Reflections on ethical issues: a study of how urban women dealt with impoverishment

This paper argues for the pursuit of social science research as a moral enterprise. The paper builds on the experience gained by the author during a 14-months post-graduate fieldwork project in a provincial town of Masvingo in southern Zimbabwe. Central to the research process is the need for partic...

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Main Author: Muzvidziwa, Victor N.
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Language:English
Published: 2016
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Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/11408/1228
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author Muzvidziwa, Victor N.
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Muzvidziwa, Victor N.
author_sort Muzvidziwa, Victor N.
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description This paper argues for the pursuit of social science research as a moral enterprise. The paper builds on the experience gained by the author during a 14-months post-graduate fieldwork project in a provincial town of Masvingo in southern Zimbabwe. Central to the research process is the need for participation, integrity and responsibility on the part of researchers. In deciding what is appropriate behaviour by the researcher there is need to take into account both local and global expectations and demands. Good and effective researchers should possess what Adjibolosoo terms positive human factor attributes such as integrity, loyalty, accountability, responsibility, motivation, honesty, wisdom, vision, dedication, commitment, creativity, skills, knowledge,understanding and trustworthiness. Ethically driven research entails establishing caring relationships and a concern for the well being of respondents. The paper also raises issues pertaining to the problematic of a man studying women, the politics of fieldwork and research as a political process, how a researcher positions himself/herself in order to engage policy makers and the powerful. Research it is argued should be founded on the basis of mutual respect. This means the avoidance of deception, dishonesty and pretence in fieldwork settings. A researcher without a caring ethic will find it hard to understand fieldwork challenges and observations.Ethical caring is the foundation on which trust between researcher and respondents is built in the course of research.
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spelling ir-11408-12282022-10-15T19:51:26Z Reflections on ethical issues: a study of how urban women dealt with impoverishment Muzvidziwa, Victor N. #PLACEHOLDER_PARENT_METADATA_VALUE# Ethical issues, urban women, impoverishment This paper argues for the pursuit of social science research as a moral enterprise. The paper builds on the experience gained by the author during a 14-months post-graduate fieldwork project in a provincial town of Masvingo in southern Zimbabwe. Central to the research process is the need for participation, integrity and responsibility on the part of researchers. In deciding what is appropriate behaviour by the researcher there is need to take into account both local and global expectations and demands. Good and effective researchers should possess what Adjibolosoo terms positive human factor attributes such as integrity, loyalty, accountability, responsibility, motivation, honesty, wisdom, vision, dedication, commitment, creativity, skills, knowledge,understanding and trustworthiness. Ethically driven research entails establishing caring relationships and a concern for the well being of respondents. The paper also raises issues pertaining to the problematic of a man studying women, the politics of fieldwork and research as a political process, how a researcher positions himself/herself in order to engage policy makers and the powerful. Research it is argued should be founded on the basis of mutual respect. This means the avoidance of deception, dishonesty and pretence in fieldwork settings. A researcher without a caring ethic will find it hard to understand fieldwork challenges and observations.Ethical caring is the foundation on which trust between researcher and respondents is built in the course of research. 2016-05-05T16:03:20Z 2016-05-05T16:03:20Z 2004 text http://hdl.handle.net/11408/1228 en Nordic Journal of African Studies;Vol.13,No.3; p302–318 open
spellingShingle Ethical issues, urban women, impoverishment
Muzvidziwa, Victor N.
Reflections on ethical issues: a study of how urban women dealt with impoverishment
title Reflections on ethical issues: a study of how urban women dealt with impoverishment
title_full Reflections on ethical issues: a study of how urban women dealt with impoverishment
title_fullStr Reflections on ethical issues: a study of how urban women dealt with impoverishment
title_full_unstemmed Reflections on ethical issues: a study of how urban women dealt with impoverishment
title_short Reflections on ethical issues: a study of how urban women dealt with impoverishment
title_sort reflections on ethical issues: a study of how urban women dealt with impoverishment
topic Ethical issues, urban women, impoverishment
url http://hdl.handle.net/11408/1228
work_keys_str_mv AT muzvidziwavictorn reflectionsonethicalissuesastudyofhowurbanwomendealtwithimpoverishment