Qualitative Research Ethics in the Big-Data Era

WORKSHOP: Qualitative Research Ethics in the Big-Data Era

This workshop will be a one-day workshop on the ethics of qualitative research in the era of big data to identify what research has been done on this topic, and where additional research is needed. The

workshop will yield a set of guidelines from existing research to guide university institutional review boards, research funding organizations, and data aggregating organizations. The workshop will bring together invited participants from academic institutions, international aid and research organizations and data aggregating organizations. The workshop will facilitate an international discussion about necessary guidelines and organizations dedicated to promoting responsible conduct of science for qualitative research and big data.

The workshop will contribute to improved understanding of issues arising from ethical management of big qualitative datasets in academia and in other national and international institutions that finance and conduct qualitative research. The workshop will advance a set of recommendations and guidelines for accountable management of qualitative data, providing a strategic resource for qualitative research managers worldwide. It will also buttress continued production of robust evidence and in-depth knowledge that contextual qualitative research strategies are designed to provide. The workshop will generate at least three outputs: (1) a white paper on the challenging issues and guidelines, (2) a special issue journal and (3) teaching resources for qualitative researchers.