Identify and discuss the ethical issues related to the respondents and the general public that may be of concern in qualitative research

What will be an ideal response?

Ethical issues related to the respondents and the general public are of primary concern. These issues include:
1. Disguising the purpose of the research and the use of deceptive procedures - All indirect procedures require disguising the purpose of the research, at least to some extent. Often, a cover story is used to camouflage the true purpose. This can not only violate the respondent's right to know but also result in psychological harm. To minimize such negative effects, the respondents should be informed up front that the true purpose of the research is being disguised so as not to bias the responses. After completing the research tasks, debriefing sessions should be held in which the respondents are informed about the true purpose and given opportunities to make comments or ask questions. Deceptive procedures that violate respondents' right to privacy and informed consent should be avoided.
2. Videotaping or audio-taping the respondents without their prior knowledge or consent - Ethical guidelines suggest that respondents should be informed and their consent obtained prior to the start of the proceedings, preferably at the time of recruitment. Furthermore, at the end of the meeting, participants should be asked to sign a written statement conveying their permission to use the recording. This statement should disclose the true purpose of the research and all people who will have access to the recording. Participants should be given an opportunity to refuse signing. The tapes should be edited to completely omit the identity and comments of the respondents who have refused.
3. Comfort level of the respondents - During qualitative research, particularly during in-depth interviews, respondents should not be pushed beyond a point so as to make them uncomfortable. Respect for the respondent's welfare should warrant restraint on the part of the moderator or interviewer. If a respondent feels uncomfortable and does not wish to answer more questions on a particular topic, the interviewer should not aggressively probe further.
4. A final issue relates to the general public and deals with the ethics of using qualitative research results for questionable purposes or misusing the findings of qualitative research.