There is widespread debate about ethical practice in social research with most social
researchers arguing that situational relativist approaches are appropriate for
resolving the ethical issues that emerge. In this article, we draw on research
conducted on an ESRC-funded study of informed consent in social research to explore
the ethical issues that are raised when conducting research with one’s
peers. The study involved conducting focus groups and telephone interviews with
academic and non-academic researchers. The ethical issues emerging from the study
related to consent, data ownership and the management of confidentiality and
anonymity. Participants’ responses to these issues and the ways that we
managed them are discussed. We conclude by exploring the implications of this study
for research more generally and argue that the increased regulation of research
needs to enable researchers to attend reflexively to the social context in which
consent takes place.
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