical eye to the implicit assumptions that underpin their practice. This argument is developed through a public health exemplar that examines the link between HIV treatment and labour productivity for a cohort of tea plantation workers in Kenya. We begin by outlining the research programme, undertaken by a group of Boston University scholars, and then develop a framework for a broader view of research ethics. We evaluate the case of HIV+ tea workers in Kenya using this framework and elaborate a thesis for future ethical research practice.