Facebook study: a little bit unethical but worth it?

Journal of Bioethical Inquiry
John Kleinsman, Sue Buckley

Abstract

Human research involving the use social media raises many of the same issues as medical research. The publication of a paper in June 2014 investigating "emotional contagion" received extensive publicity recently because of the methods used. The approach involved manipulating the "News Feeds" of Facebook users, but the participants were not informed of their involvement in the research and had no opportunity to consent or opt out. Some commentators have argued that although it would have been preferable to obtain informed consent, it was not strictly required because the research was unlikely to cause significant harm and was important. This paper argues that the research was unethical because (i) it should have been overseen by an independent ethics committee or review board and (ii) informed consent could and should have been obtained. Regardless of the importance of any research and irrespective of its likelihood to cause harm, the ethical principles that have evolved since the 1940s should be followed in all instances when experimental research is being carried out on human participants.

References

Jun 4, 2014·Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America·Adam D I KramerJeffrey T Hancock
Jul 18, 2014·Nature·Michelle N Meyer

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Citations

May 29, 2015·Journal of Bioethical Inquiry·Leigh E Rich, Michael A Ashby
Oct 31, 2016·The Lancet. Psychiatry·Becky InksterPeter Jones
Aug 7, 2019·Nature·Graeme D Ruxton, Tom Mulder
Nov 14, 2019·Journal of Medical Internet Research·Justine DolHolly O Witteman
Apr 18, 2020·Yearbook of Medical Informatics·Octavio Rivera-RomeroMiguel Ángel Mayer
Dec 22, 2017·Computational Social Networks·Marco Cremonini, Francesca Casamassima
Oct 19, 2017·AIDS and Behavior·Alastair van HeerdenMary Jane Rotheram-Borus
May 20, 2020·Animals : an Open Access Journal From MDPI·Elizabeth Riddle, Jill R D MacKay
Jun 8, 2017·Journal of Medical Internet Research·Su GolderAndrew Booth
Oct 12, 2018·Behavior Research Methods·Seth FreyMaarten W Bos
Nov 25, 2020·Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America·Rose McDermott, Peter K Hatemi
Dec 23, 2021·Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America·Susan T Fiske

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