FOLK2114 philosophy

Read the below scenarios and discuss the potential ethical implication(s) of each scenario. What are the ethical research responsibilities associated with these scenarios? What course of action might you take in these situations? Think also about the potential implications of these situations on your ability to carry out your research in the community.  Use the AAA Principles of Professional Responsibility, the American Folklore Society Statement on Ethics, and the Tri-Council Policy Statement on Ethical Conduct to help you justify your decision and course of action.

In a few short paragraphs for each scenario, write up the potential implications of the ethical dilemma, and what course of action you might take to address the situation, keeping in mind the above documents relating to ethics.

Case # 1: “Hot” Gifts

You move into an urban ghetto in order to study strategies for survival used by low-income residents. During the first six months of research, you are gradually integrated into the community through invitations (which you accept) to attend dances, parties, church functions, and family outings, and by "hanging out" at local service facilities (laundromats, health centres, recreation centres, and so on). You are able to discern that there are two important survival tactics used by the community residents which you cannot engage in: the first is a system of reciprocity in the exchange of goods and services (neither of which you feel you have to offer), and the second is outright theft of easily pawned or sold goods (clothing, jewelry, sound systems, TVs, and so on).

One night, a friend from the community stops by "for a cup of coffee" and conversation. After you have been talking for about two hours, the friend tells you that she has some things she wants to give you. The friend goes out to her car and returns with a box of clothing (your size) and a gaming system. You are a bit overwhelmed by the generosity of the gifts and protest your entitlement to accept such costly items. Your friend laughs and says, "Don't you worry, it's not out of my pocket," but then becomes more serious and says, "Either you are one of us or you aren't one of us. You can't have it both ways." Suspecting that the items you are being offered are probably "hot" (e.g., stolen), you are afraid that if you wear the clothes in public, or have the gaming system in your apartment, you could be arrested for "accepting stolen goods." At the same time, you know that "hot" items are often given to close friends when it is observed that they could use them. Further, this gift implies that reciprocal giving (not necessarily in-kind) will be expected from you at a later date.

Dilemma: Should you accept or refuse the proffered gifts? Discuss what course of action you might take in this situation.

Case # 2: Protecting Research Subjects?

You are conducting research on family relationships and child rearing, hoping to make important research contributions to the area of evolving cultural definitions of parent-child relationships among the subpopulation you are studying.  During a visit to one of your main informant’s homes––a family whom you have become very close with––the youngest daughter tells you that her step-father frequently “babysits” her when her mother and the rest of the family is out food shopping, and that he asks the girl to take off her pants so they can play a game together. You recall that the girl’s mother has frequently said that her daughter likes to tell “fibs” and “stories.”

Dilemma: Should you report the step-father to the local authorities? Discuss what course of action you might take in this situation.

Case # 3: The Unexpected Guest

One night you receive a frantic knock on your door. You open it to find James, the 16-year-old son of one of your most important informants in your active research project on traditional music in a small agricultural village. James is visibly upset, and tells you that he has been kicked out of his family home because he came out to his parents as gay that evening. He says his parents are furious at him, and he doesn’t believe they will ever accept him. Many other people in the village are also homophobic. James also tells you that he is feeling suicidal, and asks if he can stay the night with you as he has nowhere else to go, and no one else to turn to. You invite James in and get him set up on your sofa, monitoring him closely through the night to make sure he doesn’t harm himself. Two-weeks later, James is still sleeping on your sofa, surrounded by dirty dishes, chocolate bar wrappers, and smelly laundry. Your small field research budget can’t support living expenses for more than yourself, and you’ve noticed that you are starting to become the subject of negative comments and gossip within the small community. You’re worried that you are jeopardizing your acceptance in the community by befriending and housing James.

Dilemma: Should you tell James it’s time to move on and find other living accommodations? Discuss what course of action you might take in this situation.

Case # 4: Witness to Murder

You have been conducting fieldwork in a Southeast Asian community for 18 months. Your house is ideally located on the edge of the village plaza, allowing you to readily observe daily activities that take place in the plaza. In addition to gatherings of women who share food preparation tasks and talk, and groups of men working individually on carvings, the plaza is regularly a gathering place for men at night.

One night while you are writing up some field notes in your house, you are distracted by loud, seemingly argumentative discussions in the plaza. When the noise of the argument reaches a high pitch, you decided to investigate the situation. Just as you step from your doorway, you see one of the men in a group of five angrily raise his machete and deliver a deadly blow to another in the group, named Hoang. Stunned silence falls over the other three men, as they watch their companion quickly bleed to death before their eyes. Moments later people from the other homes begin moving into the plaza in response to the commotion. Mournful crying and wailing begins throughout the village. The family members of the dead man carry him to their home and began funeral preparations. You return to your house and write a detailed description of the events of the night of Hoang’s death in your notebook which contains a running record of village activities.

The next evening, Hoang is buried. The man who had dealt the deadly blow is allowed to participate in the funeral and to make a death payment to the family of the deceased. Two days after the funeral, three regional policemen come to the village, having heard about the recent death. As part of a new governmental program designed to reduce blood feuds, the regional authorities now regularly seek to arrest and jail people who are involved in such killings.

They begin questioning villagers in an attempt to determine if Hoang had been "murdered."

Dilemma: (1) Since you know the police will question you, should you quickly tear out and destroy the pages in your notebook where the events were recorded? (2) When questioned by the police should you, like the other villagers, plead ignorance concerning the killing? Discuss what course of action you might take in this situation.

Case # 5:  To Medicate or Not to Medicate?

You have received a National Institute of Mental Health grant for research in Papua New Guinea, a region known for high rates of malaria transmission. As part of your personal gear, you take along a considerable amount of medication, which your doctor has prescribed for use, should you find yourself in an active malaria region. Later, after settling into a village, you became aware that many of the local people are quite ill with malaria.

Dilemma: Since you have such a large supply of medication, much more than is needed for your personal use, should you distribute the surplus to your hosts? Discuss what course of action you might take in this situatio