234 Ethics in Higher Education: Values-driven Leaders for the Future
Hong Kong.^1 However, a legal system provides only minimum
standards that should be adhered to – “it can never be appropriate to
defend proposed practice solely on the basis that it is legal” (Masson,
2004, p. 43).
The ethical clearance mechanism should address the potential ethical
issues in a research design. The major ones are discussed briefly below.
- Data Confidentiality and Anonymity: Based on the principles of
privacy and respect for autonomy, research data involving
personal information should be kept confidential. This, however,
does not apply to situations that may violate legal regulations,
such as when a participant reports being a victim of crime or
he/she is at risk of physical or psychological harm that presents a
moral duty or even legal responsibility for researchers to disclose
details to relevant bodies. - Informed Consent: Participants should be adequately informed
about the details of a study, and their right to withdraw from it
without any negative consequences, before seeking their consent
to take part in the research. Attention needs to be paid to
vulnerable groups who may lack the capacity or competence to
give consent. Such examples include children or young people,^2
and dependency relationships between the researcher and
participants (e.g. teacher-student relationships) in which the
participants may find it hard to express their wish not to
participate in a study. In cases that involve the permission of
parents or gatekeepers (e.g. teachers or work-supervisors) in
order to reach the participants, their permission should not
override the wishes of the participants.
1
Latest version on 25 April 2013, available at: http://www.pcpd.org.hk/english/
data_ 2 privacy_law/ordinance_at_a_Glance/ordinance.html
In the case of Hong Kong, those who are below 18 years old are categorized as
non-adults and their participation in research requires parental permission.